Troy Weaver made no guarantees about the Pistons' record in his first season as GM. He did say the team would compete. So far, Weaver has been right. Which is why Dwane Casey was so frustrated Tuesday night when the Pistons failed to compete in the first half against the Jazz, and why he called a timeout early in the second.
"Compete," he told his team, trailing by 25. "That’s all we have to hang our hat on: compete, fight, scratch. Altitude problems, I don’t want to hear about that. Compete together, stay together. Don’t give in, don’t let go of the rope."
The Pistons didn't. Fueled by a young second unit featuring Josh Jackson, Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey, they cut a 27-point third quarter deficit to four with 2 minutes to play. They wound up falling short against the top team in the NBA, but this was the kind of loss that can propel a rebuild.
"That’s all we can ask for right now in the state of our program -- the compete level, the growth. I thought the young guys came in, Josh, Isaiah, Saddiq, and just played their hearts out, played to exhaustion," Casey said. "That’s what we have to hang our hat on and build on as we go through this season."
Jackson scored 15 of his 22 points in the final 17 minutes, while Stewart and Bey combined for nine points and 10 boards down the stretch. And while we're pondering numbers, Jackson is 23 years old, Bey 21, Stewart 19. It all added up to a significant night for three potential cornerstones of the future, especially the two rookies "huffing and puffing" in the thin air, said Casey. They "played until they couldn't."
"In this league, on these dog nights, 75 to 80 percent of the game is effort," Casey said. "Effort, focus, togetherness, playing with a pure heart. All those things are important right now, especially where we are."
Where they are, objectively, is the bottom of the standings: 5-16 and second to last in the East. Where they're going is a different story. With a core of young players finding their way, a franchise point guard waiting in the wings, and a star emerging at the top of the roster in Jerami Grant, these Pistons are coming -- and these nights of moral victories are coming to an end.
"Good things are going to come from all of this," Casey said. "I know it hurts right now, it’s ugly and it feels bad, but I see a lot of positive things."