Photo by Elsa/Getty Images The Detroit Pistons need to re-sign one of the leagues best shooters When former Duke University sharpshooter Trajan Langdon took over as president of basketball operations for the Detroit Pistons, he vowed to fix the Pistons’ woeful shooting. One of his first moves was signing nine-year veteran Malik Beasley to a one-year, $6 million contract. Beasley was one of the marksmen Langdon paired with the talented young Pistons core. His performance one-third of the way through the season has July on our minds. The Pistons should re-sign the best high-volume 3-point shooter in their history to a team-friendly deal this offseason. The Pistons cannot extend Beasley during the season due to not having his bird rights— he can re-sign this summer, dipping into the Pistons cap room. Or the Pistons could use their room exception. However it needs, to happen, re-signing highly effective shooters who create space for your star players is mandatory. Malik Beasley is having the best volume 3-point shooting season for a Piston The Pistons are home to legends and legendary teams—their three championships are tied for the sixth most in NBA history. The Detroit Pistons were known for their defensive intensity and dirty work mentality. Prolific 3-point shooting has never been their calling card, even in their dominant days. The Pistons are one of seven franchises without a shooter, with 1,000 made 3s. The great Joe Dumars is right there with 990 made triples. If Detroit keeps Beas around for the long term, he’s bound to cross the 1,000 threshold. Before Beasely’s human torch start to this year, 6-foot-7 swingman Saddiq Bey had the most “prolific” 3-point shooting season in Pistons history. Bey had the volume and makes in 2022, shooting 7.4 3s a game and netting a Pistons-high 211 3s, but the efficiency lacks compared to Beas. Beasley has questionable shot selections, like many a flamethrower before him, but efficiency has never been an issue for him. He’s been shooting the ball at a high clip for over half a decade. Over the past seven seasons, Beasley has shot 39% on seven attempts. This stellar start to the season with the Pistons showcases how Beasley has continued to build. Detroit is allowing him freedom, and they need his irrational shot-taking and making. Versatility adds to a shooter’s value, and Beasley isn’t a one-dimensional shooter. Contested shooting is key, and Beasley covers that. He’s shooting 35% from 3 with a defender within 2-4 feet. Not an elite figure at first glance, but those tough grenade shots keep defenders honest. It’s harder to help off Cade Cunningham when an elite shooter with a quick trigger who isn’t afraid to shoot with a hand in his face is on Cade’s side. Duncan Robinson of the Miami Heat, who plays a similar movement shooter role to Beasley, shoots 32% on those tight 3-point attempts. 6-10 sniper Michael Porter Jr is a shade over 40%. Any team that’s cheated off Beasley in the corner has been burned. Beasley is shooting a blistering 33/64 (52%) from the corners. This type of safety vault has repeatedly aided the Pistons’ offense—Detroit’s offense is +4.0 with Beas on the floor per Cleaning The Glass. Shooting on the move has been staple in Beasley’s games since popping off in his third season as Denver Nugget. This is your typical inbounds play, but Beasley is the difference maker here, nailing a fading corner three on the move as the Pistons attempted to come back in Boston. Elite shooters leverage their shooting prowess using gravity to free themselves or others. Beasley is no stranger to defenders fighting to get over screens, terrified of his lethal shot. Beasley leads Kelly Oubre into this Tobias Harris screen, sees Oubre is trying to fight over, and flies back into the corner for a tough 3 in one motion. He keeps defenders on their heels with movement, and he’s an ultimate opportunist looking for those tiny leaks in a defense. Whoever the opposing coaches employ on Beasley better have track shoes and hard hats—they’re going to be doing plenty of chasing and fighting through screens. If Beasley has a sliver of daylight, it’s too late. Catch-and-shooting is another of Beasley’s elite shooting traits. He burns defenders if they leave him, period, not just from the corners. Beasley shoots six catch-and-shoot 3s a game and knocks them down at a 46% clip. He should be a lock for the 3-point contest in February. Beasley is a top four shooter in the NBA with 99 3s over a month into the year. This isn’t flukey shooting—Beasley is coming into his prime. He’s only 28 years old and fits the Pistons core’s timeline because shooters tend to age graciously—they don’t lose that stroke. Malik Beasley fits well with the young core Instead of kicking it out (insert any Pistons shooter from last year) when attacking, Cade sprays passes out to the steady Malik Beasley. There is a synergy between these two. Beasley does an excellent job moving & relocating in the half-court, and Cade always has his head up, looking to make a play. Beasley and Cade