Jaden Ivey Can Be Piece That Restores Pistons Franchise

The Detroit Pistons could potentially have the chance to select the electrifying Purdue prospect with the fifth pick.

The NBA Draft is scheduled to take place on June 23. Currently holding the fifth pick in this year’s draft, the Detroit Pistons have options to choose from to select a talented prospect to build on their young core that includes Cade Cunnigham and Saddiq Bey.

Prospects such as Shaedon Sharpe, Keegan Murray and Bennedict Mathurin have all been seen as potential selections for the Pistons in different mock drafts. All three prospects could have an impact for the rebuilding franchise, but in my opinion, there is one player that has the ability to jumpstart the rebuild — Jaden Ivey.

Ivey was a star this past season for the Purdue Boilermakers. He averaged 17.3 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists in his sophomore year. His terrific play earned him honors such as First-Team All-Big Ten and a Second-Team All-American selection.

The 6-4 combo guard will always jump out when watching him play due to his elite athleticism. Ivey’s main strength is attacking the basket, being able to use his athleticism and agility to create offense for himself. He has a quick first step that allows him to break defenders, which makes it easy for him to find open teammates as well.

Ivey is a combo guard who is capable of playing both point guard and shooting guard, but with Cunningham being the lead guard, it makes more sense for Ivey to play at shooting guard if selected by the Pistons. This would be a positive as Cunningham and Ivey can both play off of each other and Ivey can use his speed and athleticism to cut to the basket and find open spaces to operate, while Cunningham probes and facilitates.

Like all draft prospects, the sophomore guard does have areas that he can improve on that will expand his game at the NBA level. One area would be his perimeter shooting both on spot-ups and off the dribble. To his credit, Ivey did make a jump with his efficiency from his freshman to sophomore year. During his freshman season, Ivey shot 39% from the field, 25% from three and 72% from the free throw line, which aren’t great. He vastly improved his efficiency numbers this past season shooting 46% from the field, over 35% from three and 74% from the free throw line.

Jaden Ivey Scouting Report | 2022 NBA Draft Breakdowns

The shooting improvements from Ivey show his growth and hard work and how he continues to improve his game. Being even an average shooter at the NBA level will make Ivey more of a threat.

On the defensive end, Ivey has his moments where he gets in the passing lanes and comes up with steals that lead to easy transition points because of his speed and athleticism. However, Ivey needs to be more consistent and disciplined on that end, especially when guarding off the ball. His 6-9 wingspan and quickness are good tools to have when defending a player.

The Pistons ranked No. 28 in total points per game throughout the regular season so adding an explosive guard like Ivey would only help increase that ranking. The only problem is that the Pistons may not get a chance to select Ivey. The Sacramento Kings could definitely take him one spot ahead of Detroit. The Kings are in a bit of a strange spot at No. 4. They have De’Aaron Fox (similar to Ivey) and selected Davion Mitchell last year. There have been rumors that the Kings could potentially trade the pick to get more winning pieces to push for postseason action, or they could select a completely different player such as Sharpe or Murray.

Maybe things fall the right way and Ivey is there at five. What the Kings will do next week will be interesting. If Ivey does fall to the Pistons, that would be another great foundational piece to combine with Cunningham and Bey that would be entertaining to watch next season.