Detroit Pistons: Breaking down the Delon Wright trade

Troy Weaver and the Detroit Pistons are at it again, trading Delon Wright to the Sacramento Kings for Cory Joseph and two second-round picks.

The trade was first reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, who actually dropped one of his beloved bombs on Twitter while the Pistons’ game was being played.

This is another trade that is not going to rock the foundations of the NBA, as both guys are similar players at a similar age and stage of their respective careers.

But it is an interesting one for several reasons, particularly what it does for the Detroit Pistons in terms of the salary cap, future assets and possible future trades.

But first let’s take a look at what the Pistons got in the trade.

Detroit Pistons: What did the Pistons get in the Delon Wright trade?

The Pistons will recieve 29-year-old journeyman guard Cory Joseph and two second-round picks. One of the picks will be in 2021 and will come from the Lakers, and the other won’t come until 2024, so again, this was hardly a blockbuster.

With LeBron James and Anthony Davis out for several weeks, that Lakers pick could get better, but it is still likely in the high 20’s. The perpetually awful Kings’ pick in 2024 will probably be good but who knows if it will ever be conveyed, as second-round picks tend to change hands several times in some cases.

Joseph is not as good as Delon Wright and never has been. He’s been a career bench player who has never averaged double digit points in a season. He doesn’t shoot the 3-pointer particularly well or rebound or, well, do anything all that well to be honest.

So what is the deal? Why would the Detroit Pistons trade the superior player? There are a couple of reasons.

Detroit Pistons: Why did the Pistons trade Delon Wright?

Delon Wright has had a mini-renaissance for the Detroit Pistons and is having a nice season but he was not part of the long-term plans.

The Pistons have a lot of guards already and Wright was probably going to be taking a lot of the minutes, so the Pistons wanted to clear time on the floor for their young guards.

The other and more important reason is money.

Delon Wright is guaranteed around $8.5 million next season, while Cory Joseph’s $12.6 million is only partially guaranteed at $2.4 million according to Spotrac.

The Pistons are going to save around $6 million in cap space even if they cut Joseph in the offseason, which will allow them to make further moves and possibly take on a bad contract in exchange for an asset as teams like Memphis have done successfully in recent years.

The Pistons also get two second-round picks for their troubles and though these picks are pretty worthless on their own, could be packaged with others to move up in the draft or to make a future trade.

Troy Weaver got himself more cap space and more draft capital for a guy who was not part of the future anyway, so it was a successful trade for the Pistons.

This move could also be a sign of things to come.

Detroit Pistons: Will the Pistons make more trades?

This is the type of deal that could lay the foundation for future moves. Not only did the Pistons clear some future cap space, but may have gotten the extra ammunition they needed to make another, splashier move.

It might not happen at this trade deadline, but Troy Weaver will now have some additional ways to get talent.

Fans often see cap space simply as a way to get free agents, but the reality is that it is much more valuable in trades.

The Pistons might be able to jump in and help facilitate a trade as the third team, taking on an asset or first-round draft pick in exchange for taking on the contract that is hard to move.

For example, let’s say the New Orleans Pelicans want to move Lonzo Ball but don’t want to do it without also getting out from Eric Bledsoe. The Pistons might be able to come in and eat that contract in the trade so the Pelicans’ trade partner doesn’t have to. For doing this the Pels might throw in a a future first round pick.

This is just an example of course but there are many ways cap space can be used other than free agents. The two second-round picks could be sweeteners in any deal and will also give Troy Weaver additional ways to acquire talent.

This trade was not a blockbuster for the Detroit Pistons but it does serve a purpose and could end up leading to bigger things.