When the Detroit Pistons dropped to the 5th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, it opened up a lot of possibilities.
There have already been reports that they are “aggressively” shopping the pick and could look to move it in a package for an established player.
They could also potentially use it to move back in the draft to pick up additional assets if there isn’t a prospect they absolutely love at five.
There are several teams that might want to move up, but one in particular stands out in the Utah Jazz, who have the 9th, 16th and 28th picks in the first round.
There is a potential trade there, but also plenty of reasons not to do it.
Detroit Pistons: Draft trade with the Utah Jazz
If the Pistons are interested in picking up a second pick in the first round, Utah seems like a natural fit, though Detroit would have to drop four spots in the 2023 NBA Draft to do it:
In this trade, the Jazz move up and the Pistons move back for an extra pick just outside of the lottery. It does make some sense for both teams considering where they are in their respective rebuilds, but there are also some clear reasons not to do it.
Detroit Pistons: Draft trade with the Utah Jazz
This is a draft with a huge perceived drop off after the first pick, then potentially another one after the third. After that, you have a lot of prospects who are lumped into the same tier and all of them have strengths and weaknesses.
The difference between five and nine might not be much in this draft, and the Pistons could potentially trade back and still get the best forward. Taylor Hendricks could still be available at nine, and he’s a guy Detroit would at least consider taking with the 5th pick, so there could be some value there.
Anthony Black and Gradey Dick are also interesting prospects that fit the Pistons, and it’s very possible that one of these players ends up being just as good or better than whoever they would have taken with the 5th pick.
Detroit would also have a chance to grab a scorer with the 16th pick from a group that includes guys like Jordan Hawkins, Brice Sensabaugh and Jett Howard.
In a draft with so much parity, having two chances to get a star is better than one and the Pistons could end up getting the guy they want anyway depending on what their big board looks like.
Detroit Pistons: Draft trade with the Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz may not even be interested in such a trade, as they might see the group of Cam Whitmore, Jarace Walker and the Thompson Twins as not much different than guys like Taylor Hendricks or Anthony Black.
But even if the Jazz were to bite, should the Pistons even be interested? Counting the 31st pick, Detroit would potentially be adding three rookies to the roster in this scenario, getting significantly younger (since they’d be taking the roster spots of free agent veterans like Cory Joseph and Rodney McGruder), which doesn’t necessarily jive with Troy Weaver’s promise that this team was soon to be competitive.
And at this stage of the rebuild, Detroit should still be looking to add star-level talent, swinging for the fences on guys with the potential to be big-time difference makers, which was the whole point of tanking away a whole season. You don’t tank for role players, and even though the difference between five and nine might not be huge, choosing at five gives the Pistons a higher chance to land a star.
Even if the Pistons have some of these players ranked similarly, there has to be one they like more than the others, and that’s probably the guy they should pick.
You can make an argument either way, but this is definitely the type of trade we could see Detroit make on draft day.