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For the NBA’s second-youngest roster, a win goes a long way to fuel hope for Pistons’ future
If you don’t think losing weighs on the coaches and players who endure its sting, go to your Google machine and watch the postgame interview of Stephen Silas after Houston’s weekend loss to Oklahoma City handed the Rockets their 20th consecutive defeat.
Troy Weaver and Dwane Casey have been open about the goals of the Pistons season, one they’re not measuring in terms of wins and losses. But that doesn’t mean Casey isn’t game-planning to win any less vigorously or his players aren’t selling out in pursuit of victory. To the contrary, neutral observers from all corners have marveled at how consistently the 2020-21 Pistons lay it on the line.
But even the occasional win helps provide the fuel to fire that emotional reserve, so when the Pistons beat Toronto and Houston last week for the second set of consecutive wins this season, Casey saw the value beyond what it did for the bottom line.
“It really reinforces what you’re teaching, what you’re selling,” he said before Sunday’s game with Chicago. “One thing we’re trying to sell is defensive execution, offensive execution, and when you win doing those things, it just gives players a lot of confidence and a lot of belief in what you’re trying to do.”
The Pistons hold the NBA’s second-youngest roster with five rookies and 11 players 24 or younger. No matter how pure their intent, experiencing nothing but losing risks dulling their enthusiasm – and their receptiveness to a coach’s teachings.
As one of only two players left in their 30s – and the elder statesman at 31 while Wayne Ellington is out with injury – Mason Plumlee’s voice is important in Casey’s locker room. You could hear the relief in it last week after the Pistons beat Toronto to end a four-game losing streak.
“Felt great just to get a win coming out of the (All-Star) break,” he said. “It’s been a rough stretch. So many guys made plays.”
Casey is quick to praise the makeup of his players and to credit general manager Troy Weaver for prioritizing character in player acquisition. Weaver credits Casey for establishing an environment that allows the young players he’s brought in to weather the adversity that almost inevitably befalls a team with so much youth and so many new parts.
“You think a lot of times when you’re going through this situation, people will say you might want to have a different coach,” Weaver said coming out of the All-Star break. “But I absolutely believe and trust we have the best coach in the world for what we’re going through. His steadiness, the way he sets the tone with these guys – they often say the team takes on the personality of the coach and that’s happened.”
Understanding the scope of the transformation ahead of the franchise, Weaver very carefully chose the veterans to complement the four rookies he drafted and the handful of other young veterans added in a roster overhaul that has resulted in only one player – 20-year-old Sekou Doumbouya – carried over from the team he inherited just last June. Plumlee, Ellington, Rodney McGruder and Delon Wright all have long histories as exemplary teammates.
Before the Pistons accommodated decorated All-Stars Derrick Rose and Blake Griffin to find homes with contending teams, their example of professionalism – preparing for each game and honoring the intent of each drill with full integrity – resonated with teammates, who observed superstars with long injury histories put team interests first. Their impact remains even as they’ve headed elsewhere.
One of Casey’s favorite bromides is “don’t count your minutes; make your minutes count” – a way of motivating players outside the rotation to be ready when opportunity arises, as it always does over the course of an NBA season. A shining example was provided for him when McGruder stepped in to score 20 points in a March 3 win over Toronto despite playing in only two of the previous 10 games and for a total of less than seven minutes.
“It’s something we’ve preached: Be ready to go whenever your number is called. Those guys stay ready,” Casey said. “When you’re a young team, it’s hard to sell a young guy that keep working, good things are going to happen, be ready. For Rodney McGruder, I was so happy for him. For young players who’ve never done it before, they’re sitting there thinking I may never see the light of day.”
For a young Pistons team taking the first steps in an organizational reset, seeing the light of day – a win every so often to validate all the hard work and reinforce the messaging of their coach – helps hasten the arrival of a brighter future.
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