What happens if the Detroit Pistons lose Christian Wood this summer?

The Detroit Pistons will go into free agency this year with one major goal in mind, and it will be to re-sign their breakout big.

Whenever free agency hits this year, the Detroit Pistons are going to prioritize the re-signing of their standout big man Christian Wood.

Any time it’s brought up, Wood expresses his genuine love for the fans and the city of Detroit which is a good sign. The Pistons are the only team that’s given him a legitimate chance in the NBA.

Because of this it’s safe to assume that he’s likely to stay, and from what we’ve been lead to believe, that’s true.

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However we’ve also recently learned that Detroit isn’t the only team to have eyes on him. The New York Knicks have recently expressed interest in pursuing Wood as soon as free agency hits.

At the trade deadline, the Houston Rockets and the Boston Celtics both reached out to the Pistons in regard to Wood’s availability. Naturally when a trade wasn’t completed, one could assume it’s because Detroit’s price tag was too high.

If true, this would be a good sign as it means they truly to intend to keep him around for the long haul.

But, this is the NBA and free agency is one of the most unpredictable times of the year. So, what happens if Wood signs elsewhere?

There are a lot of variables here. For starters, the NBA Draft will have already passed by the time free agency hits, so there’s a chance that they could have filled the hole there.

If either James Wiseman or Obi Toppin were to fall to Detroit, then they would have already filled their contingency plan and they can get the ball rolling again.

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However, they likely wouldn’t select either of those players if they felt confident that they’d be able to re-sign Wood. It makes far more sense to go after a point guard, so the odds are that they’d be left without an established front court all together.

So then you begin to look at who else is on the board. If you plan on bringing back Thon Maker and John Henson, that’s certainly a start but you’re still going to get beat up in the paint on a nightly basis.

This could open up the door for Detroit to pursue Montrezl Harrell, Kyle O’Quinn, or possibly the main target, Harry Giles.

The Pistons would begin looking for players who are either cost efficient, can be part of their rebuild, or even both. Giles could be both.

Harrell would likely require a sizable financial commitment if he were to be pried away from the Clippers, but the option is still there.

If they strike out in free agency, the trade market becomes a possibility. Their summer league roster could have some standouts that they’re interested in bringing on as well.

They could bring on Donta Hall, who spent a majority of this season in the G-League, as a regular rotation man.

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In all likelihood, Detroit will be bringing back Wood on a much bigger contract that what he currently has. They’ll have more than enough cap space to get the job done, and fans should expect that they will.

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