The Detroit Pistons finished at No. 17 in terms of three-point shooting percentage for the 2025-26 campaign
Ditching the long, drawn out contract negotiation for Jalen Duren momentarily, it’s safe to say that the most important task for the Detroit Pistons during the offseason was to add perimeter shooting.
Last season, the Pistons finished just 17th in the NBA for regular season three-point shooting, though the squad did convert triples at a slightly better rate in the playoffs. But despite that narrow improvement, Detroit still approached the summer with a game plan to add reliable shooters to the squad where applicable. .
For most of last season, Duncan Robinson held the mantle as the group’s top three-point weapon, and he was the only Piston to cross the 40% threshold from downtown. But during the offseason, the Pistons completed a series of trades to bring a new trio of long-range scorers into the Motor City in John Collins, Taurean Prince and Isaiah Joe.
”We’ve got a lot of guys that can shoot, which is really exciting,” Robinson said after practice. “I think any time that you have multiple threats from beyond the arc, it’s just harder to defend the three-point line, right? You can’t necessarily not help off of one guy, so it’s going to be a great addition and excited to do some different things offensively as a group. The Xs and Os, that’s up to the coaches to come up with but for us to execute, so it should be a fun challenge.”
At this point, Robinson is expected to retain his starting position in Detroit since he’s already familiar with head coach J.B. Bickerstaff’s expectations and requirements for the Pistons, but he should have a bit more competition at the two moving forward with Joe as an option.
Playing on the Oklahoma City Thunder for the past four seasons, Joe won a title with OKC and worked to solidify himself as one of the league’s more dangerous snipers during that timespan. Last season, Joe was a nightly double-digit scorer while connecting on 42.3% of his three-pointers on six attempts per game. With that volume and consistency, Joe actually paces Robinson in terms of perimeter impact, which means that the Pistons should have another elite shooter at their disposal for the upcoming season, and one with high-pressure playoff experience to boot.
“Space in general is a really important aspect of good, efficient offense in today’s NBA,” Robinson added.
To that effect, the Pistons were a dominant team inside the painted area from an offensive perspective last year as Detroit finished with a top five rating near the rim, but the team should operate with more balance and dynamism for the 2026-27 campaign. The best teams in the NBA are multi-dimensional, and even Daniss Jenkins mentioned that the Pistons will play with a new identity this season, so it seems that the players are embracing a new opportunity to put their stamp on the league after earning the top seed in the East last year.
Once training camp is complete, the Pistons will turn their attention to an Oct. 5 pre-season matchup against the Phoenix Suns, which is scheduled for 7 pm at Little Caesars Arena.
