2018–19 Detroit Pistons season
NBA professional basketball team season
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The 2018–19 Detroit Pistons season was the 78th season of the franchise, the 71st in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the second in Midtown Detroit. This was the first season under new head coach Dwane Casey.
| 2018–19 Detroit Pistons season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Dwane Casey |
| General manager | Ed Stefanski (interim) |
| Owner | Tom Gores |
| Arena | Little Caesars Arena |
| Results | |
| Record | 41–41 (.500) |
| Place | Division: 3rd (Central) Conference: 8th (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | First round (lost to Bucks 0–4) |
Stats at Basketball Reference | |
| Local media | |
| Television | Fox Sports Detroit |
| Radio | WXYT |
The Pistons qualified for the NBA playoffs during the final game of the regular season with a 115–89 victory over the New York Knicks on April 10. This marked the first time the team qualified for the playoffs since the 2015–16 season and for only the second time in the last ten seasons. In the first round of the playoffs, the Pistons were eliminated by the Milwaukee Bucks in four games, and got swept in the playoffs for the third time since 2009, not winning a playoff game since 2008.
This season would be the last time until 2025 that the Pistons would make the playoffs.
Offseason
On May 7, 2018, the Detroit Pistons fired head coach Stan Van Gundy after the team missed the playoffs for the second consecutive season.[1] On June 11, 2018, the Pistons hired Dwane Casey as head coach.[2]
Draft picks
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College / Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 42 | Bruce Brown | SG |  United States |
Miami |
The Pistons entered the draft with one second-round selection. They had already traded their first-round pick to the Los Angeles Clippers to acquire Blake Griffin in January 2018.
Roster
| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
Roster |
Standings
Division
| Central Division | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| z – Milwaukee Bucks | 60 | 22 | .732 | – | 33–8 | 27–14 | 14–2 | 82 |
| x – Indiana Pacers | 48 | 34 | .585 | 12.0 | 29–12 | 19–22 | 11–5 | 82 |
| x – Detroit Pistons | 41 | 41 | .500 | 19.0 | 26–15 | 15–26 | 8–8 | 82 |
| Chicago Bulls | 22 | 60 | .268 | 38.0 | 9–32 | 13–28 | 3–13 | 82 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 19 | 63 | .232 | 41.0 | 13–28 | 6–35 | 4–12 | 82 |
Conference
| Eastern Conference | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | z – Milwaukee Bucks * | 60 | 22 | .732 | – | 82 |
| 2 | y – Toronto Raptors * | 58 | 24 | .707 | 2.0 | 82 |
| 3 | x – Philadelphia 76ers | 51 | 31 | .622 | 9.0 | 82 |
| 4 | x – Boston Celtics | 49 | 33 | .598 | 11.0 | 82 |
| 5 | x – Indiana Pacers | 48 | 34 | .585 | 12.0 | 82 |
| 6 | x – Brooklyn Nets | 42 | 40 | .512 | 18.0 | 82 |
| 7 | y – Orlando Magic * | 42 | 40 | .512 | 18.0 | 82 |
| 8 | x – Detroit Pistons | 41 | 41 | .500 | 19.0 | 82 |
| 9 | Charlotte Hornets | 39 | 43 | .476 | 21.0 | 82 |
| 10 | Miami Heat | 39 | 43 | .476 | 21.0 | 82 |
| 11 | Washington Wizards | 32 | 50 | .390 | 28.0 | 82 |
| 12 | Atlanta Hawks | 29 | 53 | .354 | 31.0 | 82 |
| 13 | Chicago Bulls | 22 | 60 | .268 | 38.0 | 82 |
| 14 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 19 | 63 | .232 | 41.0 | 82 |
| 15 | New York Knicks | 17 | 65 | .207 | 43.0 | 82 |
Game log
Preseason
| 2018 preseason game log Total: 2–3 (home: 0–2; road: 2–1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Preseason: 2–3 (home: 0–2; road: 2–1)
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| 2018–19 season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Regular season
| 2018–19 game log Total: 41–41 (home: 26–15; road: 15–26) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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October: 4–3 (home: 3–1; road: 1–2)
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November
: 8–4 (home: 5–2; road: 3–2)
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December
: 4–11 (home: 3–5; road: 1–6) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
January
: 6–10 (home: 3–4; road: 3–6) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
February
: 7–3 (home: 4–1; road: 3–2)
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March
: 10–6 (home: 7–0; road: 3–6) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
April
: 2–4 (home: 1–2; road: 1–2)
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| 2018–19 season schedule | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playoffs
Game log
| 2019 playoff game log Total: 0–4 (home: 0–2; road: 0–2) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First Round: 0–4 (home: 0–2; road: 0–2)
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| 2019 playoff schedule | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Player statistics
Regular season
| Player | Pos. | GP | GS | MP | Reb. | Ast. | Stl. | Blk. | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bruce Brown | SG | 74 | 56 | 1,449 | 185 | 91 | 40 | 36 | 319 |
