19 games in, almost a quarter of a season... And the Pistons are still respectable! Past half-decade-plus we've lost that status by the tenth game! Already doubled our 30-game-win-total from last season. 11 more games? Maybe they win 6 or 7... They could be at 16 or 17 wins through 30 games. I don't want to get too excited, maybe that's downright crazy talk for a Pistons fan, expecting 16 or 17 wins through 30?
But I keep thinking... just keep your heads above water until Jennings is ready to come back, stay strong through 40-45... He can play himself into shape by game 60-65, and then they've got that boost when they need to climb over the other teams for seeding. I think that the starters are going to be dead come the playoffs... but the bright side is that they're mostly young legs, and guys like Dre have proven that they'll do what it takes to improve each off season where they need to (yeah yeah, I know: he should have gotten around to free throw shooting by now).
This season's grinder will be good for the young guys, and they'll feel like a million bucks next season after Van Gundy has had another off-season to fill out his bench (and assuming they're not missing key pieces again).
But I keep thinking... just keep your heads above water until Jennings is ready to come back, stay strong through 40-45... He can play himself into shape by game 60-65, and then they've got that boost when they need to climb over the other teams for seeding. I think that the starters are going to be dead come the playoffs... but the bright side is that they're mostly young legs, and guys like Dre have proven that they'll do what it takes to improve each off season where they need to (yeah yeah, I know: he should have gotten around to free throw shooting by now).
This season's grinder will be good for the young guys, and they'll feel like a million bucks next season after Van Gundy has had another off-season to fill out his bench (and assuming they're not missing key pieces again).