WIN — MACHINE
WIN — MACHINE
The Detroit Pistons finished 60-22 last season and took the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. Whether they can get back to 60 wins in the 2026-27 season is one of the bigger questions in the East.
The conference got deeper this summer, and at least one analyst has already doubted a repeat 60-win season in Detroit. Will the Pistons hold a top-four seed, or fall off a cliff? One ESPN analyst believes they are going to be just fine.
ESPN Analyst Zach Kram Believes The Detroit Pistons Will Win 50-Plus Games
ESPN analyst Zach Kram sorted all 30 NBA teams into tiers ahead of the 2026-27 season. The New York Knicks are the only Eastern Conference team he placed in his championship favorites tier, alongside the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs.
Detroit landed a tier below that, in a group Kram called regular-season win machines, next to the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics.
Boston, Cleveland and Detroit represented three of the top four Eastern Conference teams in the 2025-26 regular season, and all three should remain in the 50-plus-win range despite the conference’s boost in overall depth. The Celtics had the biggest personnel loss of the group with the Jaylen Brown trade, but they also should benefit from a full season of Jayson Tatum, after he played only 16 games last season.
If Detroit wins 50 or more games again, it likely means Cade Cunningham is back in the MVP conversation. He is the best player on the Pistons roster, and the offense runs through him.
No Secondary Scoring Behind Cade Cunningham
A high seed is one thing. Getting to the Eastern Conference Finals is another, and that is where Kram has his doubts about this roster, even with home court for a series or two.
After taking the East’s No. 1 seed last season, the Pistons didn’t address their greatest weakness this summer, as they still lack secondary scoring behind Cade Cunningham. And as of this writing, All-NBA center Jalen Duren remains unsigned in restricted free agency.
Jalen Duren Is Still Unsigned
Duren, a third-team All-NBA pick last season, is still a restricted free agent with camp closing in. ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reported on Sept. 1 that Detroit has offered a five-year deal worth about $35 million a year, while Duren is looking for an average salary north of $40 million. One rival executive told MacMahon there is “still a gap,” and that “it’s going to drag.”
Duren also has the option of playing this season on his $9.6 million qualifying offer. How that standoff ends will say a lot about whether the 50-win floor Kram describes is the right one.
Glenn Kaplan covers all of Detroit sports on this website. I have written for different outlets in the past for Gridiron Heroics, Wisconsin Sports Heroics, the Sporting News, and other outlets. Big NHL fan.