Spotlight shifts to rookies as intriguing Pistons training camp gets underway

Just like that, the Pistons are back in training camp.

After almost nine months without playing a competitive game, the Pistons are rounding back into form by starting mandatory COVID testing and doing one-on-one individual workouts with a player and a coach this week.

With all the new additions to the roster, there aren’t many certainties and probably more questions than answers, but one of the intriguing things to watch is the role that first-round pick Killian Hayes will play.

Hayes is only 19, but having played three seasons professionally, including last season in Germany, he could be positioned to start early in the season or to at least get some significant playing time.

“That's one of the goals for this year is to kind of force-feed some of the young players, as well as compete to win. That's the challenge in itself but a good challenge with the talent skill sets that these young men have is to give them as much as they can handle,” coach Dwane Casey said Tuesday via teleconference. “One advantage he has is playing in the pro league in Europe, playing an NBA style of game against men in the league over there, so he has a step ahead.

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“Is there going to be a learning curve? Yes. We expect it, but he's a smart young man. He's got a passing skill set and he's got a shooting skill set that improved last year over the season. So, we do expect him (to play a lot), and he got two great guys to learn from in Delon Wright and also Derrick Rose.”

It’s not a foregone conclusion that Hayes, who is 6-foot-5, will have to come off the bench, though it’s a possibility that they’ll choose not to overwhelm him, especially early in the season. There’s a school of thought that Rose, who is 32 and has the medical team monitoring his playing time, could be on a minutes restriction again.

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That’s where the trade to acquire Wright could pay big dividends for the Pistons, in giving them another experienced option and in Casey’s preference to have multiple ball-handlers on the court in some of his lineups.

“We'll see how it goes. I haven't sat down and talked with Derrick about his minutes restrictions or what his numbers are. I don't think anything has changed from last year,” Casey said. “It makes it a little bit easier but any time you have to take a talented young man like Derrick off the floor, that's difficult. But again, one thing we do have is a good stable of point guards to play with him.

“And vice versa: he can also play with Killian or play with Delon if we go to a three-guard set.”

From all indications, Hayes will be the centerpiece for general manager Troy Weaver’s roster restoration and getting the Pistons back to playoff contention. Much of that development will depend on the first-round picks: Hayes, Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey, who already has begun working with his new mentor, Blake Griffin, in Los Angeles.

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With the start of training camp this week, the young players already have been entrenched in the Pistons’ playbook and learning as much as they can ahead of the start of the preseason on Dec. 11 and four exhibition games in an eight-day span.

That’s a challenge for Casey and the coaching staff, in assembling the new roster and getting everyone up to speed quickly on the defensive and offensive nuances in the system and ready to play so quickly.

“The workout part, there's 24 hours in a day, the last time I checked. I'm not into the load management thing with young players — older players, I understand but we'll find time for young players to get (work) in,” Casey said. “Before practice, after practice, coming back at night, we have night sessions for young players, so that developmental process will be a big part of it.”

It’s not as complicated as reinventing the wheel, but Casey recognizes they’ll have to be quick to teach some things and go slowly to ensure comprehension of other things. Much of that will be staying with what Griffin and Rose are comfortable with and staying with the system that has been successful for Casey in previous years.

“We'll do a lot of the same set plays with those guys, their pet plays and go-to plays for Blake and for Derrick, but we'll keep it simple for the young players,” Casey said. “Killian has run some sophisticated things in Europe in the Euro League over there so it'll take him a little while to get used to the terminology.

“Saddiq used to the NBA game and Isaiah, but they're smart kids and they pick up things well, so it should be quicker but we want to get them off the ground slow, with a lot of our actions. Defense is going to be defense: bust your butt, guard your man, guard your position. Understand when you're the help guy — it's pretty standard.”

Rod.Beard@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @detnewsRodBeard