Fans of the Detroit Pistons should be monitoring the Chicago Bulls closely this season.
As a longtime Pistons’ fan, I absolutely hate the Bulls, so hoping they lose will be nothing new for me.
The Bulls are one of Detroit’s biggest rivals and they are in the same division, so there are obvious reasons we want them to lose.
The Bulls got the better of the Pistons on opening night, but there wasn’t a huge gap in talent between the teams even though the Pistons were missing number one pick Cade Cunningham.
The Pistons are trying to say alive without their star early in the season, and the Bulls are trying to keep theirs happy, which is something Pistons’ fans need to monitor.
It might be a pipe dream, but I do believe there is a scenario where the Detroit Pistons could end up with Zach LaVine next season.
Hear me out.
Step 1: The Detroit Pistons need the Chicago Bulls to miss the playoffs
Zach LaVine is going to be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, and he will be the most coveted player on the market.
Given his age and talent, LaVine is going to get a max deal from someone, and if the Bulls make a leap as a team and make the playoffs, it will mostly likely be them since they can offer LaVine an extra year and more money than anyone else.
But what if they don’t?
Let’s say the Bulls finish outside of the playoffs again, is LaVine really going to re-sign to a team that hasn’t improved since he’s been there and is now relying on players on the wrong side of 30?
The Detroit Pistons will likely finish outside of the playoffs, but will do it with a young, up-and-coming team with this year’s number one pick and a bunch of talented young role players.
If Chicago makes the playoffs and does well, it’s probably a done deal that LaVine stays in Chicago, but if they don’t he might look for a more promising opportunity with a better future than the Bulls currently have.
The Bulls have very little future draft capital, are capped out and only have one young player (Patrick Williams) with high upside, so if LaVine sees a bleak future, he might jump ship, who knows.
If so, the Detroit Pistons will be there with their checkbook.
The Detroit Pistons will have cap space
The Detroit Pistons will have a big advantage next offseason when it comes to NBA free agents.
They will be one of four teams that are projected to have significant cap space to sign free agents, so if the Pistons want a guy, they will have the money to at least try and cut a deal.
Like I said, the Bulls will be able to offer more no matter what, so LaVine would really have to want out of Chicago to leave money on the table.
However, given that he is only 26-years-old, LaVine may want a shorter deal, as it would allow him to hit free agency one more time in his prime and get another fat contract when he is 30-years-old.
Hitting free agency again before he is 30 might have some appeal to LaVine, though most players these days just take the longest contract and force their way out if they really want to leave a team, something the NBA is going to have to fix after the Ben Simmons debacle this offseason.
It’s a long shot but the Detroit Pistons will have the cap space and young talent to potentially lure a free agent to Detroit. But is LaVine the guy?
How Zach LaVine fits on the Detroit Pistons
I can’t think of too many players who will be available who are better fits for the Detroit Pistons than Zach LaVine.
Let’s face it, a guy who scores nearly 30 points per game will fit on any team, but a backcourt of Cunningham and LaVine would be one of the best in the NBA.
They’d have plus size at both guard spots, be elite defensively and present matchup problems all over the place for opposing defenses.
- PG: Cade Cunningham/Killian Hayes
- SG: Zach LaVine/Frank Jackson
- SF: Saddiq Bey/Hamidou Diallo
- PF: Jerami Grant/Trey Lyles
- C: Isaiah Stewart/Kelly Olynyk
This is a playoff team and contender in the Eastern Conference right away and still has plenty of room for growth and improvement.
It would allow the Pistons to move Hayes to the bench, eliminating the Cunningham/Hayes fit discussion while improving the Pistons on both ends of the floor.
The Pistons were able to talk Jerami Grant into coming to Detroit and will have the ammo and appeal to potentially land another marquee free agent if things break right for them.
So cheer against the Bulls even harder than usual this season because their failure could lead to big things in Detroit.