For all of the ways analytics have transformed the NBA, imbuing the game with a certain sameness of attack across all 30 franchises with an emphasis on producing layups, open 3-point shots and free throws while eschewing mid-range jump shots, there is still a place for players who simply have a knack to put the ball in the bucket no matter the play design or the defenses built to take away all the things offenses attempt to achieve.
Marcus Sasser is a little too slight to be a shooting guard from central casting and he’s never been a full-time point guard, but he is an indisputably savvy and gifted scorer who could play in any era. Combine that with a feisty competitiveness and the character traits that check every box and Sasser validated as an NBA rookie why the Pistons were so hellbent on coming out of the 2023 draft with another first-round pick so they could make Sasserone of their own.
Sasser came to training camp with a full depth chart of players ahead of him in the pecking order, but when injuries cracked the door for him he proved ready to seize opportunity as a four-year college product. There were the anticipated ups and downs for him across his rookie season, but Sasser’s pure scoring ability layered over his work ethic and aptitude guarantee he’ll maximize his stay in the NBA.
Here’s a look at Sasser’s past, present and future:
PROFILE: 6-foot-2 guard, 23 years old, 1 NBA season
STATUS: Sasser is entering year two of his four-year rookie scale contract signed after the Pistons made him the No. 25 pick of the first round in the 2023 NBA draft
2023-24 STATS: 8.3 points and 3.3 assists in 19 minutes a game over 71 games, including 11 starts, while shooting 37.5 percent from the 3-point line
DID YOU KNOW?: Sasser comes from a well-known family of basketball players in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which has become a breeding ground for basketball talent. Current teammates Cade Cunningham and Quentin Grimes also hail from the Dallas metroplex. Sasser’s uncle Jason was a star at Texas Tech in the 1990s who was named Southwest Conference Player of the Year in 1996. Jason became Marcus’ coach in high school. Another uncle, Jeryl, starred at Southern Methodist and was named Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 1999. Marcus’ father, Marcus Sr., also played college basketball in Texas.
A LOOK BACK: Sasser was a generic three-star recruit in the high school class of 2019 but caught the eye of Kelvin Sampson on the summer AAU circuit for his silky shooting touch. He moved into the starting lineup at the University of Houston midway through his freshman season and was a key part of a Final Four team as a sophomore, scoring 20 points and hitting 5 of 9 from the 3-point arc to lead Houston in its national semifinal loss to eventual champion Baylor. Sasser finished his career by being named first team All-American as a senior when he averaged 16.8 points and shot 38.4 precent from three. Sasser started 93 of 107 career games at Houston, his junior season limited to 12 games by injury. The Pistons front office and scouting staff cast a covetous eye on him as his career unfolded and used the first pick of the second round, the 31st overall, plus two future second-rounders to move up six spots last June to grab Sasser with the 25th pick.
THE SEASON THAT WAS: The Pistons opened training camp with no apparent room on the depth chart for Sasserwith lottery picks Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey and Killian Hayes plus veteran Alec Burks and off-season acquisition Monte Morris all in line for bigger roles ahead of him. But a training camp injury that sidelined Morris for more than half the season and then an early-season injury to Burks cracked the door and Sasser almost immediately showed his uncanny shot-making ability. In his ninth career game, Sasser scored 26 points at Milwaukee while hitting 11 of 17 shots. Sasser went through some hot and cold streaks, to be expected for a rookie whose role fluctuated with the revolving door of injured players that plagued the Pistons season. After shooting 41.4 percent through the 2023 portion of the season, Sasser cooled off as the season unfolded, admitting at times that the grind of an NBA season represented a challenge. Sasser shot 27.9 percent from the arc from March on when he got expanded playing time after Morris was traded and Hayes was waived.
A LOOK AHEAD: Sasser figures to come back with a better sense of how he can be most effective in the NBA based on everything the Pistons believe about him as affirmed by Sampson, his college coach and someone widely respected at both the college and pro levels for his ability to identify and develop talent and build teams. Sasser played mostly off the ball at Houston but demonstrated as a rookie legitimate playmaking skills. His 6.3 assists per 36 minutes was second on the Pistons only to Cade Cunningham’s 8.1. Sasser, though below average in size and length at 6-foot-2, is an opportunistic and competitive defender with a good sense of passing angles and quick hands. But his outstanding NBA skill is his innate scoring ability with deep shooting range and a tremendous change-of-pace repertoire that allows him to get to advantageous scoring spots and create space to shoot over rangy defenders. With Cunningham and Jaden Ivey likely entrenched as the starting backcourt, Sasser’s immediate role would appear to be a sparkplug scorer off the bench.
MONEY QUOTE: “You’re going to have your struggles during the season, but just stayed with it – stayed in the gym and ended the season kind of strong. It’s definitely good for me going into the summer so I can come back next year with that same confidence and show the work, it just pays off. Stay down, keep working, even when you’re struggling.” – Marcus Sasser reflecting on his rookie season and looking ahead to year two in the NBA