Grading the Detroit Pistons 2019 offseason moves
Deals and 2nd rounders
After acquiring the 30th overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, the Pistons sent it to Central Division-rival Cleveland for four 2nd round picks and cash.
Detroit quickly turned two of those draft picks (Utah’s 2020 and Portland’s 2021) around and exchanged Isaiah Roby, the 45th overall pick, for Deividas Sirvydis, whom the Dallas Mavericks selected 34th overall.
GRADE: D
Sirvydis, 19, is very raw but a southpaw shooter that can score from the perimeter. He has a high basketball IQ on the offensive end but needs to gain strength so he can hold his own defensively and endure the 82-game NBA season.
He wouldn’t be able to help the Pistons this upcoming season so he is stashed with Detroit holding his rights until he is ready to come over.
Meanwhile, Roby signed a historic four-year, $6.7 million deal with the Mavericks, which makes Roby the first second round pick out of college to earn $1.5 million as a rookie, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks.
Later in the draft, the Pistons acquired Jordan Bone from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for a 2024 Miami Heat pick, which Detroit acquired in the aforementioned Cavs trade.
Bone, a 6-foot-3 guard out of Tennessee, signed a two-way contract with the Pistons. He has the makeup of a solid guard but he needs to build on a solid skill set that netted him a finalist spot for the Bob Cousy Award (top NCAA point guard).
GRADE: C+
There’s not a lot of risk in the deal to get Bone. The Pistons acquired four second round picks and traded three of them to acquire two players that could impact the Pistons down the road but development will be key.