| Reggie Bullock† | SG | 44 | 44 | 1,355 | 123 | 109 | 24 | 5 | 534 |
| José Calderón | PG | 49 | 0 | 632 | 60 | 115 | 16 | 3 | 113 |
| Andre Drummond | C | 79 | 79 | 2,647 | 1,232 | 112 | 136 | 138 | 1,370 |
| Henry Ellenson‡ | PF | 2 | 0 | 25 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Wayne Ellington≠ | SG | 28 | 26 | 764 | 60 | 43 | 30 | 3 | 336 |
| Langston Galloway | SG | 80 | 4 | 1,745 | 171 | 85 | 37 | 8 | 672 |
| Blake Griffin | PF | 75 | 75 | 2,622 | 565 | 402 | 52 | 28 | 1,841 |
| Reggie Jackson | PG | 82 | 82 | 2,289 | 216 | 344 | 55 | 9 | 1,260 |
| Stanley Johnson† | SF | 48 | 7 | 961 | 175 | 60 | 48 | 13 | 358 |
| Luke Kennard | SG | 63 | 10 | 1,437 | 183 | 114 | 26 | 10 | 613 |
| Jon Leuer | PF | 41 | 1 | 402 | 97 | 14 | 12 | 4 | 156 |
| Zach Lofton‡ | SG | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Kalin Lucas≠ | PG | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Thon Maker≠ | PF | 29 | 5 | 563 | 106 | 27 | 11 | 33 | 159 |
| Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk≠ | SF | 3 | 0 | 20 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| Zaza Pachulia | C | 68 | 3 | 878 | 265 | 91 | 31 | 17 | 267 |
| Glenn Robinson | SF | 47 | 18 | 610 | 71 | 21 | 14 | 8 | 198 |
| Ish Smith | PG | 56 | 0 | 1,251 | 145 | 203 | 28 | 11 | 501 |
| Khyri Thomas | SG | 26 | 0 | 195 | 20 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 61 |
After all games.[3]
‡Waived during the season
†Traded during the season
≠Acquired during the season
Playoffs
| Player | Pos. | GP | GS | MP | Reb. | Ast. | Stl. | Blk. | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bruce Brown | SG | 4 | 2 | 57 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 13 |
| José Calderón | PG | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Andre Drummond | C | 4 | 4 | 127 | 52 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 57 |
| Wayne Ellington | SG | 4 | 4 | 131 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 31 |
| Langston Galloway | SG | 4 | 0 | 110 | 15 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 31 |
| Blake Griffin | PF | 2 | 2 | 58 | 12 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 49 |
| Reggie Jackson | PG | 4 | 4 | 108 | 13 | 28 | 3 | 0 | 71 |
| Luke Kennard | SG | 4 | 2 | 133 | 16 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 60 |
| Jon Leuer | PF | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Thon Maker | PF | 4 | 2 | 69 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 22 |
| Zaza Pachulia | C | 2 | 0 | 22 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Glenn Robinson | SF | 3 | 0 | 36 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 13 |
| Ish Smith | PG | 4 | 0 | 81 | 11 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 24 |
| Khyri Thomas | SG | 3 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 14 |
Transactions
Overview
| Players Added Via draft Via trade Via free agency |
Players Lost Via trade Via free agency Waived |
Trades
| June 21, 2018[4] | To Detroit Pistons Draft rights to Khyri Thomas |
To Philadelphia 76ers Two future 2nd-round draft picks |
| February 6, 2019[5] | To Detroit Pistons Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk Future 2nd-round draft pick |
To Los Angeles Lakers Reggie Bullock |
| February 7, 2019[6] | Three-team trade | |
To Milwaukee Bucks
|
To New Orleans Pelicans
| |
To Detroit Pistons
| ||
Free agency
Additions
| Date | Player | Contract terms | Former team | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 7 | José Calderón | 1-year contract worth $2.39 million | Cleveland Cavaliers | [7] |
| Glenn Robinson III | 1-year contract worth $4.08 million | Indiana Pacers | ||
| July 15 | Zaza Pachulia | 1-year contract worth $2.4 million | Golden State Warriors | [8] |
| January 17 | Kalin Lucas | Two-way contract | Stockton Kings | [9] |
| Isaiah Whitehead | Two-way contract |  Lokomotiv Kuban | ||
| February 9 | Wayne Ellington | Miami Heat | [10] |
Subtractions
| Date | Player | Contract terms | New team | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 1 | Jameer Nelson | [11] | ||
| July 7 | Dwight Buycks | Waived |  Shenzhen Leopards |
[12][13] |
| July 8 | Eric Moreland | Waived | Toronto Raptors | [14] |
| July 9 | Anthony Tolliver | 1-year contract worth $5.75 million | Minnesota Timberwolves | [15] |
| July 13 | James Ennis III | 2-year contract worth $3.47 million | Houston Rockets | [16] |
| August 21 | Kay Felder | Toronto Raptors | [17] | |
| September 25 | Scottie Lindsey | Waived | [18] | |
| October 7 | Chris McCullough | Waived | Shanxi Brave Dragons |
[19][20] |
| October 12 | Johnny Hamilton | Waived | [21] | |
| October 15 | Reggie Hearn | Waived | [22] | |
| January 17 | Keenan Evans | Waived | [9] | |
| Zach Lofton | Waived | |||
| February 9 | Henry Ellenson | Waived | New York Knicks | [10][23] |
Awards
| Player | Award | Date awarded | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andre Drummond | Eastern Conference Player of the Week | March 10, 2019 | [24] |