The Detroit Pistons had five rookies that all looked pretty good in 2012-13 for them, giving them high hopes for the future.  19-year old Andre Drummond is going to be the Pistons’ starting center in 2012-13.  He played in 60 games (10 starts) for the Pistons last year and he averaged 20.7 minutes, 7.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.6 blocked shots per game.  Drummond will need to improve his free throw shooting (37.1%), but he is very efficient from the floor (60.8%).  Drummond had 9 double-doubles last year despite coming off the bench most of the season.  He had 17 games with 10 or more points, 20 games with 10 or more rebounds and 13 games of three or more blocked shots……which is impressive for the limited minutes he played last year.  24-year old SG Kyle Singler also had a solid rookie year.  He played in 82 games (74 starts) for the Pistons last year and he averaged 28.0 minutes, 8.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  He had 35 games in which he scored 10 or more points last year.  21-year old SG/SF Khris Middleton was solid off the bench, when he got to play.  He played in 27 games (0 starts) for the Pistons last year and he averaged 17.6 minutes, 6.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game.  24-year old SG Kim English didn’t get to play a whole lot for the Pistons last year.  He played in 25 games (0 starts) for the Pistons last year and he averaged 9.9 minutes, 2.9 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.  25-year old center Viacheslav Kravtsov also was semi-impressive when he got to play.  He played in 25 games (0 starts) for the Pistons last year and he averaged 9.0 minutes, 3.1 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  He shot a very impressive 71.7% from the floor, but only 29.7% from the free throw line last year.

The Detroit Pistons had another rough year in 2012-13, but the future could be bright with Greg Monroe, Brandon Knight and Andre Drummond leading the way.  Head coach Lawrence Frank has already lost his job, so the Pistons are likely to make more big changes before the 2013-14 season begins.  Here is a look at the players that made the biggest impacts in 2012-13 for the Pistons, in my opinion:

Team MVP:  Greg Monroe - 22-year old center Greg Monroe continued to improve as a player for the Pistons in 2012-13.  Monroe played in 81 games (all starts) for the Pistons this year and he averaged 33.2 minutes, 16.0 points, 9.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game.  He had 37 double-doubles and 1 triple-double for the Pistons this year as he was an absolute force in the paint.

Biggest Surprise:  Kyle Singler - 24-year old small forward Kyle Singler came to the Pistons after spending his first year in professional ball in Europe.  He played in 82 games (74 starts) as a rookie for the Pistons and he averaged 28.0 minutes, 8.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  His play this year was a pleasant surprise.

Biggest Disappointment:  Corey Maggette - 33-year old small forward Corey Maggette came to the Pistons from the Bobcats in the Ben Gordon deal.  The Pistons were hoping that Maggette would give them some offense off the bench, but it never happened.  Maggette played in 18 games (0 starts) for the Pistons this year and he averaged 14.3 minutes, 5.3 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.1 assist per game.  He only shot 35.5% from the floor and 23.8% from the three point line for the Pistons this year.  He was a complete bust.

The Pistons have fired 42-year old head coach Lawrence Frank.  The Pistons were only 29-53 (35.4%) under Frank in 2012-13.  Frank was 54-94 (36.5%) in his two years in charge of the Pistons.  Frank is now 279-335 (45.4) during the regular season and 18-20 (47.4%) in the playoffs so far in his 9 years as a head coach in the NBA.  Frank is not going to be missed as some of the players appeared to be tuning him out.  The next coach will have some talented players to work with, so if the Pistons pick the right guy….they might be able to get back to the playoffs in 2013-14.

28-year old power forward Charlie Villanueva could be playing his last game ever for the Detroit Pistons tonight against the Nets in Brooklyn.  The Pistons could very well use the amnesty clause to dismiss Villanueva over the summer.  He has played in 68 games (0 starts) for the Pistons so far this year and he is averaging 16.0 minutes, 6.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  He is only shooting 37.7% from the floor, 34.7% from the three point line and 55.1% from the free throw line so far this year….and those are pretty awful numbers.  In Villanueva’s defense, in the 19 games (0 starts) in which he has played at least 20 minutes this year, he is averaging 24.4 minutes, 11.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.  That being said, I will be shocked if Villanueva is wearing a Pistons’ uniform when the 2013-14 season opens.

22-year old center Greg Monroe keeps getting better for the Detroit Pistons.  He has played in 79 games (all starts) for the Pistons so far this year and he is averaging 33.2 minutes, 15.9 points, 9.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game.  He has 35 double-doubles and 1 triple-double so far this year for the Pistons and that’s pretty impressive.  Monroe has now played in 225 games (193 starts) in his first three years with the Pistons and he is averaging 30.8 minutes, 13.4 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.2 steals per game.  The future is really bright for Monroe as he is the guy the Pistons should be building their team around.

24-year old small forward Kyle Singler has not played too well so far in April for the Pistons.  He has played in 4 games (all starts) so far in April for the Pistons and he is averaging 21.9 minutes, 6.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game.  Singler has now played in 78 games (70 starts) overall this year for the Pistons and he is averaging 28.1 minutes, 8.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game.  Despite struggling lately, Singler has eclipsed what the Pistons were expecting out of him as a rookie this year.

With Jason Maxiell on the shelf for the rest of the 2012-13 season, the Pistons should move 19-year old PF/C Andre Drummond into the starting lineup.  He has played in 53 games (3 starts) for the Pistons so far this year and he is averaging 19.8 minutes, 7.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 0.5 assists and 1.6 blocked shots per game.  Drummond has 8 double/doubles so far this year for the Pistons.  In 27 games (1 start) that Drummond has at least played 20 minutes in, he is averaging 23.9 minutes, 9.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.6 blocked shots per game.  There is no reason not to play Drummond 30+ minutes per game the rest of this season.

The Pistons have lost 30-year old power forward Jason Maxiell for the remainder of the 2012-13 season due to a detached retina.  He played in 72 games (71 starts) for the Pistons in 2012-13 and he averaged 24.8 minutes, 6.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 1.3 blocked shots per game.  Maxiell has now played in 523 games (175 starts) in his first 8 years with the Pistons and he is averaging 19.1 minutes, 6.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.  The Pistons will need Andre Drummond and Jones Jerebko to pick up the slack the rest of the season.

31-year old point guard Jose Calderon has been very efficient in running the Pistons’ offense since he came over in a deal with the Raptors.  He has played in 26 games (all starts) for the Pistons so far this year and he is averaging 31.4 minutes, 11.6 points, 2.6 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  Calderon is shooting a blazing 51.8% from the floor, 52.1% from three point range and 92% from the free throw line so far this year….which is very impressive.  Calderon has now played in 71 games (56 starts) overall this year for the Pistons and Raptors and he is averaging 29.4 minutes, 11.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game.  The Pistons would be really smart to try to re-sign Calderon this summer.

The Pistons have lost 30-year old PG/SG Will Bynum indefinitely due to a hand injury.  He played in 60 games (0 starts) for the Pistons so far this year and he is averaging 18.4 minutes, 9.3 points, 1.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.  The Pistons are going to need 26-year old Rodney Stuckey to pick up more minutes due to Bynum’s injury.  Stuckey has played in 66 games (18 starts) for the Pistons so far this year and he is averaging 28.3 minutes, 11.2 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.