The Departures
I thought about doing “Goodbye” posts for each outgoing player but figure that would be a bit overdone. Maybe if I do them right as it happens, but regardless, with the new additions greeted we will start doing all sorts of season preview stuff whether player by player or stuff about rotations or whatever. Before that, lets do a few posts here looking back at the season that was, starting with the players that are leaving.
Programming Note:
It is indeed my genuine intention to write something every single weekday. I think I will try to add on a more wide-ranging deal on one of the weekend days, like a bunch of bullet points about whatever sports stuff has crossed my mind that week.
Once the season starts this will be easy pickings with my previews and recaps, HOWEVA, until the season starts there are many days to fill. At least some of those will be individual player previews (each player on the roster will get one just like I did back in the olden days) but I will need more. So anyone with any suggestions for an article, Pistons related or not (even outside of hoops) please toss them my way. I am trying to commit to this so any assistance with avoiding writer’s block in mid-august would be appreciated.
Non Hoops stuff?
I will almost certainly do some college football and at least occasionally chime in on hockey, baseball, and soccer. I have minimal interest in NFL. We will see. Once again, I realize that my biggest weakness as a content person has been an inability to stay consistent with what I’m doing beyond the previews and recaps (and even those have been miserably inconsistent over the past couple of years) so I want to stick to it even if that means branching out into random otherness.
There will never be politics discussed in these spaces. That is my solemn promise to you. We do this as a place to not have to see the world burning around us and I’m an asshole on the internet who watches too much basketball so you shouldn’t care what I think about it anyways.
Anyways, onto the post.
Goodbye Jerami Grant:
The biggest and almost most predictable departure. After two seasons of scoring points in a miserable offense Jerami Grant is off to Portland in exchange for a late first-round pick which was then flipped to the Knicks for the Duren pick and the salaries of Kemba Walker, Alec Burks, and Nerlens Noel.
Impact on the roster:
The Pistons now have a gaping hole at the 4 spot, at least in terms of proven commodities. Perhaps Stew really is up for the change or maybe Isaiah Livers makes good on his short stint of success last season, but the team is effectively left with 0 genuine power forwards on the roster. Beyond that, it is highly likely that Grant’s shooting will be missed.
Was it the right move to move on?
Yes. Based on what I heard, the Pistons missed a bit by not trading him at the deadline and his value would’ve only declined further had they held onto him. In the end a desperate Knicks team allowed it to work out alright, but there was little reason to keep Grant around. He was an expiring contract, is old enough that he doesn’t really fit the Pistons timeline, and there is even some question as to his fit with the Pistons young players in the long run.
Hindsight grade of his time in Detroit: B-
Would’ve been a C- had the Knicks not been so desperate that the Pistons could swing the pick from Portland (well, actually the Bucks) into Duren and such but that did happen. Grant’s time in Detroit was largely uneventful, he made the Pistons slightly more watchable but not enough to really matter and obviously the team still sucked regardless. The Pistons probably could’ve done better asset-wise by just taking on bad salary instead of signing Grant (remember to include the dead-cap they took on to have space for him) but netting a lottery pick and a couple of other potentially tradable pieces in Burks and Noel is a return that cannot be complained about.
Grant’s tenure gets bonus points because during his first few months in Detroit it was genuinely astounding to watch him drive past everyone in the NBA until teams realized he couldn’t do much if he didn’t have a fairly clear run-way, but those few months were still exceptionally fun which counts for something.
His tenure is subtracted points for how insufferable some of the fans were about buying into some of the more absurd team talking points about him being a franchise player.
Happy trails Jerami, even if its different for various reasons, you get to hold the Brandon Jennings honor of having a brief stretch of making the Pistons fun when they otherwise were miserable and like Jennings you got a decent return on your way out.
So long Frank Jackson:
Seemed like a guy who could’ve gone either way. He was cheap enough that the Pistons could’ve brought him back and been fine, in addition, his shooting (theoretically) would’ve provided value to the team. Despite that, the Pistons made the decision to not pick up his $3million team option. Jackson has yet to sign with another team (as far as I know, if someone has info on this go ahead and correct me.)
Impact on the roster:
Minimal. Draft-night ensured that. Between Jaden Ivey and Alec Burks arriving he would’ve been buried at the end of the bench either way. It’s possible the Pistons will miss him if they take some injuries to the back-court but that’s just about it.
Was it the right decision to move on?
Probably? Jackson got his chance and unfortunately, a guy whose primary value was supposed to as a shooter shot just 30% from deep. He still had his moments in individual games but the total result just wasn’t good enough. He is too small to be an plus defender as an off-guard and doesn’t have the required ball-skills to play the point in the NBA which left him as the wrong sort of tweener. There was a universe where he became Langston Galloway but Galloway never sniffed such a poor shooting season in his career.
There were pretty much two reasons to argue that it would’ve been better to keep him.
He was hurt early in the season and it isn’t clear that he ever got right, it would be somewhat painful if he lands on another team and looks much better.
The Pistons did opt to keep Saban Lee and to be blunt, I would’ve rather taken the chance on Frank finding his shot back than Saban being capable of playing point-guard in the NBA.
Hindsight grade of his time in Detroit: C-
Gets a C because he did show some flashes so it was worth giving him a shot, but flaming out keeps it from being any higher. Frank had enough moments and had a clear enough theoretical fit that he was worth taking the flyer on so no one should complain about him getting a look.
I wish you good fortune in the wars to come Frank.
再见 Luka Garza
The Pistons opted not to retain Garza by not picking up his option.
Impact on the roster
None. Like at guard, the Pistons have a glut of centers so Garza would’ve been miles away from playing time had he been retained.
Was it the right decision to move on?
Yes. It was silly to draft Garza and even sillier to convert him to a full NBA contract last season. Its a end of bench guy so it doesn’t really matter but its somewhat baffling that someone in the Pistons front office thought Garza had a shot of being a viable NBA player. I get why fans found him endearing, this was a mistake the whole way though.
Hindsight grade of his time with the Pistons: F
Even considering where he was drafted and what he made and that it doesn’t matter etc etc etc. This was never going to work and was bad from the start.
Anyone else worth mentioning?
I don’t think so.