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The Detroit Pistons suffered their first 2024 preseason loss after the 105-97 finish against the Phoenix Suns. Tuesday night's matchup at the Breslin Center featured another night of promising effort on both ends. One of the Pistons' brightest spots was another standout game for third-year guard Jaden Ivey. The starting shooting guard's night concluded after scoring 16 points and dishing five assists through 23 minutes.
Lots of the Pistons' hopes rely on Ivey's evolution as a player. The speedy combo guard is averaging 19 points on 57% shooting from the field and three-point range. Ivey has also made his presence from the free-throw line shooting 83% from the stripe.
Detroit's coaching staff has raved about the work ethic of Ivey through training camp. He spoke about what has been working for him in the preseason games during the postgame media session.
“I believe in my ability. Just want to continue to attack, put pressure on the paint, collapsing the defense and making sure I'm making the right reads,” Ivey explained. “I want to play at the pace I want to play and dictate the game. I just have to continue to do that and play free and play aggressive.”
Ivey is working under his third coaching staff in three years as a Piston. There was plenty of turmoil and rotational adjusting for Ivey to learn through last season under former head coach Monty Williams. He expounded on what the start of the season has been like playing for new head coach J.B. Bickerstaff.
“It's been great. Obviously, I've had the ball a lot more so I've been able to make plays with the ball. Credit to my coach for putting me in positions to do that,” Ivey stated. “When I do have the ball, I have to make sure I'm taking care of it and making sure I'm putting my teammates in a better position. It comes with responsibility so I'm definitely up for that challenge and continuing to grow.”
Ivey's offensive versatility has been on display orchestrating the Pistons' offense and scoring as an off-ball guard. His defensive effort and awareness have also improved which has led to more transition opportunities for Detroit. The Pistons' front office wanted to add veteran spacing to help their young core. The new veterans have done wonders for Ivey creating better driving lanes and outside shooters to feed.
New Pistons coaching staff is good for Jaden Ivey
Bickerstaff made it clear he wanted to experiment with rotation ideas throughout preseason. Some of that work includes the different ways to help Ivey complement his team and backcourt partner Cade Cunningham. Bickerstaff has evenly divided the on-ball responsibilities between both guards. Detroit's head coach has also staggered the lineups where both starting guards practiced reps leading the bench unit.
One of the biggest focus areas of development was Ivey's jump shot consistency. The offseason addition of assistant coach Fred Vinson was a big move to help accomplish that goal. Ivey spoke on the positive impact Vinson's coaching has had on him which is showing in his preseason performance. Bickerstaff was full of admiration when addressing the media about the growth of his starting shooting guard.
“He works his tail off and he's playing with confidence. When you work as hard as he works and put as much time in and play with that confidence, the work is going to pay off,” Bickerstaff said. “He's obviously extremely gifted as a basketball player. So, when you put that mindset in with confidence in his work ethic he's only going to get better.”
