Why the Detroit Pistons were smart to re-sign Cory Joseph

The Detroit Pistons waived Cory Joseph before his contract became fully guaranteed, then re-signed him to a new deal worth $10 million over two years.

It had to go down this way, otherwise the Pistons were on the hook for all of his $12.5 million salary this season. Instead, they are getting him for that over two seasons, which looks like a pretty good deal for Detroit.

While Joseph was certainly not the big-name free agent that some fans of the Detroit Pistons were hoping for, he fills a specific need and should be the perfect backup in the Motor City.

Detroit Pistons: Cory Joseph was really good for the Pistons last season

Cory Joesph  seemed like one of many overpaid veteran guards before joining the Detroit Pistons last season in a trade for Delon Wright.

At first, this just looked like a salary cap move for the Pistons, as Joseph’s final year wasn’t fully guaranteed and Wright’s was, so it cleared about $7 million in cap space.

But Joseph promptly started playing well for Detroit, averaging 12 points and 5.5 assists as a starter and off the bench while playing 26 minutes per game and shooting 36.8 percent from the 3-point line.

These are solid numbers for a backup, and while I don’t think Joseph will be playing those kinds of minutes next season, he will fill a valuable role as a veteran point guard who can occasionally carry the team offensively.

This will be a great addition for Cade Cunningham, Killian Hayes and Saben Lee.