Three questions facing Detroit Pistons ahead of 2024-25 season

The new NBA season is right around the corner. To help get ready for the 2024-25 NBA season, we're looking at three questions each NBA team could face next season. 

Here, we have the Detroit Pistons, who have spent the summer retooling their roster in the hopes of getting their faltering rebuild back on track. 

What impact will Tobias Harris have? 

Harris is a major coup for the Pistons. The 32-year-old forward is returning to his old team to help galvanize its rebuild and provide some reliable production at the forward position. Harris is a reliable three-point shooter, can create high-quality shots around the rim and is a trustworthy playmaker out of drive-and-kick scenarios. He's also a quality off-ball and help defender.

After spending the last five-and-a-half seasons as a third option on the Philadelphia 76ers, Harris will now have a bigger role on both sides of the floor. Detroit will be hoping he can plug some of the gaps in its offense while also possessing enough gravity to improve its spacing, which was a serious issue last season.

Harris isn't an All-Star talent, but he's more than good enough to elevate a franchise that has been screaming out for a reliable veteran presence in recent years. 

Will Cade Cunningham finally shine? 

Cunningham entered the NBA as the first-overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft. He was billed as the next superstar point guard who had a robust skillset and could become the face of a franchise. Since joining the Pistons, Cunningham has shown All-Star upside, but is yet to prove he can become the best guard in the NBA or even rival Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Last season he averaged 22.7 points, 7.5 assists and 4.3 rebounds on 44.9% shooting from the field and 35.5% from three-point range.

Detroit has made a point of improving its perimeter scoring this summer. Harris, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Malik Beasley are all reliable threats from deep, which should drastically improve the team's overall spacing and provide Cunningham with the room needed to dictate play for the Pistons.

If Cunningham can take a leap in production this season, Detroit's chances of contending for a play-in spot will be drastically improved.

Will Jaden Ivey be given a chance to succeed? 

Ivey finished in the top six for Rookie of the Year voting in 2023. His explosiveness, electric change of pace and fearlessness when attacking the rim quickly established him as an exciting prospect for the future. However, he struggled in Detroit's congested system last season, with his production declining across the board.

With a new head coach, more perimeter shooters around him and a potentially up-tempo brand of offense, Ivey could quickly emerge as the ideal backcourt running mate for Cunningham, especially if he can take a step forward on the defensive end. 

Ivey has a bright future in the NBA. If he struggles to earn a consistent role under J.B. Bickerstaff this season, Detroit might be better served to trade him to a new situation and to repurpose whatever assets it gets in the deal. Still, if Ivey can build on his first two years in the league, the Pistons backcourt will be an offensive threat for years to come.