Pistons trade-value rankings No. 4: Jose Calderon

For your reference, salaries are available here and ages here.

Why Jose Calderon ranks No. 4

Jose Calderon is a very good player. He passes well, doesn’t turn the ball over and shoots well from the perimeter. He seems to know his limitations and plays within them.

But he’s only about an average starting point guard.

This is the golden age of NBA point guards, and that hurts Calderon’s value. I can count on one hand the number of teams that don’t start a quality point guard, and the league’s other 25 or so teams won’t give up a ton for Calderon.

Plus, Calderon is 31. Though he seems to have the type of game that will hold up well, it’s foolish to bet heavily on a player defying age. At minimum, he’s not getting any better.

Calderon’s expiring contract, in theory, could facilitate plenty of trades. Quality players with ending contracts are extremely valuable this time of year, but the Pistons seem content to let Calderon’s contract expire and then try to re-sign him this summer.