Detroit Pistons stock watch: Rookie PG continues ascent while veteran shooter falls

Detroit Free Press

Omari Sankofa II
 
| Detroit Free Press

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The Detroit Pistons had one of their worst performances of the season on Sunday, coming out of the gate cold against the New York Knicks and losing by 19 points at home. 

Based on just that game, nearly everyone’s stock is down. But even as losses have piled for the Pistons in recent weeks, they’ve seen some encouraging signs.

Here’s who’s trending up and down based on the last two weeks of February:

Stock up

The fourth-year point guard is beginning to hit his stride with the Pistons. His 17-point, six-assist outing Friday against the Sacramento Kings felt like a breakout performance for him. It was his best scoring night since he scored 17 with the Knicks on Dec. 1, 2019. His dunk in the second quarter, which made rounds on NBA Twitter, was his first in exactly a year. 

“My last was against Charlotte, I seen it because it popped up on my Facebook memories this morning,” Smith said Saturday. “It’s been exactly a year, but it was kinda like an energizer for the team, it felt like. We started to make a run at that time, our energy picked up on both ends. Just allowed us to be a little more competitive, I feel like.” 

In his last three games before Sunday, Smith averaged 14.0 points, 4.7 assists, 1.3 steals and a block while shooting 52.7% from the field and 45.5% from 3. Until Delon Wright returns, likely after the All-Star break, from his groin strain, it appears the starting point guard spot is Smith’s to lose. 

Saben Lee

The emergence of the rookie point guard this past week has been a welcome surprise for the Pistons. Lee is averaging in his last four games 13.5 points, 3.3 assists and 1.8 steals in 26 minutes per game while shooting 60% from the field. Prior to last week, he had only played spot minutes and appeared in eight games. 

Very few defenders in the NBA can keep up with his first step, and Lee has done a good job at finding his shooters after drawing defenders on drives. He went 4-for-4 from deep against the Orlando Magic and New Orleans Pelicans last week, though he didn’t attempt a 3-pointer against the Kings on Friday and Knicks on Sunday.

“Saben this week, to go from not playing at all on a two-way contract, not having the G League and then stepping in playing in the NBA against (De’Aaron) Fox, who is one of the quickest point guards in the league,” Casey said Saturday. “Both of those young men got baptized by fire, Dennis not as much because he’s been in the league. With Saben, he’s done an excellent job. He’s a student of the game, he’s got a high basketball IQ and the future is going to be bright.” 

Josh Jackson

Other than Jerami Grant, Jackson has arguably been Detroit’s best and most aggressive scorer in the month of February. He reached double figures in all but one game and has buoyed the second unit offensively. From Feb. 14 until Feb. 27, he averaged 16.9 points per game on 44.8% field goal shooting, with 46% of his shots coming at the rim, according to Cleaning the Glass. 

“With that second unit, he’s gotta be a spark plug,” Casey said. “He’s kinda our go-to guy with good decisions in that second group. He’s very capable of creating his own shot. He and I talk about it all the time, we watch film together on making the right decisions. That’s the key. He looks good… he’s learning.” 

Stock down

Wayne Ellington

The veteran sharpshooter had a bounceback game on Sunday, knocking down four of his six 3-point attempts. It was his first time making more than two 3-pointers in a game since Jan. 28. 

Ellington was one of the hottest shooters in the NBA in January, but was shooting just 21.2% from 3 in February before his outing against the Knicks. Casey opted to move him to the bench Sunday in favor of Svi Mykhaiiuk, and Ellington ended up having the better night. He and the Pistons are hoping his shooting woes are finally behind him. 

Holding leads

After Sunday’s blowout loss to the Knicks, the Pistons have now lost six of their last seven games. Their two home losses over the weekend were a regression, as they had previously won four of their last five games at Little Caesars Arena. 

Quarter-to-quarter consistency has been an issue for the Pistons all season. They led the Pelicans by 13 last Wednesday, but lost by 10. They led the Magic by 14 last Tuesday, but lost by nine. They led the Grizzlies and Chicago Bulls by 20-plus points the week before, and lost both games. lLearning how to close out wins has been an ongoing process.

Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa. The Free Press has started a new digital subscription model. Here’s how you can gain access to our most exclusive Pistons content. Read more on the Detroit Pistons and sign up for our Pistons newsletter.

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