BOSTON — James Wiseman began shaking his head as he discussed his defensive performance in his debut game with the Detroit Pistons.
Head coach Dwane Casey had kind words for the 2020 No. 2 overall pick, who was visibly winded after tallying 11 points and five rebounds in 23 minutes and 30 seconds of action — his first NBA minutes since Feb. 6. Gary Payton II’s failed physical with the Golden State Warriors stopped Wiseman from practicing with his new team until Tuesday, five days after the deal was initially agreed to, and two days after the trade was formally approved. It was his lone practice before Wednesday’s game.
His lack of activity over the last week negatively impacted his conditioning, but Casey praised his activity on defense. Wiseman disagreed.
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“I can do better,” Wiseman said in the locker room after the 127-109 loss to the Boston Celtics. “My wind got to me a little bit. I’mma do way better once I get my conditioning up and stuff.”
It spoke to Wiseman’s eagerness to make a good first impression with his new team after falling out of favor with his old one. He described the previous six days as a “blur.”
But he’s now a Piston, officially. And despite his critical self-evaluation after the game, he showcased several skills that made him one of the most tantalizing talents of his draft class and a longtime favorite of general manager Troy Weaver. It wasn’t a perfect debut, but it was solid. And Wiseman was confident that, as he gets his conditioning back, he’ll be able to show more on both ends.
“He’s just getting back to himself, knocking off some rust,” teammate Isaiah Stewart, a five-star recruit in high school with Wiseman. “He looked like the Wiseman I played against in high school. Offensively, he can do it all. Defensively, just being a presence in the paint.”
It didn’t take Wiseman long to get rolling offensively. He checked in toward the end of the opening quarter and fired a 3-pointer with 14 seconds remaining on the shot clock. It clanked off of the rim, but he found his footing right after. He drove past Luke Kornet for a layup on the next possession after the missed 3; later in the quarter, grabbed Cory Joseph’s blocked 3-pointer and made a midrange jumper with 10 seconds left.
He hit a hook shot over a double team from Kornet and Grant Williams, tipped in a missed jumper from Alec Burks and bumped Williams out of the way to hit a post layup. For the most part, he avoided doing too much and took shots that were given to him. There’s more to Wiseman’s offensive bag than he was able to show with the Warriors. He has soft touch and showcased it against the Celtics.
“I was trying to get my shot off, really, because I hadn’t shot in such a long time,” Wiseman said. “I started feeling it, and really, most of my points come in the paint, anyway. I just move towards that more.”
He scored his 11 points on 5-for-9 shooting and could’ve had more. He mistimed a transition layup attempt off a feed from Killian Hayes toward the end of the third quarter. Tatum bothered his rhythm on the shot, but taking an extra step could’ve given him the balance necessary to finish it.
It’s a small detail considering his efficiency. He noted that while the Pistons use different terminology than the Warriors, a lot of the concepts on the floor are similar. That, along with watching film over the weekend, helped him prepare even though he couldn’t officially practice until Tuesday.
Wiseman looked lost on defense occasionally, but still showed foot speed and awareness. On a handful of possessions, he looked comfortable in space and was able to stick with Boston’s perimeter-oriented players. He wasn’t credited with a block, but he defended the paint without fouling.
Toward the end of the third quarter, he closed off a Tatum drive to the rim, then switched onto Williams and encouraged him to give the ball back up to Tatum, who took a shot that missed at the buzzer.
“He’s going to be a good fit for us,” Casey said. “His length, his size. Once he gets back into game condition, gets used to playing basketball again, and he went in a little early with Duren’s ankle, he injured his ankle a little bit. Like the way he protected (the rim). Even if he didn’t block shots, he was there. He was a big body at the rim and deterred some shots. Once he gets a feel for what we’re doing offensively — spacing, where to be, where to go — he’s going to contribute on both ends of the floor.”
There’s still much for Detroit’s coaching staff to solve. Wiseman ended up playing more minutes than anticipated due to Jalen Duren’s ankle flaring up after he injured it against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday. Wiseman spelled Duren throughout the night, and shared time with Stewart on the floor. Stewart, who knocked down four 3-pointers and finished with 14 points, can fit next to Wiseman’s more paint-oriented game.
But it remains to be seen if Wiseman can thrive alongside Duren — another athletic, bouncy center — or with Marvin Bagley III, who signed a three-year contract last summer but has been out since Jan. 2 with a broken hand. Casey left open the possibility of Duren playing with both.
The Pistons will get a good, extended look at Wiseman. Wednesday was an encouraging start, but they need Wiseman to continue working to earn his spot. He has stiff competition from Duren, Stewart and eventually Bagley for minutes.
Wiseman has one big thing going in his favor — his teammates have already embraced him and want to see him succeed.
‘Welcomed him with open arms and let him know that we’re going to compete and battle, but at the end of the day we’re on the same team now,” Stewart said after the game. “I’ve got his back and whatever he needs, any questions, he knows I’m there for him.”