Monte Morris: Importance of Reliability
October 12th 2023 | By Bryce Hollins
From the time you are first dropped into organized basketball as a snotty-nosed little one, to whenever your hooping career comes to a close, at every level a team's point guard’s responsibilities and importance are largely the same. Organize the offense, put teammates in a position to score, and limit turnovers.
While the NBA has turned into a “positionless” game, defining roles has become ever more important in not only evaluating NBA basketball today but also in game planning and frankly, winning. While point guards in 2023 can come in a multitude of shapes, sizes, and skills, the goal is the same. Run quality offense.
While the outlines of a traditional point guard and other primary initiators continue to be blurred for starting lineups and the elite of the elite, it is almost impossible to be a serious team competing without someone at least running the show off the bench for the second unit.
(No matter how many times “they” try to tell you it's a wings league, remember, guards still matter.)
Over the last four NBA Drafts, the Detroit Pistons have selected four first-round guards (five if you count Ausar.) According to basketball-reference.com, In the 2022-2023 season, the Pistons finished bottom five in offensive rating (109.9) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.52) while also being bottom ten in assist percentage (58.1.)
Advanced stats can be noisy, and often never tell the full story, but anyone who had the pleasure of watching any Pistons games last year will tell you about their struggles creating good offense. For the 2022-2023 NBA season, the Detroit Pistons were AHEAD of only the Atlanta Hawks and Los Angeles Lakers for the least passes per game (nba.com.)
With a lack of experience largely leading the inefficiencies, especially after the Cade Cunningham injury, rookie Jaden Ivey and 21-year-old Killian Hayes simply weren’t enough to consistently create and sustain NBA-level offense (though the coaching staff and outside player personnel didn’t lend them many favors.)
In comes Monte Morris.
On paper, Morris’ numbers may not jump out at you. However, averaging an efficient ten points, five assists, and three rebounds last season on 48% - 38.2% - 83.1% shooting splits is nothing to scoff at. The most impressive part? He averaged a mere one turnover per game in just over twenty-seven minutes per contest, which would actually be the highest average of his career.
In other words, Morris doesn’t make many mistakes. He never has and he likely never will. While he may lack the high-tier upsides and potential some of the guard prospects on the Pistons present, he offers what most can’t at this point of their careers: reliability.
While it is more than likely Morris will spend the majority of his time in Detroit backing up the young guards, he will also likely find himself in lineups alongside other ball handlers. Functioning as a release valve when defenses overload towards the ball, Morris can excel as a spot-up shooter or attacking off of second-side actions.
The addition of Morris also allows the Pistons’ young guards to shift off the ball and attack tilted defenses, ideally opening up some secondary scoring creation opportunities and easing some of their playmaking responsibilities.
Most importantly, Morris is a quality and PROVEN NBA player, something the Pistons have been lacking on their roster over the past few seasons, especially at the guard spot. While a team full of youth can be fun, in order to compete on a nightly basis, you need experienced players who the team can count on. Morris provides this much-needed stability.
Since the disappointing 2022-2023 season has come to an end, the word coming out of the front office has been consistent, and this team is primed to take a supposed jump this season. The addition of Head Coach Monty Williams and his staff is the largest of a plethora of “win now” moves the team has taken since season end. While Monte Morris may not be the flashiest of those moves, it is a quality one nonetheless.
With the Pistons starting lineup and overall rotation still in question, Monte Morris brings a sense of certainness to a team full of uncertainty. With crafty pick-and-roll play, the ability to score or facilitate after the screen, strong team defense, and efficient three-level scoring, Morris looks to be an important cog in the Pistons’ plans this season.
Ever since entering the league and cracking an NBA rotation, Monte Morris has been a player who has contributed to winning. The only thing that has changed is the scenery, the plan stays the same.
While this isn't a move that will likely immediately propel the Pistons into contender status, it is one that can potentially take them from bottom of the barrel, to officially clawing their way out.