Detroit Pistons offseason review

As the NBA offseason plows ahead we’re taking some time to pause and assess the work each team is doing, building for the present and future. Today, we’re looking at the Detroit Pistons.

Despite getting swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Detroit Pistons are a team on the rise. As he enters years three of his tenure as head coach and president of basketball operations, Van Gundy is finally working with a roster that is entirely his. So what did Van Gundy add this summer?

Inputs: Henry Ellenson (PF, NBA Draft pick No. 18); Michael Gbinijie (SG, NBA Draft pick No. 49); Boban Marjanovic (C, signed for three years, $21 million); Jon Leuer (PF, signed for four years, $42 million); Ish Smith (PG, signed for three years, $18 million)

Outputs: Jodie Meeks (SG, traded to the Orlando Magic); Anthony Tolliver (PF, signed with the Sacramento Kings); Steve Blake (PG, unsigned); Cameron Bairstow (PF, unsigned); Joel Anthony (C, unsigned)

Retained: Andre Drummond (C, signed for five years, $130 million)

Pending: None

The Pistons did well for themselves in the draft. Ellenson was ranked by many scouts in the top-10 and could eventually develop into a very good big man with a stretchy jumper. Gbinijie is an experienced shooter who could provide some bench depth right off the bat.

In free agency, the Pistons added two big men who should play big roles for them this season. Marjanovic is a literal giant but also very skilled. He was incredibly effective for the San Antonio Spurs in limited minutes last season and should be a reliable back-up for Andre Drummond. Leuer is a competent team defender and very good three-point shooter who should help add additional spacing around the Drummond-Reggie Jackson pick-and-roll game.

Of course, the most important move was locking down Drummond. He is the franchise player and knowing he is committed to the team for the next half-decade should allow the Pistons to move forward with a clear focus.

3 Big Questions

To really dig deep on Detroit’s offseason, I’m leaning on friends with some Pistons expertise. Braden Shackelford (@shack_attack03) and Duncan Smith (@DuncanSmithNBA) are the co-editors for FanSided’s Piston Powered. Dan Feldman (@DanFeldmanNBA) is a writer for NBC’s Pro Basketball Talk.

Braden, Duncan, and Dan were nice enough to help out by answering three big questions about Detroit’s offseason.

Jon Leuer, great signing or incredible signing?

Braden Shackelford: It was a great signing. Leuer offers the size and spot up shooting that Stan Van Gundy has been coveting at power forward behind Tobias Harris. At 6-10 there are also thoughts that Van Gundy could use Leuer as a center in some lineups to give the Pistons’ five shooters on the floor.

The Pistons essentially got a Ryan Anderson-type player for half the cost. In the NBA world we are living in, where money is flying around left and right, the ability to save on a younger and comparable talent like Leuer is big.

Duncan Smith: It was a great signing. For the price the Pistons paid to get Leuer, they hit on two of their biggest needs coming into the offseason — shooting and a backup big man. The Pistons took top-10 volume in shots from three-point range last season and had bottom-10 accuracy, so any and all additions to the roster that can shoot are going to be a big bonus.

With the spending fury that the NBA underwent, the Pistons did really well to fill all of their needs for a fraction of what the rest of the league spent, all while giving themselves the flexibility needed to sign Boban Marjanovic.

Dan Feldman: Fine signing. He can play with Andre Drummond or behind Drummond, increasing the Pistons’ versatility. He’s also NBA-ready, potentially unlike Henry Ellenson, another stretch four/five. But Leuer came at a fairly sizable price. This is Stan Van Gundy’s M.O.: Get the best player he knows he can sign and pay what it takes to get him. And I’m fine with that. Upgrade the team now with only minor opportunity costs in the long run.

What should we expect from Henry Ellenson this year?

Braden Shackelford: Although he didn’t shoot as high of a percentage as the Pistons’ would have liked in Summer League, Ellenson was impressive overall. I think he will be in the rotation all season, but as to how much he plays will really depend on how quickly he grasps the concepts in training camp. I expect Ellenson to be receiving 10-20 minutes per game — closer to 10 initially. I think a reasonable stat-line for Ellenson is 7-10 points per game and 4-6 rebounds per game by season’s end.

Duncan Smith: I think Ellenson will be eased into the rotation, albeit the back end of it. I think that camp and the preseason will set an early tone for him going into the regular season, so if he plays well and catches on quickly he’ll probably get a longer look once the season gets started.

His size and strength are going to be assets so I expect that as he gets acclimated to the NBA he’s going to look pretty good out there.

Dan Feldman: Van Gundy usually likes to play his top rookie a decent amount, but this is a crowded big-man rotation with Drummond, Leuer, Aron Baynes and Boban Marjanovic. Marcus Morris and Tobias Harris will also play plenty at power forward. If Ellenson wants minutes, he’ll have to improve his outside shot after shooting 29 percent on three-pointers at Marquette.

With an increasingly crowded frontcourt, how do the new additions fit into a cohesive rotation?

Braden Shackelford: Ellenson and Leuer will likely split minutes as the backup power forward. Ellenson will dictate what that split is with how quickly he adjusts to the NBA game. As for Boban Marjanovic, he likely comes in as the third center this year, but the Pistons will still use him. The thought behind the Marjanovic signing is that he will assume the backup center role that Aron Baynes — who will likely decline his player option at season’s end — currently holds.

Between Ellenson, Leuer, and Marjanovic, the Pistons have the deepest frontcourt — and best fitting — that they’ve had in the Stan Van Gundy era. In fact, this is the deepest team that Stan Van Gundy has had.

Duncan Smith: New addition Boban Marjanovic looks like a third center this year behind Andre Drummond and Aron Baynes, with Boban set to slide into the backup role after the 2016-17 season as Baynes is expected to opt out of his contract.

Leuer will be the primary reserve four, and Ellenson will slot in behind him. If Ellenson excels, he will likely chew into Leuer’s minutes and we’ll see if a competition can develop there between the two newcomers.

Dan Feldman: There’s a nice dichotomy between Baynes/Marjanovic and Leuer. Baynes/Marjanovic can handle bigger centers, Leuer weaker ones. Mostly, Leuer will likely play power forward, which limits Harris’ minutes at the position when Morris rests. I’m not sure that’s ideal, but if it’s not, Detroit can always reduce Leuer’s role. Ellenson? He’s probably squeezed out for a while. One last #hottake: Marjanovic supplants Baynes’ role by the ends of the season.

Balancing the pick-and-roll

The pick-and-roll is a huge part of the Detroit Pistons offense — specifically the combination of Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson. According to the NBA’s play type statistics, the Pistons had 2,382 possessions last season finished by either a ball-handler or screener in the pick-and-roll, fourth-most in the NBA.

However, in terms of the results of those pick-and-rolls, the Pistons were one of the most unbalanced teams in the league.

Nearly three-and-a-half Detriot pick-and-roll possessions were used by the ball-handler, for every one that was finished by the screener. One of the reasons for this was a lack of spacing. The Pistons ranked 16th in catch-and-shoot three-point percentage last season. Teams were often able to crash down on Andre Drummond rolling to the rim, without fear of getting punished from the three-point line.

Adding frontcourt shooting like Leuer and (theoretically) Ellenson provide should help keep bigs from coming down and tagging Drummond as he rolls off his screen. In addition, Marjanovic was a very good pick-and-roll threat for the Spurs last season, as was Leuer (although more of the pick-and-pop variety). Both in how they complement Drummond and Jackson, and in how the provide alternatives, Detroit’s roster additions should definitely make their pick-and-roll game harder to stop.

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