The Detroit Pistons have already had a busy offseason but still have a lot of items on their to-do list.
One of the key decisions will be whether to re-sign or abandon Marvin Bagley III, Troy Weaver’s big trade deadline acquisition. MBIII will be a restricted free agent after the Detroit Pistons made the qualifying offer this off-season, and though all signs point to him likely staying, the question of how much is too much money to retain him still remains.
Detroit Pistons: Why Marvin Bagley III was available
One big question is why a player in his physical prime was traded in the first place. This is a question that must be answered before you can really decide whether to re-sign him.
The biggest reason seemed to be the injuries. A player who was once drafted over Luka Doncic became a shell of himself because he couldn’t stay healthy.
Another reason for the trade was his father. Marvin Bagley II, pulled an Odell Beckham Sr., and went to Twitter to troll Kings’ coaches. He even made a very public trade demand, insisting that the team trade his son ASAP. You could put up with these distractions if the the team was winning or the player was dominating, but that was not the case with Marvin Bagley III.
The trade desire was mutual, as both parties had grown tired of each other. He could never really get out of Luka Doncic’s shadow. He was infamously drafted before him, and was nowhere near as good as him on any level. This made him a glaring reminder of what could have been in Sacramento had the front office made a better decision.
The cost of MBIII
Whenever you think about re-signing a player, or not, it’s important to look at what transpired to get him in the first place. Did you trade away picks? Did you move a key piece because you believed this player was better?
In the Pistons case Marvin Bagley III was worth Josh Jackson, Trey Lyles, and a couple of second round draft picks, so no real harm done, as those two players weren’t going to be back anyway and second-round picks are easy to come by.
The Detroit Pistons got Bagley III for nothing really, so should not be compelled to keep him just because of what they had to give up.
Detroit Pistons: How much is too much?
Marvin endured a lot of headaches during his three year tenure with the Kings. Coaching changes, media backlash, injuries galore, and the worst part was he had to deal with being the guy who was selected over Luka. Since coming to Detroit he’s seemed happier, and it has shown on the court. He’s expressed his delight with the team and the organization on record as well, raving about the coaches, and the young talented roster, even the city itself.
Ideally, Bagley Is a no-brainer to be re-signed, and it seems Weaver knows this since he’s extending the qualifying offer to officially make Bagley III a RFA. Although, as we see every year there is a chance that if the money isn’t right, or another team gives an offer that the Pistons can’t (or won’t) match, it might be time to part ways with the former 2nd overall pick.
The Detroit Pistons probably already have a handshake deal in place, but if some other team wanted to swoop in and make MBIII an offer, would Detroit match it? That really depends on the offer, as I am sure the Pistons have a number they will not exceed.
My guess is that number is somewhere in the $10 million per season range, as the Pistons have more pressing needs and can’t spend too much on a guy who is still largely unproven. Expect a deal in the 3 years/$24 million range and if some other team wants to blow that out of the water, you bid a fond farewell to Marvin Bagley III.