Are the Pistons planning on trading up for Dennis Smith?

With news coming out that the Detroit Pistons will be in attendance for Dennis Smith’s pro day, is there a chance they may try to trade up in the draft for him?

News came out late Wednesday that the Detroit Pistons would be in attendance for NC State freshman point guard Dennis Smith’s pro day. Per Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders, the Pistons will be on hand along with a number of other interested teams.

Dennis Smith will have the Timberwolves, Knicks, Mavericks, Hornets, Pistons and Heat attend his Pro Day, sources told Basketball Insiders.
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) June 15, 2017

While teams attending pro days may not come across as a big deal, it’s interesting because Smith is expected to be drafted well before the Pistons come up with the 12th pick. DraftExpress ranks him the seventh-best prospect in the draft, and it’s a virtual certainty he’ll be off the board before the 12th spot rolls around.

In addition, only the Heat pick later (with the 14th pick) than the Pistons among all the teams planning to be in attendance. Also of note, the Knicks clearly have interest in Smith, hosting him for dinner with Phil Jackson and an interview with team officials. We can only speculate about the reason (maybe he thinks triangles are for pizza, not for basketball), but Smith did not go through with a scheduled workout for the team.

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With all these things being true, it could be an indicator that the Pistons intend to trade up in the draft in order to pick Dennis Smith. While the team expects to draft the best prospect available when they’re on the clock and not from a place of positional need, there’s merit to trying to make a big move and draft a player with the potential to be a future star.

With questions still swirling around Reggie Jackson and his rehab from knee tendinitis suffered a season ago, the Pistons may decide now is the time to pick his successor.

The 19-year-old Smith stands 6’3″ and 195 lbs. He has a 6’3″ wingspan and had a ridiculous record-setting 48″ vertical when working out for the Lakers last week.

He also has a particular skill-set that the Pistons desire in a point guard: An ability to run the pick-and-roll. While he worked out for the Lakers, he took a look at their PnR stats and found them wanting.

Per Mark Medina of the Orange County Register:

"“I checked one of the stats and they’re bottom 10 in almost everything relative to pick-and-roll scoring,” Smith Jr. said. “I think I can contribute to that.”"

Smith generated 0.89 points per possession between his own offense and offense derived off his passes on an NC State team that struggled to score the ball.

Last season the freshman averaged 18.1 points, 6.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game in 34.8 minutes. He shot 45.5 percent from the field and 35.9 percent from three-point range while converting on 71.5 percent of his free throws.

Smith was the Wolfpack’s primary offensive weapon with a usage of 27.2 percent and he’s tremendous at getting to the line with a free throw rate of .500 and an average of 6.3 free throws per game. However, he was a bit careless with the ball as shown by a 17.3% turnover rate and a corresponding 3.4 turnovers per game.

He tore his ACL in his senior season in high school, but a year-plus later he has proven that he’s an explosive force to be reckoned with. While he’s raw in decision-making and a minus defensively, he has the physical tools to be a threat on both ends if he can put the puzzle together.

Next: If the Pistons drafted today, who's your pick?

Dennis Smith looks to be a fascinating prospect at the NBA level, and he’s sure to both thrill and drive absolutely crazy Detroit Pistons fans if they do in fact decide to try to trade up to draft him.