Is Bones Hyland a possibility for the Detroit Pistons?

How could the Detroit Pistons acquire Bones Hyland?

I expect the Nuggets to require an established player, along with a draft pick or two to wash their hands of Bones.

Likely, a two-way player with some sort of emphasis on the defensive side of the ball is preferred.

I’m not sure if the Detroit Pistons have the exact fit that Denver is looking for, but they do have some pieces that can contribute come playoff time.

In this trade, the Pistons get Bones, along with Ish Smith and Davon Reed as salary fillers to make the deal work.

Denver gets a bonafide 3-point shooter off the bench in Alec Burks, along with Detroit’s best defensive player in terms of defensive win shares (DWS) in Hamidou Diallo. The 2025 second-round pick is added to sweeten the pot for the Nuggets, giving them additional flexibility in future deals.

Sending out two players and receiving three back puts Detroit over the roster limit. The disabled player exception that the Pistons received due to Cade Cunningham’s injury gives them extra cap room, but doesn’t open up an extra roster spot for the season.

Due to this, either Smith or Reed would need to be bought out or waived.

If GM Troy Weaver prioritizes financial flexibility in the future, former Piston Ish Smith would be the most likely candidate, unfortunately. He’s on an expiring contract and wouldn’t be tied to the Pistons books past this season.

Reed is on a small contract through the end of next season. He’s making $2 million per year and becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2024. His deal is small enough where the Pistons could eat his dead money through next season and receive minimal impact, or try to get some of his salary back via a buy out, which could be unlikely as I don’t think Reed is a hot candidate in the buy out market.

But, if the Detroit Pistons don’t want to keep Reed on their roster, they have a fairly easy out.

The Yahoo report says the Nuggets are looking for “defensive-minded frontcourt players,” in which case Isaiah Stewart could be an option, though the Pistons would likely be reluctant to trade from their dearth of forecourt players when they already have so many guards

There is some question about how all of the Pistons’ power forwards fit on the same team, so dealing Beef Stew to go along with Hamidou would be another option. Hyland could be a fit as the primary scoring option off the bench in a backcourt with Killian Hayes, who can somewhat cover his defensive liabilities.

Bones wouldn’t help the Pistons already terrible defense, but he’d give them another dynamic scoring option who fits the timeline and a chance to relieve their glut of tweener power forwards.