Reggie Jackson and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the backcourt. Marcus Morris and Tobias Harris in the frontcount. Andre Drummond at center.
That’s the expected starting five for the Pistons going into the 2016-17 season and CBS Sports ranks it as the 9th best starting lineup in the NBA.
The CBS Sports staff writes: “This was the Pistons' second-most used lineup last season and it was only together for 25 games. But it showed a vast improvement in shot making from the Pistons' starting lineup prior to the Tobias Harris trade. Both were about the same effectiveness overall but this lineup didn't have a ton of time to gel. Now they'll have an entire training camp and preseason together. The defense should improve and their effective field goal percentage should be above last year's 52.8 percent. Stan Van Gundy trusts every single player in this lineup to do what he asks of them and that will go a long way. They just have to hit shots. Simple as that.”
The starting five is young – Reggie Jackson and Marcus Morris are the oldest at 26 years of age – and Stan Van Gundy has said repeatedly that internal improvement of the young core is the best opportunity for growth potential of the team. If that improvement happens, it’s another positive step for a franchise that made its return to the playoffs last season.