The Pistons' season is a tale of two extremes. First, there's the impeccable regular season where Detroit ran the Eastern Conference from start to finish. The young group finished 60–22, the third-best record in franchise history. That success meant that expectations were put on Detroit for the first time in nearly two decades, and the Pistons nearly collapsed in the playoffs if it weren’t for an incredible 3–1 comeback against the No. 8 seed Magic in the first round.
From that point, the Pistons rattled off five wins in a row. They eliminated the Magic and got out to a 2–0 lead on the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference semifinals. It looked like the bad juju had washed away, but Cleveland continued its home dominance over the playoffs and won three straight: Two in Cleveland and then Game 5 in Detroit, which was the first road playoff win this year for the Cavs. Detroit faced elimination once again and played like it had nothing to lose once again with a big win in Game 6 to force a decider back home. Unfortunately for the Pistons, that’s when the heroics in elimination games ran out. With a trip to the Eastern Conference finals at stake, Cleveland blew out Detroit at Little Caesars Arena, which marked a gutting end to an incredible season, leaving what felt like plenty more on the table.
Still, 60 wins says something in an organization that has three Larry O'Brien trophies on display within its practice facility, especially when this iteration of the Pistons boasts a core of four standouts age 24 or younger. Cade Cunningham has already developed into one of the NBA's brightest young stars and is the straw that stirs the drink for Detroit's offense. Jalen Duren, who doesn't turn 23 until next season, received his first All-Star nod this season and made a serious leap this season as one of the NBA's most dominant big men near the hoop. Ausar Thompson was a finalist for the Defensive Player of the Year award and is in line for an extension as an elite athletic wing across the league. Then there's Isaiah Stewart, "Beef Stew," the first man off the bench. He's debatably the NBA's best rim protector, even if you include Victor Wembanyama. Plus, Stewart brings Detroit the tough-nosed mentality that the city is known for—an element that can't be taught on a basketball court.
Tobias Harris continued as the veteran presence this young team needed, and offseason acquisitions Duncan Robinson and Javonte Green provided the shooting to support Cunningham, even if more floor spacing would help moving forward. Plus, Detroit had Daniss Jenkins, who turned from a two-way player to a real contributor over the course of the season, help steady the ship down the stretch as Cunningham dealt with a collapsed lung.
Here's a look at Detroit's season from start to finish, with a letter grade for both its extraordinary regular season and the playoff exit in the second round:
Regular season: A+
Before we get into the postseason letdown, we must acknowledge what this team did over the regular season. The Pistons won 60 games after they had a franchise-worst 14 wins just two years ago. There's a new coach and front office since that dreadful year, but the franchise's young core remains the same.
Detroit has only won 60 games three times in its history. The first came in the 1988–89 season when the franchise won its first title and the second came in 2005–06 during the "Goin' to Work" era when the likes of Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups, Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince were still on the team.
Now, the group led by Cunningham is right up there with what the first Bad Boys title team did and the team of Wallace and Billups that dominated the East at the start of the century. For the current day Pistons, though, the regular-season success has yet to translate to the postseason.
Cunningham averaged 23.9 points, 9.9 assists and 5.5 rebounds per game as the best playmaker in the NBA that's not named Nikola Jokić. Duren averaged a career-high 19.5 points along with 10.5 rebounds per game as a dominant pick-and-roll partner for Cunningham. Thompson and Stewart shined as elite defenders that help set the tone which resulted in Detroit's impeccable 108.9 defensive rating, the best in the NBA aside from the Thunder.
Playoffs: C
Detroit’s postseason looked like a big, fat F at one point as the Pistons found themselves in a 3–1 hole to the No. 8 seed Magic in the first round. The young group rallied and avoided an embarrassing first-round exit with a dramatic comeback. After the Game 4 loss to Orlando, Detroit rattled off five wins in a row as Cunningham starred and averaged the most points per game in the playoffs (29.3) across the NBA, and that includes Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The Pistons led Cleveland 2–0 in the second round, but what followed was three straight losses as the early postseason bugs came back to bite the young group. Facing another elimination game, Detroit won Game 6 and handed the Cavs their first loss of the playoffs at home. Duren had his best performance of the postseason in Game 6 with 15 points and 11 rebounds, but he wasn’t effective in the decider with just seven points in 26 minutes. Harris stepped up over the playoffs and made up for the drop off from Duren between the regular season and playoffs. But even he disappeared over the last two games of the Pistons’ season with six points in Game 6 and five points on 0-for-6 from the field in Game 7.
The sudden turnaround helped avoid a drastically disappointing postseason performance. Before the season, the likely goal for the franchise was to win a playoff series for the first time with Cunningham as its leader. The Pistons accomplished that, but a second-round loss after they controlled the series at one point and had momentum heading into Game 7 feels like they left something on the table.
This offseason will be interesting for Detroit as president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon looks to bring additional complementary offense to surround Cunningham. Duren looked like a maximum player after his first All-Star campaign as he enters restricted free agency. With the playoff performance, what his next contract looks like is a pivotal point for this iteration of the Pistons as a potential Eastern Conference contender for years to come.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Pistons Season Grades: What to Make of Detroit's Playoff Exit After 60-Win Season.
