Detroit Pistons: Zach Lowe’s NBA Draft trade proposal is ridiculous. Stop.

The Detroit Pistons aren’t allowed to have nice things apparently.

Just days after winning the NBA Draft lottery and getting the number one pick, people are already speculating that the Pistons won’t do what everyone knows they are going to do, which is draft Cade Cunningham.

The monolith ESPN was the culprit as usual, with Zach Lowe floating some silly ideas at the end of his last podcast. I really love Lowe’s writing and analysis so it was disappointing to see him trading in the sort of stuff you usually see from some of their louder personalities.

This is on top of ESPN embarrassing itself with a First Take segment that literally just made fun of “terrible cities” that their talking heads deemed beneath them. I am sure Detroit is high on their list. This cringeworthy conversation made me want to buy a Giannis jersey. I am not sure how anyone watches this trash.

Even though the NBA is getting its highest ratings in years, the narrative that “no one cares about small market teams” keeps getting pushed by ESPN and others.

I don’t think Zach Lowe is part of this narrative, as he is one of the few at ESPN who actually watches the “lesser” teams, but that didn’t stop him from floating an absurd hypothetical on his podcast.

He threw out a trade that made me laugh before it made me angry. Would the Pistons trade the number one pick to the Warriors for James Wiseman, #7 and #14? No, Zach, they wouldn’t.

The Detroit Pistons do not exist just to help the glamor teams and they are not going to throw away one of the few good things that has happened to the franchise over the last decade. Could you at least make it lopsided in Detroit’s favor and not the other way around?

Not that I should have to justify this any further, but here’s why this isn’t happening.

Detroit Pistons: Most of the MVPs were number one picks

The Pistons are expected to choose Cade Cunningham with the number one overall pick and for good reason.

He is one of the most complete and “sure thing” prospects to emerge in some time, a player who can change a franchise. Just check out these highlights and tell me you’d rather have Wiseman and  the 7th pick (again).

Quantity is not better than quality. You need stars to win titles. You need MVP-caliber players and most of them have been number one picks.

In fact, out of the 45 players to win MVP, 17 of them were #1 picks in the NBA Draft. The number 2-5 picks yielded 10 of the remaining MVPS, with Michael Jordan taking home five of them. I think it’s safe to say Jordan should have been the number one pick. That leaves 18 total for all of the rest of the spots in the NBA Draft combined.

The Pistons are hoping to get back to their place as one of the premier teams in basketball, not to be a feeder system for the “big market” teams, especially when that offer is garbage anyway.

Can you just leave the Pistons alone and let us enjoy the idea of having a superstar for once? We haven’t had the #1 pick in 51 years and now we’re going to trade it for James freaking Wiseman and two prospects who might not even be good? Just stop.

I am sure this won’t be the last “hot take” and I am fine with people speculating, it’s part of what we do as fans and sports’ media. But for once can the Detroit Pistons come out ahead in one of these deals?

I get it, if the Pistons are good again, some of these ESPN guys will have to step foot in Detroit, their worst nightmare since it doesn’t contain Miami Beach or LeBron James.

What it will have is Cade Cunningham and ESPN is just going to have to deal with it.