The Detroit Pistons had some back luck in the 2023 NBA Draft Lottery. The team finished with the fewest wins in the NBA in 2022-23 but slid all the way to the fifth pick. With the first Pistons pick at No. 5, most NBA mock drafts have Villanova freshman forward Cam Whitmore as the selection. However, the Pistons draft could go a different way if the team uses the No. 5 pick to take one of these sneaky players, including the son of a Michigan basketball legend, Jett Howard.
Detroit heads into the 2023 NBA Draft with a lot of promising young players on the roster. These promising prospects are mostly concentrated at the guard and big man spots.
Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Killian Hayes, and RJ Hampton are all high lottery picks and are just 22 years old or younger. These players will hold down the Pistons’ guard spots for years to come. On the other end of the spectrum, the team is in the same situation with bigs James Wiseman, Isaiah Stewart, and Jalen Duren.
This means the best first-round Pistons draft pick this year will be a wing player who either brings shooting on the offensive end or defensive acumen on the other side of the court. Whitmore is a scorer and has excellent athleticism, but he doesn’t shoot or defend at an elite level right now.
If the Pistons decide to go in another direction to add a player with a more specific skillset, these sneaky players could be the pick at No. 5.
Gradey Dick, Kansas
Kansas 6-foot-8 freshman Gradey Dick is quite simply the best pure shooter in the 2023 NBA Draft. He has a clean stroke and shot 40.3% from 3-point range during his one season in Lawrence.
Dick is a willing defender with fast hands to jump into passing lanes, but he did get targeted at times by teams with quicker forwards while at Kansas. With long guards and rim protectors around him in Detroit, though, his athletic shortcomings shouldn’t be a huge issue.
At worst, Dick should be a taller J.J. Reddick or Kevin Heurter at the NBA level. At best, he could be a decade-younger version of the Pistons’ best player last year, Bojan Bogdanovic, with serious upside.
Dick is projected to go toward the back of the top 10, but if the Pistons want a shooter, they could scoop up the young former Jayhawk at No. 5.
Bilal Coulibaly, Metropolitans 92 (France)
Lost in all the Victor Wembanyama love is the fact that his teammate, Bilal Coulibaly, is a pretty good NBA prospect as well.
Coulibaly is an 18-year-old Frenchman who stands 6-foot-7 with a 7-foot-3 wingspan. He is a long and strong athlete who could step into the NBA right away and be a credible (or better) wing defender.
Offensively, Coulibaly is still raw. That said, he’s improved by leaps and bounds in the last season playing alongside Wembanyama, and he could develop into an excellent 3-and-D wing or even a well-rounded scorer in the States.
Coulibaly is already a high flyer who can throw down highlight reel dunks and is dangerous in transition. His 3-point shooting is improving, and he shoots over 75% from the free-throw line, which is a good sign for his NBA shooting potential.
This Pistons draft could use a home run pick, and Bilal Coulibaly could be that player. You think the team picking at No. 5 back in 2013 (the Phoenix Suns) still wishes it took another raw European with elite athleticism named Giannis Antetokounmpo?
Jett Howard, Michigan
The last sneaky Pistons draft pick here is Michigan royalty. Wolverines forward Jett Howard played for his Fab Five father, Juwan, last season, and is now a solid NBA prospect.
The first Pistons pick is probably too high to take Jett Howard, but he does fit what the team needs on the wing and is a hometown hero that would help sell tickets as a rookie.
Jett is 6-foot-8 and averaged 14.2 points on 36.8% 3-point shooting during his one season in Ann Arbor. He is an excellent shooter who can also put the ball on the deck and get to the rim. Plus, he is a playmaker who would create chances for the Pistons’ other young stars.
It’s probably a bit much to say Jett Howard could be a 3-and-D star in the NBA due to his lack of quickness, but he always gives maximum effort on defense.
The younger Howard also grew up around basketball, so he’ll bring experience and maturity to the Pistons’ locker room that most 19-year-old rookies could never. Plus, he has ice in his veins when it comes to taking big shots, which any team can use.
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