When the Detroit Pistons signed Kevin Knox to a 2 year/$6 million deal it was a bit of a head scratcher.
On one hand, this is a strategy Troy Weaver has used before, taking chances on low-risk, high-reward players like Josh Jackson and Marvin Bagley III.
The latter ended up finding new life in Detroit, which is what the Pistons hope will happen with Kevin Knox, who was another high draft pick who has underperformed in the NBA but has plenty of talent.
The two-year deal for Knox wasn’t going to be a killer either way, but I did question whether it was a waste of a roster spot given his spot on the depth chart and the fact that he may not even break into the rotation next season.
I also questioned the urgency to sign a guy that early in free agency when there clearly wasn’t going to be a bidding war for him.
The deal was first reported to have two guaranteed years, which seemed absurd considering this guy has done next to nothing in the last three seasons, playing sparingly and not really making an impact for the Knicks or Hawks.
But new details of the contract have emerged that make this deal look a lot better for the Detroit Pistons.
Detroit Pistons: The Kevin Knox contract
Giving a player like Knox two-years of guaranteed money just seemed like overkill considering the lack of market for him, but yesterday it was revealed that the second year is actually a team option.
This makes what was already a fairly low-risk deal even safer, as the Detroit Pistons can just cut ties with Knox after this season if things don’t work out and he can’t find a spot in the rotation.
This gives him a whole lot of motivation to improve, as he can not only cash in a second year if he finds a role, but could potentially set himself up for a bigger deal down the road.
Knox was a worthwhile risk given his potential and cost, but the risk just got a little smaller for the Detroit Pistons, which makes this move far less questionable.
The Pistons now have 17 players under contract for next season, so the next question is who is going to get cut to get it down to 15 players.