News & Views: Pistons staring bleak history in the face as season winds down
Mike CurtisDetroit — With 12 games remaining, the Pistons are nearing the end of another season of disappointment in the win-loss column.
The Pistons currently have the worst record in the league, at 16-54, and if they finish the season without another victory, it'll tie a franchise record for their worst record, matching the 16-66 mark set by the 1979-80 Pistons.
Detroit recently snapped an 11-game skid with a 20-point win over the Pacers on Monday, but the winning didn't last longer than 24 hours with Tuesday's 20-point defeat at Washington.
The team's depth is depleted, with most of their rotation players sidelined due to injury or illness, and aside from their trade-deadline and buyout-market additions, James Wiseman and RJ Hampton, 10-day signee Eugene Omoruyi has become one of the bright spots as the season wanes.
Detroit should be able to re-tool the roster this summer with another high draft pick and notable free-agent addition, which means this off-season will be another pivotal moment in their ongoing rebuild.
This week’s News & Views looks at the Pistons’ journey to the bottom of the final standings and where they will land in the draft.
News: The Pistons are going to finish with one of the worst records in the league.
Views: If somebody would’ve told me the Pistons would have the worst record in the NBA (16-54) with 12 games remaining in the season, I probably wouldn’t have believed them, given their new additions from last offseason. The expectation level for this young Pistons team wasn’t the floor of the NBA standings, but their ceiling was closer to a potential play-in team, if healthy. “If” was the key word.
Losing Cade Cunningham after 12 games put a damper on the season, which the Pistons haven’t recovered from since. They’re among several young teams with the four worst records in the NBA, including Houston (16-52), San Antonio (18-50) and Charlotte (22-49).
It may not seem like it now, but the Pistons appear to have the most upside of any other struggling teams. They have a cornerstone player in Cunningham, promising young players in Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren, veteran scorers in Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks and cap space to bring in another proven player. Based on their needs, that player should fall into the two-way wing spot.
Rebuilds don’t last forever, and the Pistons are optimistic that their fortunes will turn around sooner rather than later.
News: The Pistons are likely going to have another top-five draft pick.
Views: With the Pistons destined to finish with one of the three-worst records in the NBA, they will have a 14% chance to land the No. 1 pick in this year’s NBA Draft. All eyes will be on Victor Wembanyama as the presumed top overall pick, but the draft will get interesting for whoever receives the No. 2 pick. G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson has been projected as the favorable selection, but the play of Alabama forward Brandon Miller has some draft experts believing he could go earlier than anticipated.
The Pistons will be in a good position as long as they’re in the top three, because the next batch of prospects yields question marks. After Miller, the next-best forward available is likely Villanova freshman Cam Whitmore, and his ball-handling and explosiveness are impressive but his shooting has been inconsistent this season. Regardless, all eyes in Detroit will be on the pinballs when the Draft Lottery is held on May 16.
News: The Pistons signed Eugene Omoruyi to a second 10-day contract.
Views: The Pistons coaching staff and front office were so impressed with Omoruyi's production during his first 10-day contract that he was awarded a second on Monday morning.
The 6-foot-7 forward has shown the intangibles at the wing spot that temporarily fills the Pistons' needs. He's a capable shooter, a willing passer, he sacrifices his body and he's a competitor. Those attributes were on full display in Tuesday's loss to the Wizards, when Omoruyi dropped off a beautiful pass to Rodney McGruder, and one play later, he found himself in pain after he tweaked his left ankle.
Omoruyi went to the locker room for treatment, but returned in the second quarter and continued to make contributions despite a banged-up ankle. He's averaging 9.4 points and 3.2 rebounds in seven games since joining the team, and he'll have a good chance to earn a contract for the rest of the season, especially considering Detroit's amount of able bodies.
Twitter: @MikeACurtis2