Detroit Pistons: What the Mason Plumlee trade means for free agency

One of of the more baffling parts of the Detroit Pistons NBA Draft night was the trade of Mason Plumlee to the Charlotte Hornets.

The Pistons not only gave up the only player in the trade, but had to throw in a second-round pick as well in an apparent attempt to clear some cap space.

Plumlee was a serviceable center for the Pistons, not great, so it’s not a big loss, but it does seem like a bit of an overpay to get off a guy who was only signed last season and never really had a place in the long-term plans.

The Mason Plumlee trade has a number of implications for the Pistons in terms of rotations, but also for future free agents.

Detroit Pistons: Mason Plumlee trade opens up more minutes at center

The Detroit Pistons have an All-Rookie center in Isaiah Stewart, so one of the benefits of this trade is that he becomes the de facto starter and should seen an increase in minutes.

The Pistons also drafted college star Luke Garza and big man Balsa Koprivica in the second round, so they have a trio of young centers to go along with Jahlil Okafor.

Plumlee never had a future with this team, so getting him off the books to open up more minutes for Beef Stew seems like a smart move that will give the Pistons a more athletic and versatile starting lineup.

Detroit Pistons: What will the Pistons do with the cap space?

If the Pistons cut ties with Cory Joseph, Rodney McGruder and Dennis Smith Jr., they should be able to generate about $18 million in cap space.

They will need to re-sign Hamidou Diallo, Frank Jackson and Saben Lee with that money, which will eat up most of it, but depending on the contracts, the Pistons should come out with some money to spend in free agency, but likely on a low-cost veteran.

They could use a veteran point guard or another wing, so Troy Weaver will be scouring the free agent ranks to find a guy who is a fit.

Fans went a little crazy on Twitter last night when this trade went down but let’s put it in perspective: The Pistons gave up virtually nothing to get off Plumlee’s contract and clear cap space now and into the future while opening up more minutes for Beef Stew.

It’s possible that Plumlee should have never been signed, but this was a trade that will ultimately make the Detroit Pistons a better team, so I am ok with it.

If the Pistons can trade Josh Jackson now, they might find some additional cap space that could add up to an impact free agent, so in the end, this move will be a blip on the radar in the Pistons’ rebuild.