Pistons Season Rewind: Sasser's debut season confirmed draft night deal

For all the ways analytics have changed the NBA, giving the game a certain parity of offense across all 30 franchises, with an emphasis on layups, open 3-pointers and free throws while also going for jump shots mid-range has been foregone, there is still a place for players who simply have a knack for putting the ball in the bucket, regardless of the playmaking or the defense built to take everything away from the attacks, what they are trying to achieve.

Marcus Sasser is a little too slight to be a central shooting guard, and he's never been a full-time point guard, but he's undeniably a smart and talented scorer who could play in any era. Combine that with a feisty competitive spirit and the character traits that check every box, and Sasser confirmed, as an NBA rookie, why the Pistons were so eager to emerge from the 2023 draft with another first-round pick so they could make Sasserone theirs could make their own.

Sasser came into training camp with a full roster of players ahead of him in the pecking order, but as injuries loomed, he proved he was ready to take the opportunity as a four-year college product. He had the expected ups and downs during his rookie season, but Sasser's pure scoring talent coupled with his work ethic and talent guarantee that he will maximize his stay in the NBA.

Here's a look at Sasser's past, present and future:

PROFILE: 6-foot-2 guard, 23 years old, 1 NBA season

STATUS: Sasser is entering the second year of a four-year rookie contract he signed after the Pistons selected him with the No. 25 first-round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft

STATISTICS 2023-24: 8.3 points and 3.3 assists in 19 minutes per game in 71 games, including 11 starts, while shooting 37.5 percent from the 3-point line

DID YOU KNOW?: Sasser comes from a well-known family of basketball players in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which has become a hotbed for basketball talent. Current teammates Cade Cunningham and Quentin Grimes also hail from the Dallas Metroplex. Sasser's uncle Jason was a star at Texas Tech in the 1990s and was named the Southwest Conference Player of the Year in 1996. Jason became Marcus' coach in high school. Another uncle, Jeryl, played at Southern Methodist and was named Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 1999. Marcus' father, Marcus Sr., also played college basketball at Texas.

A LOOK BACK: Sasser was an average three-star recruit in the high school class of 2019, but caught the attention of Kelvin Sampson on the summer AAU circuit because of his silky shooting touch. He moved into the starting lineup at the University of Houston midway through his freshman season and was an important part of a Final Four team as a sophomore. He scored 20 points and hit 5 of 9 from the 3-point arc to lead Houston in its national semifinal loss to eventual champion Baylor. Sasser finished his career by being named first-team All-American as a senior, when he averaged 16.8 points and shot 38.4 percent from three. Sasser started 93 of 107 career games in Houston, but his junior season was limited to 12 games due to injury. The Pistons' front office and scouting team eyed him covetously throughout his career, using the first pick of the second round, 31st^st Total, plus two future second-rounders who moved up six spots to take Sasser at 25 last June^Th choose.

THE SEASON THAT WAS: The Pistons opened training camp with no apparent spot for Sasser on the depth chart, with lottery picks Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey and Killian Hayes, as well as veteran Alec Burks and offseason acquisition Monte Morris all headed for larger roles wait for him. But a training camp injury that sidelined Morris for more than half the season and then an injury to Burks early in the season opened the door and Sasser showed off his uncanny shooting ability almost immediately. In his ninth career game in Milwaukee, Sasser scored 26 points while hitting 11 of 17 shots. Sasser went through some hot and cold stretches, which was to be expected for a rookie whose role fluctuated with the revolving door of injured players that plagued the Pistons' season. After posting a 41.4 percent shooting percentage over the course of the 2023 season, Sasser faded as the season progressed, admitting at times that the rigors of an NBA season were challenging. Sasser shot 27.9 percent from beyond the arc starting in March, when he increased his playing time after trading Morris and waiving Hayes.

A LOOK AHEAD: Sasser expects he will come back with a better sense of how to be most effective in the NBA based on everything the Pistons believe about him, like Sampson, his college coach and someone who played both in college – is widely respected for his abilities at both professional level, identifying and developing talent and building teams. Sasser played mostly without the ball in Houston, but showed some playmaking ability as a rookie. His 6.3 assists per 36 minutes were second best on the Pistons, behind only Cade Cunningham's 8.1. Although Sasser is below average in height and length at 6'3″, he is an opportunistic and competitive defender with a good feel for passing angles and quick hands. But his standout NBA ability is his innate scoring ability, with long shooting range and a tremendous change-of-pace repertoire that allows him to create advantageous scoring points and create space to shoot over far-flung defenders. With Cunningham and Jaden Ivey likely established as starters in the backfield, Sasser's immediate role appears to be to become a scorer off the bench.

MONEY OFFER: “During the season you're going to have some issues, but you just stuck with it, stayed in the gym and somehow finished the season strong. It's definitely good for me to go into the summer so I can come back next year with the same confidence and show the work, it just pays off. Stay down and keep working even when you struggle.” – Marcus Sasser looks back on his rookie season and looks ahead to year two in the NBA