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NBA Powerless Rankings: What to do what to do what to do

By Matt Rutkowski

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - JANUARY 23: The Oklahoma City Thunder stand for the National Anthem before the game against the Brooklyn Nets on January 23, 2018 at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images)
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - JANUARY 23: The Oklahoma City Thunder stand for the National Anthem before the game against the Brooklyn Nets on January 23, 2018 at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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DETROIT, MI – JANUARY 21: Andre Drummond
DETROIT, MI – JANUARY 21: Andre Drummond /

3. The Detroit Pistons

There was a moment in the past where everything was in its right place.

Those days are gone now. When Spencer Dinwiddie hit his game winning shot over the swinging hand of Andre Drummond, the Pistons fell below .500 for the first time this year. They have lost five straight and are now a game behind the Philadelphia 76ers for the final playoff spot. Reggie Jackson looked good at the start of the season, and now Reggie Jackson is injured. Little Caesers arena is a very tall arena, and it looks even weirder on the inside when there aren’t people there. Langston Galloway tried to curse somebody but accidentally said the curse backwards and has cursed himself. Anthony Tolliver recently relived the moment where Michael Beasley tried to absorb all of his power through his knee and has had to play through flashbacks every night. Avery Bradley has been playing with his eyes closed “for funsies.” Eric Moreland is employed.

So now what? This is a crossroads. Honestly, this is about where the Pistons looked to be before the year: a bit below .500, fighting for the last playoff spot, and altogether underwhelming. The difference is that before they got here, they instilled a bit of hope.

So do they treat this as a bump in the road and assume that their true form is a team closer to the No. 4 – 5 seed range and that an extra player is all they need to bump them up?

Or do they clean house and start over like has been hinted at since the beginning of last season? There’s no obvious answer, and they kind of both suck in their own special way.

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