Despite having the worst record in the NBA last season, the Detroit Pistons fell to the fifth overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. Since selecting Cade Cunningham with the first overall pick in 2021, the Pistons had the same fate in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Who the Pistons would select was truly unknown in what many called a weaker NBA Draft. When it was their time to pick, the Pistons shocked even the player they selected: Ron Holland. I was in a post-draft interview with Holland, where even the G League product admitted he had no clue that Detroit was an option heading into a night that would change his life.
The first pick from Trajan Langdon was seen as a home run swing, a raw high-upside player with higher potential to strike out. After all, the Pistons had a desperate need for shooting and spacing after winning just 14 games, and that is not an area Holland helps in — shooting under 30 percent from deep in the G League.
Most expected Holland to be brought along slowly, likely not to be in the Pistons rotation his first season, and to take a while to develop his raw skillset.
The exciting 19-year-old proved that to be completely wrong.
Ron Holland is having a strong rookie season, even with a limited role
Holland has played in all 73 of the Pistons' games, en route to helping them achieve a 41-32 record with the possibility of tripling their previous season win total. The raw box score numbers aren't eye-popping: Holland averages 6.6 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game on respectable efficiency for a rookie at 55.7 true shooting.
Shooting concerns remain, as Holland is shooting just 22.5 percent from deep, but that's not what matters right now for the rookie and the Pistons. With the help of shooting coach Fred Vinson, the Pistons hope the shot will come around a few years later.
What matters for Holland is what everyone saw in the Pistons' 136-130 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. Cunningham was a late scratch in this game, and despite New Orleans being a poor team this season, the Pelicans gave the Pistons a run for their money.
The Pistons didn't have their offensive engine, so figuring out where the offense would come from was a concern. And then Ausar Thompson was in foul trouble all night and only played nine minutes in this game. And when the Pelicans took a six-point lead at the end of the third quarter, it looked like the Pistons could falter against a much worse team than them.
But the Pistons' rookie took over and ensured that would not happen. Holland scored 20 points in the second half, missing only one of his nine shot attempts and getting to the free-throw line seven times, finishing with 26 points, six assists, and five rebounds.
His second-half numbers look like a full game's stats: 20 points, three rebounds, one assist, one steal, and zero turnovers. This was a crucial game for the Pistons, but it wasn't the end of a blowout when teams cleared their benches.
The Pistons are in a heated race with the Milwaukee Bucks and Indiana Pacers for the fourth seed in the East. Only two games separate the three teams. Dropping games against Flagg Drive teams in the middle of a push for home-court advantage in the playoffs is not allowed.
The Pistons' rookie understood the assignment and showed up big-time. Holland's explosive athleticism, nonstop motor, threat in transition, and incredibly soft touch around the rim were all on display in this game against the Pelicans.
It's not just this game, either. Holland has provided this type of burst at random parts of the season, but has had a more sustained impact over his last five games. In the Pistons' previous five games, where they are 4-1, Holland is averaging 12.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.0 steals, with a 71.9 true shooting percentage.
Langdon and head coach J.B. Bickerstaff have done a fantastic job of doing two things at once: bringing Holland along relatively slowly, much slower than any previous first-round Pistons pick, while also putting just enough on the rookie's plate for them to get real game reps in essential games to grow from.
Holland has endeared himself to Pistons fans, not just because of his recent play but also because of his attitude, toughness, and Bad Boys mentality toward opponents. He is always ready to scrap whenever an opponent wants to try him or one of his teammates. In Detroit, that's the quickest way to become beloved.
No one saw the Pistons being this good this season. Even more so, I don't think anyone saw Ron Holland having any level of impact on the Pistons being this good in just his rookie season!
In a season that has also seen Cunningham, Thompson, Jalen Duren, Jaden Ivey, and Isaiah Stewart grow and cement themselves in the Pistons' young core, Holland is another piece that is proving, relatively early, to be a unique piece of Detroit's future puzzle.