have a plus-5 NetRtg in 431 minutes together, per PBP stats. Cade hasn’t had a volume shooter like this on his side throughout his 4-year career. Defenders slip up and help off occasionally, but their goal is to stay draped on a shooter like Beas at all times. Brandon Miller is practically hugging Beasley in the corner in the middle of the second quarter, doing his part to add spacing to the floor for the Pistons. Elite shooters make suspect defenders overthink everything, leading to breakdowns and open looks. Cade is fifth in the league with almost 400 drives—an elite shooter like Beasley must stay on his side for a kick-out option. Ausar Thompson is working his way back into the rotation. He’s played seven games, averaging 17 minutes. The minutes from him and Beas aren’t significant enough to draw any conclusion from, but the blueprint is there. While Beasley spaces the floor ready to launch, Thompson operates as roll man, wing, or ball handler. We’ve seen the Thompson-to-Beasley connection four times so far. The young bigs in Isaiah Stewart and Jalen Duren also see the fruits of lacing up with Beasley. Stew is more of a shooter than Duren, but that part of his game has been toned down from a year ago. Both bigs benefit from defenders staying attached to Beas so they can have less contested shots at the rim. Beasley is a gunner for all intents and purposes, but ~30% of his assists for the year have gone to either of the young bigs. Jaden Ivey is the last key member of the Pistons core to be mentioned, and his fit with Beasley is a bit trickier but still growing. The turbo guard also loves driving to the rack, and Beas is a perfect safety vault for the backcourt member. Ivey is growing game by game and can still get out of control occasionally. Beasley is always ready to fire no matter what speed Ivey ramps up to. Their advanced numbers aren’t great, as they have a -3 NetRtg in 382 minutes together. Neither Beas nor Ivey are lockdown defenders— there’s some covering up for them when they share the floor. Overall, the advanced numbers for Ivey aren’t thrilling. Still, the eye test suggests both members of the Pistons’ budding backcourt are building much-needed chemistry with the sharpshooter out of Atlanta, Georgia. Malik Beasley has embraced Detroit Beasley might’ve grown up in the ATL, but some deep 313 roots are showing its head. “To be here right now playing for the Pistons is a dream come true,” Beasley proudly boasted. It’s a relief when athletes want to be in Detroit. For years, the city of Detroit has been perceived as an undesirable city to NBA players. Whether due to the weather, poverty, or the small market effect, the narrative has been that nobody wants to come to Detroit. A player poll even voted Little Caesars Arena as the worst arena to play in in the league. To hear a sniper like Beasley boldly state that this is a home for him changes that broken narrative about the city. One could argue Beasley is playing nice due to the upcoming contract situation, but that’s off. He is genuinely enjoying himself here and has embraced the city, fans, and culture of Detroit. Malik Beasley giving @DetroitPistons fans tickets you love to see it. #detroitbasketball pic.twitter.com/gBi00wvv3Q— Pistons Talk (@Pistons__Talk) December 2, 2024 What are the cons of re-signing Malik Beasley? While Beasley is shooing a career-best 41% on ~9 3s a game, conventional wisdom may suggest dealing him at the deadline since he’s at the peak of his value. The problem with that thinking is that Beasley is underpaid on his current one-year rental deal. Besides players still on their rookie deals (they probably aren’t for sale), most players making $6M or less couldn’t replicate Beasley’s scorching shooting. How many would be able to replicate the leadership Beasley has shown? This interview with Dr. Darrius displays the behind-the-scenes lens of the bench mob leader. Beasley’s questionable defense would be a reason detractors don’t want to get another deal done in the summer. Beasley’s screen navigation is inconsistent. He has moments of fighting to the death to get over a screen and has died on said screens just as often. Bball-Index grades Beasley’s screen navigation in the 30th percentile. On the ball, he’s just as inconsistent. But everyone knew this (besides the Bucks last year). Beasley has never been 1996 Gary Payton. You have to ask yourself if his top-of-the-league shooting outweighs his rollercoaster-ride defense. I say yes in the context of this Pistons core. They desperately need that confident shooting. It would be fair for both sides if the Pistons could re-sign Beasley in the $10-12mill range annually. Sharpshooters like Beas don’t grow on trees, but one-way shooters don’t demand the money they were demanding at the beginning of the decade. In an ideal world, the Pistons can use the room exception ($8.78M) without dipping into the projected $24.8M in cap room. Stats are as of 12/17/2024 and via Shotceator.com, Cleaning The Glass, Bball-Index, Basketball Reference, and NBA.com