National Basketball Association

Improved Defense is Key for Detroit Pistons Growth

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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An added focus on defense will determine whether or not the Detroit Pistons will take another step forward in an improved Eastern Conference. Offensively, this team should be able to compete with most teams on a nightly basis. The real concern is whether or not the Pistons defensively will bring the necessary energy nightly.

Stan Van Gundy has stroked his young Detroit Pistons’ competitive defensive mentality early in training camp.

Per Pistons.com:

“(Reggie Jackson) has really worked hard at it. He and Tobias (Harris) both, noticeably different mentality, at least through the first week of camp,” Van Gundy said. “A noticeably different mentality in terms of their defense. The other guys are playing real hard, too, but those are two guys I’ve noticed a real difference. I noticed a real difference in Andre’s (Drummond) mentality defensively. Getting back earlier, making his calls earlier, more active defensively.”

Too often last year, opponents would blow by perimeter defenders which would put second level defenders in a compromised position. The defensive rotations was lax and weak side recovery was often too slow. The poor recoveries caused the Pistons to give up a ton of points in the paint.

The Pistons ranked 21st in points-in-the-paint allowed by a defense (43.9 per game). The only other playoff teams to rank lower were the Oklahoma City Thunder (44.4 per game) and the Golden State Warriors (44.5 per game). But those teams played at a much faster pace than the Pistons do.

For the Detroit Pistons to be mentioned as a top-tier team, the defense must limit the amount of easy baskets they give up. If the team defense can bring the same energy to the defensive side as they do offensively, it its not unrealistic given the Pistons length and athleticism on the wings, the Pistons could cut that down to around 40 points in the paint per game.

Cutting four points may not seem like a big improvement, but the Pistons had a +0.2 average scoring margin per victory last year. If four more points are taken away at the defensive end, that difference jumps to +4.2 per game. At that rate, the Pistons would be ranked in the top five of the entire league (based off of last year’s numbers).

Tobias Harris has also recognized the importance of grinding and competing on the defensive end. He spoke would the poor defense after the game. “If we were able to get a few more stops out there, we could’ve been running more, and those are even more high-percentage shots. That’s something we know, as a unit. The thing about it is our offense is going to be there. We have a lot of good players and different skilled players. So that’s going to say a lot for us, as a group, to really emphasize defense and have that defense-first-type attitude to bring us along even faster. That’s going to be real key for us.”

The Pistons have the youth and athleticism to turn games around by forcing turnovers and blocking shots. If Andre Drummond becomes a legitimate defensive presence in the middle of the paint, the Pistons would be able to get the ball up the court to Reggie Jackson (Ish Smith). This would allow the wings to fill lanes and float to open perimeter areas before the transitioning defense has time to recover.

Last year in the NBA Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers made the Golden State Warriors work offensively for every basket. The Cavaliers defensive presence, paint control, and aggressive fouls threw off an offensive juggernaut. By game 6 and game 7, the Warriors were a shell of what they had been throughout the entire season.

The Cavaliers, like Pistons teams of the past, proved a team doesn’t have to be better offensively than their opponent. Instead, teams must be better defensively if the team wants to get to elite status.

The next step in the Detroit Pistons’ maturation process will come at the defensive end of the floor. It will be interesting to see the defensive growth of the 2016-17 squad.