Well, sometimes life gets busy and certain things get put on the back burner. When I was writing this blog I was just going to school and working part time. Thanks to my writing here, I was able to get a job writing for Last Word on Hockey covering the Red Wings. I was blessed enough to be there for just over a year putting out over 20 pieces of content while working and going to school. However last year, I was also blessed to get an internship working for an indoor football team called the West Michigan Ironmen. I worked with different aspects of the media for the team. I was then promoted this year to the team’s broadcaster as well as creating more of the social media posts for the team. We had a successful season that ended one game short of the championship and I graduated from Michigan State. With all the free time I’ve now acquired I figured it was time to dive back into this and try to get back into writing and creating content once again. So without anymore of my nonsense, let me break down how I’m feeling about the Pistons draft and stay tuned tomorrow when I do the same for the Red Wings

Going into the draft I was hoping and expecting that the Pistons would likely stay put or move up slightly from their 15th pick.However the night before the draft they were able to trade Jon Leuer to the Milwaukee Bucks for Tony Snell and the 30th overall pick in the draft. Getting a rotation wing and another first (albeit the last pick in the first round) for our third-string center felt like a steal for the Pistons.

With 2 first round picks I thought that the chances of the Pistons moving up became even more likely. The Hawks pick at 10 seemed like a reasonable place to jump to, and would let the Hawks pick up a mid-round pick to replace the 17th they sent to New Orleans for four and then another at 30.

The Pistons are a team with a huge need of good wing play and shooting and there were several names that I thought could make sense for them either moving up to 10 or staying at 15. Cam Reddish, Tyler Herro, Romeo Langford, Nassir Little, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker all felt like players that could interest the Pistons and be decent fits with the team.

Reddish, Herro, and Langford were all gone by the time the Pistons were on the clock at 15. Nassir Little seemed to make the most sense given the team’s needs and his surprising availability at 15. However, another top-10 mocked player had also fallen to them and they ultimately chose Sekou Doumbouya with the 15th selection.

Doumbouya, who’s name might be the most exciting in the draft other than another Pistons pick who I will mention slightly later, was born in Guinea and grew up in France where he played professionally since he was 15. Many early comparisons for him were of a member of Dwane Casey’s former team, Pascal Siakam. Watching some of his highlights last night, I saw a player that was also picked at 15 with a hard to pronounce name; Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Sekou stands 6’9″ with a standing reach of nearly nine feet. He looked explosive and athletic especially in transition. His body also projects to fill out a bit as Giannis has which could make him LeBron-esque in transition. That is not to say he will become either of those players, but those are the guys whose body and play-style seem to match up with at this point.

Of course no prospect is without flaws and Doumbouya’s seem to be more effort and focus based than a lack of physical ability. That would be preferable to me, because you can teach discipline, focus, and effort but if you aren’t born athletic you likely won’t develop it.

Another concern was just how young he is. He won’t turn 19 until December which makes him the youngest player who was available in this year’s draft. I see him as a guy who next to Thon Maker off the bench have some of the most length and potential athletically, but also will make your stomach turn watching them on the defensive end.

The Pistons next pick was supposed to be at 30 thanks to the trade with Milwaukee, but Ed Stefanski and co. chose to send the pick to Cleveland for $5 million in cash and 4 second round picks. Many fans were upset with trading the pick and wished that Detroit had chosen to go with Kevin Porter Jr. who would end up going at that pick. I think trading the pick actually makes sense. First, because the Pistons have limited cap space and the 30th pick would have required nearly $2 million to sign him. Second, if KPJ was the choice at 30 passing on him based strictly off of his behavioral concerns seems like the smart thing to do. The Pistons had just one in the next four years and looked like they were going to be restocking the cupboard that Stan Van Gundy had emptied during his tenure. The front office had other ideas however.

They ultimately ended up trading two of those future picks and pick 45 to move up to 37 and took Deividas Sirvydis out of Lithuania. On draft night he was compared to Luke Kennard if Luke was 6’8″. He is a potential draft and stash option which is not something I remember the Pistons doing much of. They usually liked to take college seniors who might not be starters in the NBA but they hope can carve out careers. Both Spencer Dinwiddie and Khris Middleton have done so as Piston second round picks but not with Detroit unfortunately.

The third and final pick of the draft for the Pistons was point guard Jordan Bone out of the University of Tennessee. A local reporter from Knoxville had reported that Bone had a promise from the Pistons, but when they traded away 45 it seemed as though that promise had been broken. His brother was addressing the crowd who had come out to support Jordan when finally his name was called. It was definitely one of the most special moments in a night that was filled with him.

Regarding who he is as a player, I saw someone compare him to a taller, more athletic Ish Smith. Ish has flourished in most of his time as the leader of the Pistons second unit, and with his impending free agency jumping back in at the end of the draft to pick him up seems like a smart call. With that being said however, Detroit is likely to use their MLE to get their back-up point guard and will give Bone a chance to learn behind a few guys and hopefully be ready for a role of his own soon.

Overall I think the draft was really good for the Pistons. They took a big swing on a project with skills and followed it up with another young guy they can stash in Europe if they want and then an experienced college point guard. I would have maybe preferred more shooting, but I expect that to be their main focus in the upcoming free agency. Also a quick shout-out to Matt McQuaid, a fellow Michigan State Alum, who was signed as an UDFA by the Pistons and will join their Summer League roster. He is a great 3-and-D guy who lacks athleticism. If he continues to shoot well and defend I could see him eventually becoming a rotation piece for an NBA team even if that team isn’t Detroit.