There are some fans of the Detroit Pistons who are obsessed with the idea of trading Jerami Grant.
This always seems to happen on rebuilding teams that have a talented veteran, as fans seem to think that all of the players on the team have to be the same age, or to use the cliche, “Be on the same timeline.”
Because Jerami Grant is 27-years-old he isn’t on the “Timeline” for some, so trading him before his value magically disappears is the only recourse.
This is ridiculous for a couple of reasons, namely that teams need a mixture of youth and veteran experience if they want to be good. This isn’t college basketball where you are trying to line guys up with other guys from the same class.
If these playoffs have shown anything, it’s that you can never have too much talent and the Detroit Pistons need a whole lot more.
The latest chatter is around Kristaps Porzingis, who was recently dispatched from the playoffs in the first round and is apparently unhappy in Dallas.
Of course, some fans had to immediately jump on this and propose the the Pistons go after the Unicorn using Jerami Grant as bait.
https://twitter.com/PistonsHateMe/status/1401911424495063040
I can see why PistonsHateYou, as this is not a good idea, but it is one that I have seen floated by several people so I am not trying to pick on one person.
Here’s why it’s not happening.
Detroit Pistons: Jerami Grant is the start
If you want to know when the Pistons’ rebuild started, look no further than the day they signed Jerami Grant.
Grant CHOSE the Detroit Pistons over the Nuggets even though they offered the same money, a huge win for Troy Weaver in his first season as GM.
Weaver has a vision for the types of players he wants in Detroit and Grant is it. He’s a long, athletic and versatile forward who can play elite defense. He’s a hard worker who always hustles and sets a good example.
He’s everything that Detroit basketball is about, he’s still young, has 100 percent bought into the culture and did I mention HE WANTS TO BE IN DETROIT.
Do you really think Kristaps Porzingis will be happy in Detroit? Me either.
Detroit Pistons: Jerami Grant is better than Porzingis
I should say that I really like Porzinigis as a player and think the talk about him being washed is way too premature.
He plays with one of the most ball dominant players in the league in Luka Doncic and has not yet figured out his role, which we saw in his underwhelming playoff performance.
Porzingis is still a 7-foot-3 player with skill who scores 20 points per game, grabs 8.9 rebounds and shoots nearly 38 percent from the 3-point line, so let’s quit acting like this guy is a bum just because he had an off series against a very good Clippers’ team.
All that being said, Jerami Grant is the better player and it’s not really close. He scores more points, he shoots a higher percentage, makes more plays and is a WAY better defender.
If the Detroit Pistons traded for Porzingis they’d be getting a guy who is only two years younger than Grant, has had a load of physical problems and is working on rebuilt knees at 7-foot-3, so Grant is not only better but we know he’s going to be more reliable.
I could maybe see this argument if Porzinigis was on a rookie deal and considerably younger than Grant, but he isn’t, which negates the only reason the Detroit Pistons would have for trading for him.
Detroit Pistons: Jerami Grant is cheaper than Porzingis
For fans that are obsessed with “timelines” I’m not sure if any of them have taken a look at Porzingis’ contract.
Jerami Grant’s runs through 2022-23, which is about the time the Pistons will hopefully be competing for a playoff spot, which means the “timeline” fans are so concerned about lines up perfectly.
Porzingis’ deal goes for an extra year, so he’d be hampering the Pistons payroll just about the time they’d finally be in the market for a potential star free agent.
Not only that, but Grant is making $20 million in both of his remaining seasons, while Porzinigis will make 31 million next year, 33 the year after that and a whopping 36 million in 2023-24 when he’ll be 28-years-old and probably down another knee or two.
This has Blake Griffin written all over it and the Detroit Pistons will want no part of that contract.
In summary, the Detroit Pistons are not trading the captain of their team for a worse, more expensive player with health issues who might be in serious decline.
Instead, the Detroit Pistons are going to build around Jerami Grant, who wants to be in Detroit and looks to be the beginning of something special.