The Detroit Pistons currently have the second-best record in the Eastern Conference with 10 wins and three losses. Tobias Harris has been a huge key for the team in this hot start. Harris’ shooting from the 3-point line, in particular, has been the difference-maker for the Pistons so far. Heading into this season, Harris had a career average of 33.2 percent from outside. This season, Harris is shooting an impressive 50.6 percent from beyond. The forward is averaging 20.2 points – making him by far the best scorer on the team – and has added five rebounds per game. With these kinds of numbers, Harris is really becoming that kind of stretch 4 that the Pistons always wanted him to be, since they traded for him back in February 2016.
In 13 games this season, Tobias Harris has already made 42 3-pointers, more than all but six other players. Last season, he made just 109 3-pointers in the entire season. Right now, he’s on pace to make 264 (assuming he plays all 82 games); that would be two more treys than James Harden made last season, and the ninth-most in a season ever. It’s been a total revolution for Harris. In fact, the 42 3-pointers themselves are even a record. No one else in Pistons’ history has ever made 42 3-pointers in 13 games. The previous record was owned by Joe Dumars with 34.
#Pistons Tobias Harris has 42 made 3-pointers in the first 13 games, breaking the franchise record (by a lot): Joe Dumars (34)
— Rod Beard (@detnewsRodBeard) November 13, 2017
Right now, Harris has drained multiple 3-pointers in nine straight games, making people wonder what the hell happened during the offseason. Harris himself explained that something actually did change during the summer. The forward, in fact, usually wears glasses outside of the court and this summer he decided to have LASIK eye surgery to fix the problem, as he explained in an interview with The Athletic. The result has been so impressive so far that not even the most experienced writers and NBA analysts saw this coming.
Tobias Harris is shooting 47.8% from 3 this season. Even I didn't see that coming.
— Duncan Smith (@DuncanSmithNBA) November 11, 2017
With Harris and Bradley on the court together, the Pistons’ spacing is just so much better than it was last season. Harris has also become better at creating his own shot. While last season only 0.9 percent of his 3-pointers were unassisted, this year Harris has been more creative with the ball in his hands; 13.5 percent of his 3-pointers have been unassisted so far. This also shows how Stan Van Gundy, the head coach of the team, changed the offensive system of the Pistons this year. As he explained to our JD Shaw before the season, Van Gundy said that the team needed to be more creative offensively and more consistent from the 3-point line:
“And then we wanted more guys who could play off the dribble and attack the basket. And I think Avery adds some of that too. So those are the areas we have focused on, but we really just needed a more mature approach, consistency and greater mental toughness to overcome situations. And I think we have added that to this team.”
Having more guys being aggressive and attacking the rim, as we’ve seen, is really helping the Pistons’ offense. Stan Van Gundy’s squad currently has an offensive rating of 107.6, the sixth-best mark in the league, despite the fact that their pace is the 23rd-slowest in the league. That’s because the offense is more versatile and not entirely focused on pick-and-roll situations. Andre Drummond is no longer only a post-up solution, but is way more involved offensively. He’s averaging 3.2 assists per game and is finally fixing his free-throw problems, shooting a career-best 63 percent through the first 13 games.
Another huge change from last season is the bench’s impact on the game. So far, the guys with the best plus-minus on the team are all bench players. Anthony Tolliver has a +20.9, rookie Luke Kennard has a +10.7 and Langston Galloway has a +17.6. The second unit is really having a strong impact, letting the key players rest without the fear of having to rush back on the court every single time the bench guys are on the court.
The final statement for the Pistons’ hot start arrived on Monday night, when Tobias Harris was named Eastern Conference Player of The Week after averaging 21.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and shooting 49 percent from the 3-point line.
Tobias Harris has been named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week. #DetroitBasketball pic.twitter.com/ip6uacVJZB
— Palace Pistons (@PalaceOfPistons) November 13, 2017
We’re just 13 games into the NBA season, but the Detroit Pistons look for real out there, and Harris’ improvements from last season deserve huge credit for this hot start. If the forward keeps playing at this level in the coming months, there’s no doubt the Pistons will continue to be a tough matchup for almost every team in the league.
