Tanking was not an option for the Detroit Pistons

Embed from Getty Images Ed Stefanski blocks all negatives out. Social media, talk sports radio, news papers, t.v.. That turned out to be good news for the team Stefanski oversees. The Detroit Pistons.

Ed Stefanski, has a belief in the Detroit organization. The Pistons winners of 12 of their last 15 games are the product of Stefanski’s faith. Even though the noise outside was screaming for a teardown and total rebuild.

There are two thought processes, if you tank you win. If you do not there is a good chance the team will be stuck in mediocrity. The Pistons took an educated chance and went with not tanking.

Stefanski, sought advice from Sachin Gupta the Pistons assistant general manager and a person who is widely considered around the NBA as a analytic specialist.

They saw that some of the teams players who struggled if the first half of the season were due for a breakthrough. It is a daring place to venture. If wrong the Detroit Pistons season would have ended very poorly.

The calculated move has paid off. Struggling players are red hot during the Pistons turnaround. It has been well documented the moves the Pistons made during the trade deadline.

The team has also been greatly helped by star Blake Griffin who takes his role seriously. He wants to help the Pistons get back to the playoffs. Griffin was asked about the Detroit front office and his role. “I am not a general manager, I am a player. I focus on my job, the front office focuses on their job.”

Fair enough. But from the time Griffin took over as team leader, the team, front office and coaching staff all seemed to find a unifying consistency.

One more point Ed Stefanski, does not like the idea of tanking. Ever. “I do not believe in losing games to get better draft picks, I want to compete every night. I want to win every game.”

As long as Ed Stefanski has a say in the Motor City, it is a safe bet Detroit will never tank. They will kick, scream and fight. Just the way Stefanski likes it.