Toward the end of the Pistons' Eastern Conference reign in the mid-2000's, the Atlanta Hawks began a run of their own. Nothing that resulted in championships or really threatened the balance of power in the NBA. But starting in 2008, the same year Detroit made its last trip to the conference finals, the Hawks ripped off 10 straight trips to the playoffs.
Their best shot came in 2014-15. The Hawks won the second most games in the NBA and reached the conference finals with a team featuring four All-Stars in Al Horford, Jeff Teague, Paul Millsap and Kyle Korver. Two years later, all four players were gone. Atlanta tore down the roster and started over after losing in the first round in 2016-17. Four years after that, the Hawks came within two wins of the Finals.
The Pistons are still searching for their first playoff win since 2008. They didn't earnestly start over until Troy Weaver arrived last summer. A year later, they finally have a future.
Missing Jerami Grant and Cade Cunningham, Detroit got whacked by Atlanta Monday night. The Hawks got 85 points from four homegrown first-round picks drafted in the past four years: Trae Young, John Collins, Cam Reddish and Kevin Huerter. They got 14 from last year's big free agent signing Bogdan Bogdanovic, while last year's big trade acquisition Clint Capela started at center.
They didn't even need 2019 fourth overall pick De'Andre Hunter or 2020 sixth overall pick Onyeka Okungwu, both of whom were sidelined, or this year's 20th overall pick Jalen Johnson, who barely saw the floor. The Hawks entered this season with seven homegrown first-round picks age 24 or younger, including four in the top 10. They arrived last season as a contender and aren't leaving anytime soon.
"They’ve put together a heck of a young roster and they’ve added those older players through their process," Dwane Casey told radio voice of the Pistons Mark Champion on 97.1 The Ticket prior to Monday's game. "They’re probably two years ahead of where we’re trying to get to by adding veteran, star offensive players within the group. They’ve done a good job with it, but again, we have our own eggs to fry."
It's an interesting comparison, at the very least. The Hawks got their rebuild off the ground by drafting Young fifth overall in 2018, the same year they drafted Huerter 19th. But they remained a last-place team for the next three seasons. Then they leapt into first. The Pistons ignited their rebuild last year with a trio of first-round picks, including two All-Rookies in Isaiah Stewart (16th overall) and Saddiq Bey (19th), and stoked the flames with additions like Josh Jackson and Hamidou Diallo. This year, they drafted their Trae Young.
The Pistons entered this season with four homegrown first-round picks age 22 or younger, including two in the top 10. As much as their future revolves around Cunningham, they're going to need more from Killian Hayes. He was the franchise point guard who's (very slowly!) becoming a franchise question mark. His development this season is crucial. The 0-3 Pistons should be more competitive when they get Cunningham on the floor, but they look destined for another lottery pick all the same. Probably back in the top 10.
Which is for the best, as much as it's the worst. They need more talent. The Hawks entered the 2019-20 season with five homegrown first-round picks age 22 or younger, including three in the top 10. All of them made significant contributions and Atlanta still topped out at 20 wins. Late that season, the Hawks traded a lottery-protected first-round pick (acquired in a prior trade) as part of a deal for the injured Capela. The following offseason, they signed the sharp-shooting Bogdanovic to a four-year, $72 million deal and drafted Okongwu with their own first-round pick.
After a slow start and a coaching change last season, everything fell into place. Young led the team in scoring and finished second in the NBA in assists. Collins was his Robin. Bogdanovic led the team in three-point shooting. Capela led the NBA in rebounding. Hunter, Huerter and Reddish all scored in double digits. The Hawks also got contributions from vets like Danilo Gallinari and Tony Snell and made a late-season trade for point guard Lou Williams, who, to no one's surprise, was terrific off the bench. Okongwu came on strong toward the end of the year and played some key minutes in the playoffs. All told, the Hawks took a giant step forward.
Is that next year for the Pistons? They'll have a bunch of cap space to work with in free agency and Weaver isn't scared of swinging trades, which matters for a team that isn't a natural free agent destination. At the same time, Weaver already landed Grant at a price that looked like a reach by a mid-market bidder. Now it looks like a bargain. Maybe Grant is Weaver's Bogdanovic a couple years early. Or maybe that's Kelly Olynyk, the sharp-shooting big man the Pistons just signed to a three-year deal.
To extend the analogy, can Isaiah Stewart become Detroit's Clint Capela, an angry double-double who abuses opponents down low? The Hawks just re-signed him for two years, $46 million. Can Saddiq Bey become ... John Collins, a versatile scorer who's money from beyond the arc? The Hawks just re-signed him for five years, $125 million. Or is Bey more of a Huerter? The Hawks just re-signed him for four years, $65 million. What about Hunter? What about Reddish? What about Okongwu? Who the heck is Killian Hayes!?
If your head is spinning, so is mine. The Hawks have so much young talent it's hard to keep track of. And that's before you take stock of their vets. The Pistons aren't there yet, in either regard. But next year doesn't seem so crazy, especially with Stewart and Bey getting better and better. This assumes Cunningham makes an instant impact, Hayes makes a significant jump and Grant keeps making shots from all over. It assumes Weaver makes a splash next summer and maybe a couple more trades and it assumes the Pistons make good on another top-10 pick. That's a lot to assume. Maybe Casey is right.
Maybe the Pistons are two years behind the Hawks.