And just like that, we’re back! As the Detroit Pistons close the book on their ho-hum offseason that proved to be more boring than any in a decade and transition into preseason, they are met with real expectations for the first time in just as long. The Pistons will be expected to use this season to establish themselves as a playoff mainstay. Anything less than a playoff series win would likely be viewed as a disappointment in the eyes of most fans.
With the preseason set to tip off, here are four
bold predictions for the 2025-26 season.
1. Both extensions get done for Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey before opening night
While Detroit president Trajan Langdon has remained tight-lipped about any potential extensions for the team’s 2022 first-round picks, here’s betting both get done before the season tips off on October 22. The team seems to be invested in maximizing its young core’s potential, and taking care of Ivey and Duren early (and avoiding a Jonathon Kuminga situation) gives the team its best chance at maintaining its suddenly strong culture and tight-knit locker room. While Duren’s path to an extension is a little more straightforward, I wonder if Detroit will try to take a page out of Houston’s playbook and give Ivey a similar bet-on-yourself, short-term deal that the Rockets gave Jalen Green a year ago. Something along the lines of the three-year, $106 million deal makes sense for both sides.
For Ivey, it provides the Purdue product a generous per-year salary, while allowing him to hit the open market again at the beginning of his prime. For the Pistons, it gives them additional time to evaluate if Ivey fits into their long-term plans while keeping him happy in the short term. With the Pistons looking to make an additional leap, they can’t afford to have distractions related to key pieces of their core. Look for these to get done.
2. Isaiah Stewart shoots above league average from 3 at decent volume
Under the Troy Weaver regime, the organization was gung-ho on turning Stewart into a full-time stretch four. Even though the fit with Jalen Duren proved to be clunky, he did demonstrate an ability to hit the three above league average on decent volume (38% on 4 attempts per game) just two seasons ago. Last season, coach JB Bickerstaff opted for Beef Stew to get back to basics and excel primarily as a roller, play finisher, and rim protector. While this simplification can largely be viewed as a success, Stewart’s three-point shooting combined with his inside-out defense gives him the ability to supercharge many different lineups.
Stewart’s potential spacing would allow Detroit to roll out defense-heavy lineups in which he shares the floor with Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland, both non-shooters (more on that later). Attaching Stewart to those two allows the Pistons to have options with bench lineups and get after teams defensively. It also allows Thompson to play to his strengths offensively, as a short roller, cutter, and passer with Beef Stew occupying a defender on the perimeter. A lineup with those three, and some combination of Caris LeVert, Duncan Robinson, Cade Cunningham, or Ivey would be tantalizing for opponents.
3. The Pistons will have a top-5 bench
Speaking of bench lineups, I expect the Pistons to have one of the top-performing benches in the league. This is the deepest roster the team has had in nearly two decades, and Bickerstaff and company have a plethora of options that they can go to for different lineups. The team has floor spacing in Duncan Robinson and Caris LeVert. There are high-level defenders in the aforementioned Stewart and Ron Holland. They even have some options for secondary creation in Levert and Marcus Sasser, who may just have a role on this team.
Additionally, I expect the coaching staff to resume the practice of deploying one of Cade Cunningham or Jaden Ivey on the court at all times to be a main facilitator, ensuring the team always has a primary playmaker on the court, giving the unit a huge statistical boost. Given the team’s improved roster flexibility, I am also curious to see if Bickerstaff can be more creative in interchanging starters and bench players. We see many of the league’s top teams do this, and Detroit certainly has the personnel for it. Add all this together, and I see Detroit’s reserves becoming an asset for the team and statistically performing as one of the top bench units in the league.
4. Ron Holland plays as many minutes as Ausar Thompson
This is by far the boldest prediction, and one that is grounds for the most discourse given all of the buzz surrounding Thompson going into the season. The biggest reason is that I am buying his shooting improvement as he starts year two. If Holland can even shoot a league-average percentage from the corners and top 30% from all other areas behind the line, he suddenly is able to plug into almost any lineup as a neutral threat. This would force teams to at least close out on him at the three-point line. As we’ve seen in the team’s first two preseason games, the team seems motivated to get its two young wings on the court together, and if Holland can space the floor, this becomes a much easier reality, giving the coaching staff endless options to surround the two athletic defenders within different lineups.
Additionally, Holland demonstrated many skills last season that elevate lineups without him needing the ball in his hands, making him an easy fit next to Cunningham, Ivey, and even a more on-ball role for Thompson. In addition to his strong defense and emotional edge, Holland is a superb cutter and is excellent in transition. As the game continues to slow down for him, we may see an increase in secondary on-ball creation, and pick and roll playmaking that we saw flashes of both in his rookie season and during his time in the G league.
While I expect a monster year from Thompson as well, his shot is still a ways away from being any sort of threat from deep. This limits the number of lineups he can play in, as ideally, the team would want no more than two non-shooters in a given lineup at any time. If you, like me, buy Holland’s already solid shot mechanics and a year’s worth of work with renowned shooting coach Fred Vinson, then you’d also see a potential path to Holland playing north of 25 minutes per game this season.
Tell me what you think of these predictions. What other takes did I miss?
