Free agency is finally here! What time does it officially start? Who will the Detroit Pistons sign? Here is everything you need to know for free agency!
It’s that time of the year again! Free agency is finally here and just about everyone couldn’t be more excited about this special time in an NBA calendar. Teams can go from missing the playoffs to being a playoff contender, or even better, a championship contending team.
For the Detroit Pistons, they made their big roster move when they traded Jon Leuer to the Milwaukee Bucks for Tony Snell and drafting young prospect Sekou Doumbouya with the 15th overall pick.
Those two moves help bandage some of the roster issues at the wing position. Tony Snell is a veteran wing who is long and can possibly be a reliable player for the Pistons. And Sekou Doumbouya is the youngest player in the draft that can develop as the season goes on.
But the Pistons aren’t done in this off-season. They still need to fill out the roster with a couple more pieces. With Ish Smith, Glenn Robinson III, Jose Calderon, and Zaza Pachulia all entering free agency, the Pistons need to add some depth to their bench unit.
With news breaking out that the Pistons will be meeting up with Derrick Rose Sunday night when free agency begins, it will be interesting to see how much they will give Rose.
Free agent G Derrick Rose will meet with the Pistons on Sunday, with both sides motivated on finding a pathway to a two-year contract, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 29, 2019
The Pistons don’t have cap space to spend on bigger name free agents. Instead they only have the mid-level exception and bi-annual exception to use on free agents. Here is how much they have with those exceptions.
Mid-Level Exception: $9,246,000
Bi-Annual Exception: $3,619,000
The mid-level exception and bi-annual exception cannot be combined together. They can only be used in separate deals.
It’s likely Derrick Rose will cost over the amount of the bi-annual exception. So we will likely see the Pistons spending most of their mid-level exception on Derrick Rose.
The Pistons are likely to target a backup center in free agency. With Rose taking up the majority of the mid-level exception, the Pistons are going to be looking at cheap options. This will probably be a priority on days 3 and 4 of free agency when deals could possibly be cheaper than deals on day 1 and 2.
Things to look out for?
There are plenty of big name free agents in this year’s class. Even though the Pistons cannot afford any of them, they should be paying close attention to how much they are going to be offered.
NBA players can set the market for other players in this year’s free agency and the upcoming years. With the salary cap going up and up, contracts will also skyrocket. The salary cap for the 2019-2020 season has been set to $109,140,000 and a luxury tax line of $132,627,000.
Andre Drummond could potentially become a free agent at the end of next season if he decides to opt out of his player option. With a couple of NBA centers in this year’s free agency looking to get paid, they could set the market for Drummond. Drummond has the option to opt in his 28.8 million dollar player option, or seek a long-term deal with the Pistons or potentially another team.
It's June 30! Deals coming later today on Day 1 of free agency:
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 30, 2019
*Kyrie Irving & Nets (4/$141M)
*Kemba Walker to Celtics (4/$141M)
*Klay Thompson & Warriors (5/$190M)
*Kristaps Porzingis & Mavs (5/$158M)
*Nikola Vucevic & Magic (4/$100M)
*Harrison Barnes & Kings (4/$88M)
This could force the Pistons hand into trading him if they feel as if they don’t want to pay him that much money.
Another thing to be on the watch for is where big time free agents land. If Kawhi Leonard leaves Toronto for the Los Angeles Clippers, the East opens up wider and wider for the Pistons to step in. With Kemba Walker likely signing with the Boston Celtics, the Pistons won’t have to worry about the Hornets competing against them for a playoff spot.
Free agency begins at 6 PM ET, 3PM PT!