Travel with me back in time when what, in the moment, seemed like a largely insignificant night for a largely insignificant team. The date was November 4, 2024, and the then-middling Pistons knocked off a play-in caliber Los Angeles Lakers group that was still a few months away from stealin g Luka Doncic. Considering all the amazing things that have happened since, the win streaks, playoff moments, and white hot start this season, why circle back to a gloomy, Monday night in November that brought the Pistons’ record to 3-5? You see, it’s not about the result of that game, but about how the team played that night. Simply put, it was one of the most recent, and frankly, one of the few examples of what an offense built around Detroit’s young backcourt of Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey could look like when it’s humming. During crunch time of this particular evening, Cunningham and Ivey seemed to feed off of one another. Multiple times, they set each other up for easy baskets. They took turns attacking Austin Reaves in the pick and roll, creating one great shot after another as Detroit pulled away late. By night’s end, Cade had notched a triple-double, and Ivey led the Pistons with 26 points as the team enjoyed outstanding production from its young backcourt. I remember thinking that this must have been what Troy Weaver had envisioned when he selected Ivey fifth overall in the 2022 NBA draft, pairing him with Cunningham.  Unfortunately, we all know how that story has since unfolded. Ivey broke his fibula eight weeks later, cutting his breakout season short, and missing Detroit’s out-of-nowhere mid-winter surge and subsequent playoff run. Then, he missed most of training camp after undergoing knee surgery. He did not make his debut until late November. Since returning, he has been on a minutes restriction and has come off the bench in all games that he’s appeared. And while, yes, the minutes restriction has been a factor, the truth of the matter is that when injuries to Detroit’s starting lineup have occurred, the former lottery pick has been passed over for both Danis Jenkins and Caris Levert in the starting lineup. Furthermore, fellow young players such as Ausar Thompson and Jalen Duren have become worthy of higher usage in their own right, pushing Ivey down the pecking order. Although it was not his fault, the team has surged, and individual player development has elevated other members of the young core into larger roles since the last time Ivey was considered perhaps the second-most-important young Piston behind Cunningham. And it’s fair to wonder if the flashes from that November night of the Purdue product being a bonafine number two alongside Cade will always only be flashes and fleeting memories. Since his return, minutes restriction aside, Ivey and the Pistons look like they’ve been mired in an awkward dance together. Painfully, it carries some resemblance to his role during the team’s year under Monty Williams’ tutelage. Other guards, such as Levert, Jenkins, and Thompson, often spend more time on the ball, while Ivey is often relegated to standing in the corner during most actions. When he does get the ball, it is clear that the fourth-year guard is pressing, eager to make a play, and often looks sped up. He appears uncertain about his role, and it seems that his teammates have been slow to adjust to playing with him since his return. It’s a touchy situation for a team that has been rolling without him. They do not want to disrupt what’s been working during this stretch while simultaneously trying to preserve a young player’s confidence and let him rediscover his burst and athleticism in the process. From an outside view, it seems that the feeling out process has lasted longer than anticipated, and has been filled with short stints in games, and inconsistent rotation patterns for the young guard. Perhaps the greatest issue, however, is the fact that the Pistons and Ivey are no closer to gaining clarity on their long-term compatibility together. The reality is that both sides are running out of time to figure it out.  At his best, it is clear what the 23-year-old Indiana native brings that the Pistons need. He shoots the three at a high clip, particularly on a catch-and-shoot basis. Additionally, he is highly effective in both the pick and roll and in isolation situations, as he’s able to get into the paint at will. Once there, he draws fouls at a high rate and is great in transition, both skills coveted by nearly every organization in the league. In theory, Ivey is exactly what the Pistons were missing in their first-round exit to the Knicks. A secondary creator around Cade who can relieve the pressure on him by getting his own at all three levels, while simultaneously providing spacing for the Pistons star when he probes and attacks. As great as both Duren and Thompson have been this year, neither can fit that full description. Neither is capable of consistently getting their own shot in crunch time. Both are non-shooters, thus allowing defenses to sag off of them, and bog down spacing. As we’ve seen in the playoffs and at times this season, this can make things clunky for Cunningham as he attracts extra attention from defenders cheating off non-shooters. Ivey, or at least the idea of Ivey, changes everything. He can spot up, take his turns initiating offense, and attack open driving lanes that become available due to the attention on Cunningham. If this idea becomes a reality, then the team has a whole other offensive gear to reach without changing the roster at all. If Ivey’s impact continues to be more theoretical than tangible, the team will need to begin considering the reality that the second scorer they need may not yet be on the roster. The clock is ticking. After failing to reach an extension this fall, his contract situation is now the elephant in the room as we get ready to turn the calendar to 2026. The team faces a dilemma in the sense that the roster is set to get a whole lot more expensive next summer. Jalen Duren has been playing his way into borderline max contract territory, and extensions for guys like Thompson and Ron Holland are also coming due sooner than later. If Ivey does not look to be an integral piece, the team cannot afford to pay him more than what he is potentially worth to them. On the other side of the coin, his talent is undeniable, and there’s a reason so many teams tried to trade up to get him on draft night. If the Pistons don’t view him as a long-term member of their core, then they may need to seriously consider trading him prior to the deadline to avoid losing him for nothing or overpaying him just to not lose him.  With that in mind, the team has only a couple of months to truly evaluate whether this can work. They’d be doing a disservice to themselves in not only giving Ivey more minutes, but greater opportunities to play alongside Cade, and operate with the ball in his hands more. Only then will we be able to see once and for all if this backcourt can impact winning, or if it is better in theory. The longer they wait, the fewer chances they will have before the clock runs out.  What do you think of Jaden Ivey’s current role with the team? ...read more read less