The Detroit Pistons are at the beginning of what could be the most important offseason in years.
Troy Weaver and co. have tanked away their time in Detroit, and now comes the hard part, building around the young talent they have collected and putting a competitive roster on the floor.
Weaver has enjoyed patience, trust and job security thus far, as everyone knew the roster needed to be torn down and that the rebuilding process would take time.
But after a pathetic 17-win season in which the team actively tried to lose, Weaver sent out a letter to fans assuring us that better times were coming.
The patience will extend as long as the Pistons improve next season, especially if Weaver doesn’t make any bold moves this summer. Selecting the best talent available with the 5th pick and adding a free agent or two is the safe route, and if the Detroit Pistons sniff the play-in next season or better, the rebuild will be on the right path and Weaver’s job will be safe.
But there are some moves he could make this summer that would very much put his job in jeopardy if they blew up in his face.
Detroit Pistons: 2 ways Troy Weaver’s job could be on the line this summer
Hiring the wrong coach
Troy Weaver came up with three finalists for the Pistons’ head coaching vacancy, but Tom Gores reportedly wasn’t overwhelmed by any of them in interviews.
Since then the team has gone silent about their search, which has led to speculation that they are either waiting to see where the more experienced head coaches land, or potentially waiting out someone that is still in the playoffs.
If Troy Weaver ends up going with Gores’ favorite choice (whoever that may be), then it’s not all on him, but if he pushes for one of his guys (one of the three finalists) and that person fails, then it’s going to come back on Troy.
Trading the 5th pick
Word from the NBA Draft Combine is that the Detroit Pistons will be one of the teams in the top-5 shopping their pick in a trade.
It makes some sense, as Detroit has enough young talent, so if they could package that pick for a defensive wing that helps them right away, they should consider it.
But who exactly is that player? The 5th pick in this draft is not going to get a star wing player on its own, and the Pistons have little else to offer other than Bojan Bogdanovic, and Alec Burks.
If the Pistons end up trading the 5th pick, the player they get had better work out, as there are several good wing prospects that will be available to them in the draft.
Trading the 5th pick would be a massive risk, and if it didn’t help the Detroit Pistons improve much, could potentially stick them with a bad contract for a player who isn’t much better than the one they could have drafted.
76ers fans’ are dreaming of getting that pick for Tobias Harris. Suns’ fans are hoping Weaver’s love of Deandre Ayton is still alive. Those are the kinds of moves that get GM’s fired, and while I don’t think either of them are going to happen (dream on Suns), it gives you an idea of the type of player Detroit is looking at if they trade the 5th pick.
Weaver should be feeling some heat to build a winner, but the wrong coach, or the wrong trade could quickly turn that ambition into him looking for a new job.
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