The Detroit Pistons saw their four-game winning streak snapped against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday. At this point, Pistons fans care significantly more about injury updates on Cade Cunningham than the scores of individual games. Especially since the Pistons have all but clinched the No. 1 seed in the East with ten games left in the regular season, all eyes are on Cunningham and his collapsed lung diagnosis.
On the court, however, the Pistons have a few big question marks. One of those is the play of Ron Holland. The second-year player continues to trend in the wrong direction, and things have gotten worse in the last two games.
Ron Holland's Struggles Have Cost Him Rotation Minutes
After playing only five minutes against the Lakers on Monday, Holland had another tough showing on Wednesday. He finished with two points, two rebounds, an assist, and a steal on 1/3 shooting in 12 minutes of action and didn't see the court in the fourth quarter and overtime. For the second straight game, the Pistons lost Holland's minutes by six, which was a major factor in the one-point loss.
In fact, Holland's minutes have been a struggle for the Pistons for a while. In the last 12 games, Detroit has lost these minutes by a total of 44 points. A big reason for these struggles is the small forward's lack of offensive production.
Holland hasn't been able to take a step forward in terms of shooting. Not only is he 2/18 from 3-point land in this span, but he is also at a miserable 22.2 percent from downtown for the season. He doesn't get guarded out there, either, allowing defenses to pack the paint and make things difficult for the rest of the Pistons offense.
It's not like Holland is a plus on other aspects of half-court offense. He has more turnovers than assists in the last 12 games. He is an effective transition player, but those opportunities will be harder to come by in the playoffs.
If Holland were the only perimeter player for the Pistons with a shooting deficiency, it could be easier to make things work for JB Bickerstaff. However, Ausar Thompson is also a shooting-challenged wing. With Jalen Duren also operating inside the arc, the Pistons can't find a place for Holland in the half-court. The 20-year-old small forward is an exceptionally poor fit with Thompson, and regardless of how good his defense is (and it is very good), it's not enough to earn minutes on a team with title aspirations like the Pistons.
One has to wonder whether Holland is losing Bickerstaff’s trust. After averaging over 20 minutes per game before the All-Star break, the former lottery pick is averaging less than 15 minutes in the last seven games. If this trend continues, we might see Holland further marginalized in the playoffs, creating serious offseason questions for the front office.