Detroit Pistons: Pass or Pursue on 3 free agent candidates
The Detroit Pistons have many open roster spots and a lot of salary cap space to pursue free agents. Here are three free agent targets the Pistons are most likely considering.
With currently only one pick in the NBA Draft, the Detroit Pistons need to look at alternatives to improve its roster.
Detroit currently has just eight players under contract for the upcoming season, according to Spotrac.com. An NBA team is allowed up to 15 players on its roster,plus two two-way players.
Pistons general manager Troy Weaver can, and probably will, try to swing some trades . He has some valuable commodities in veterans Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose plus outside shooter Luke Kennard, who would draw interest from other teams.
But trading away players leaves even more holes in the roster. The most economical method to putting the team together is going hard in free agency.
No key players or draft choices need to be sacrificed in getting free agents. All it takes is money. For the first time in a while, that is something the Pistons have.
Of course, waving money in front of a lot of players does not automatically cure all a team’s ills (see Knicks, New York). A club has be selective where it spends its cap space money.
As an example, last summer the Philadelphia 76ers let Jimmy Butler go and signed Al Horford to a $109 million contract. How did that go?
What will Weaver be seeking on the free agent market? Possibly a stopgap at center or guard to keep the pressure off young players. Maybe a promising player coming off their rookie contract, or a first-round bust to take a flier on could also be considered.
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When you have seven open spots on your roster (and maybe more if Blake Griffin or Derrick Rose are traded), you can afford to take some chances.
So who will the Pistons look at free agency? There will be some obvious targets but, just because they look good from afar, when you get to the details, it might be smarter to take a pass.
Here are three prime candidates for the Pistons to pursue in free agency. Or, when you look harder, should they pass?