Pistons Need To Lean Into Ron Holland's At-Rim Capabilities

The Detroit Pistons spent the fifth overall pick on Ron Holland back in June, to which the returns so far have been inconsistent. At 19, that's to be expected. And, in fairness to Holland, he has found some success that's interesting to track further.

The 6-foot-8 forward, who struggles as a shooter, is continously converting near the rim, in large part due to his explosiveness, and strong feel around the rim.

Within three feet of the basket, Holland is converting on 76.4% of his shots, and that's with only 13 of his 81 total made field goals on the year being dunks. The shot makes up for a whopping 32.4% of his total offense, too.

Holland is crafty, and creative, in the open floor, and his size and length allow him to use seams in the defense, which should remain a blueprint of his game moving forward.

As Holland is able to contort his body quite substantially, he's able to fly by defenders as soon as he's airborne, providing himself with quality looks right at the basket. This skill, as he matures, could prove to become a steady weapon in Detroit as the franchise's young core further improves and the pace increases.

This isn't to say at-rim finishing is Holland's only skill, of course. He has a floater that seems to have some pop, and he's keenly aware that his size is advantageous in the right situations. But it is his best skill at this stage, and one Detroit should seek to employ further, particularly in terms of developing his ability to absorb contact, as to draw more fouls.

Needless to say, adding a reliable jumper will only open up the paint even more for him to make use of his creative finishes, which then has to be a major key emphasis this summer for the Pistons.

Also worth noting for Detroit is that Holland, who's fairly skinny at this point, should be careful not to add too much size to his frame, as we've seen flexible players before lose some of that, as they bulk up. Holland's frame looks to be capable of adding significant muscle, but there could be a trade-off in him simply losing the ability to slide by defenders if he gets too big.

Of course, that's not necessarily a concern for now. But it needs mentioning, as it'd be a problem if the Pistons compromised his one real NBA skill at this point. Moving forward, Holland's game has be developed as a symphony between him and the organization, especially as his game can take so many different paths.

Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.

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