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.
Detroit Pistons: Cory Joseph fills a need a need and does it at a discount
After signing Saben Lee to a new 3-year deal, the Detroit Pistons now have a rookie point guard in Cade Cunningham, a second year player who missed most of the season in Killian Hayes, and a second-year player who was a raw 2nd-round prospect in Saben Lee.
This gave Detroit the youngest backcourt trio in the NBA, so grabbing a veteran to add some stability off the bench was imperative.
Joseph can play both on and off the ball, so could see some minutes with Saben Lee in the second unit, but he is also perfectly capable of running the show himself as he showed last season.
Point guard is the toughest position in the NBA to learn, so having three guys who can’t even buy a beer yet is not a recipe for success if there is not a veteran there to mentor and help them.
And when you look at the landscape of NBA free agency, there weren’t that many low-cost veteran point guards to go around. Guys like Patty Mills had already signed deals and most veterans are looking to chase rings, not join a rebuild.
The Detroit Pistons were actually lucky to get Cory Joesph, and when you look at what some of these other free agent guards are getting, it looks like bargain.
Detroit Pistons: Cory Joseph is a value contract compared to some NBA free agents
When you look at what some of these other veteran point guards got in free agency, Cory Joseph looks like a steal.
Mike Conley got $72 million over three years. Lonzo Ball got an insane $84 million over four. Former Piston Spencer Dinwiddie got $62 million for three years and Derrick Rose got a whopping $43 million from the Knicks for three years.
While Joseph is not as good as any of these guys, his 2 year/$10 million is a value contract. His numbers were barely different from Lonzo Ball’s last season, and though Ball is much younger and has a higher ceiling, the Bulls are paying a premium for his services.
Considering other backups like Cameron Payne got 3 years/$19 million and Reggie Jackson got 2 years/$22 million, I’d say that the Pistons did well to retain Joseph for half that cost.
Like I said, Joseph isn’t as good as any of those players, but he’s not markedly worse either, so he could end up looking like a really good deal when the dust from free agency settles.
Cory Joseph is not a flashy name but he’ll fill a role for the Detroit Pistons and do it at a good cost.