Pistons’ Twitter mailbag: Cade Cunningham, Bagley, the Draft and more
Detroit Pistons mailbag: Sampler platter
This question had a little bit of everything, so I will do my best to answer them all.
Do you agree Pistons priority is at C and PG? Who is best C and PG in top 10 Draft? Who is best available FA C(assuming Ayton) and PG to target? Grant is a player and contract to move, what's reasonable to expect back and when? Will Saban Lee get a full contract next year?
— Adam Teasdale (@TheTeas) March 9, 2022
I’ll answer these in order.
-No, I do not agree. The Pistons have Cade Cunningham, Killian Hayes, Cory Joseph and Saben Lee, all capable facilitators at the point guard. What they need is scoring, so I would put “scoring guard” ahead of point guard on their list of needs. Detroit certainly needs rim protection, but it doesn’t necessarily have to come from a center, but yes, they do need size.
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-If you count Chet Holmgren as a center, then he is the best center in the draft by far, but I see him as more of a power forward in the NBA. The draft is low on centers, so most people would say Jalen Duren from Memphis or Mark Williams from Duke. A guy to keep an eye on is Walker Kessler, who is massive and averages 4.5 blocks per game for Auburn. I don’t have any PG’s in the top-10 of this draft, and like I said, don’t think the Pistons need one anyway.
-Deandre Ayton will be the big free agent name out there, but this free agent group is deep at center, so the Pistons could go the cheaper route. Jusuf Nurkic will be an UFA, as will Mitchell Robinson. Mo Bamba will be an RFA and is a guy they might be able to steal from Orlando, who already has a lot of money tied up in other bigs. Fans might hate this, but I see Andre Drummond as a possibility on a low-cost deal. Ayton is a long shot, but there are others if the Pistons strike out or his cost is too high. One point guard I like is veteran Ricky Rubio, who played a crucial role in Cleveland’s leap this season and could be a nice mentor for the Pistons’ guards, but again, don’t think point guard will be a priority and he doesn’t help the scoring.
-If the Pistons move Jerami Grant they will get a young player and a first round draft pick, otherwise he’ll be re-signed. If he’s going to be traded it will be before or on draft night.
-Saben Lee is on a full contract now. He’ll make $1.7 million guaranteed next season and the Pistons have a team option on him the following season.
Thanks so much for all of the great questions! See you in a new mailbag next week.
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