The Detroit Pistons started their offseason with major murmurs around the league surrounding Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson. Although being mentioned in trade rumors, both players have stayed put, and the Pistons made other solid offseason moves to shore up the roster.
Remodeling the shooting guard position
The Pistons used the offseason to reconstruct their shooting guard position completely. Although Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was slowly progressing, the Pistons allowed the 24-year-old to walk in free agency because they acquired another shooting guard in his place.
In a trade with the Boston Celtics, the Pistons dealt Marcus Morris for defensive ace Avery Bradley. While Caldwell-Pope is a streaky shooter with solid defense, Bradley is more efficient and an elite perimeter defender. Additionally, he is also an extremely underrated rebounder for his size.
Through free agency, the Pistons also signed Langston Galloway, who figures to play backup to the newly-acquired Bradley. Galloway has become a reliable bench scorer and should be part of the regular rotation throughout the entire season.
Through the 2017 NBA draft, the Pistons selected Luke Kennard with the 12th overall pick, which now gives them three very solid shooting guards.
Tweaking the frontcourt
When the Pistons acquired Tobias Harris a couple of years ago, it seemed they would improve but have done the complete opposite.
Part of the problem was that a frontcourt consisting of Harris and Morris was undersized, which hurt them defensively.
Now that they have traded Morris to the Celtics, the Pistons will promote Jon Leuer to a full-time starter. To maintain frontcourt depth, Detroit signed Anthony Tolliver to become Leuer’s backup. With just those simple minor moves, the Pistons have solidified their roster.
Their starting lineup looks more balanced, and their rotations should be crisper.
It has been a decent offseason for the Pistons, who should be in contention for a playoff spot again. They kept their two star players intact and tweaked the core unit just a bit to have better stability.
Roster outlook
PG: Reggie Jackson/Ish Smith SG: Avery Bradley/Langston Galloway/Luke Kennard/Luis Montero SF: Tobias Harris/Stanley Johnson/Reggie Bullock PF: Jon Leuer/Anthony Tolliver/Henry Ellenson C: Andre Drummond/Boban Marjanovic/Eric Moreland Coach: Stan Van Gundy
Offseason Grade: B-
