How Monte Morris affects the Pistons and Killian Hayes

The Detroit Pistons have made two trades so far this offseason that landed them Joe Harris and Monte Morris.

Harris was clearly a financial move, as he is on an expiring $20 million deal, though he can still shoot it and will give them a 3-point specialist for the bench.

They also added veteran point guard Monte Morris, giving the Wizards a second-round pick in exchange. This was a sneaky good trade for the Pistons, who got a good veteran backup for nothing. These weren’t the moves fans were wanted, but Morris is going to help the Detroit Pistons both on and off the court.

Detroit Pistons and Monte Morris: On the court

Monte Morris is a quality backup point guard who should immediately slot in behind Cade Cunningham on the Pistons’ depth chart.

Morris is a good defender, who has shot 39 percent from 3-point range for his career, both areas where the Pistons needed improvement.

And possibly most importantly, Morris takes care of the ball, with an outstanding 5.3/1 assist to turnover ratio. The Pistons were 25th in the league in turnovers last season and feature nothing but young guards who are still learning the position, so adding a steady hand like Morris will really help Monty Williams.

Williams credited adding Ricky Rubio as one of the big reasons his Suns team was able to make a jump in his first season, so getting a solid veteran point guard is a bigger deal than fans might think.

Morris also provides some insurance against any injuries (knock on wood) to Cunningham or Ivey, which is something they didn’t have last season. This is a big upgrade from Cory Joseph and will also have an effect on Killian Hayes.

Detroit Pistons and Monte Morris: Off the court

Even though Morris is a guy the Pistons will definitely consider signing long term, as of right now, he is on an expiring contract that will pay him $9.8 million next season. Given that he is just 28-years-old, still very productive and on an expiring, team-friendly deal, this contract would be very easy to trade.

It gives Detroit another nearly $10 million to pile into a deal to swing a big trade if they want. With Bojan Bogdanovic, Joe Harris, Alec Burks and Monte Morris, the Pistons have stacked moveable expiring deals that could prove to be very valuable.

Like I said, I wouldn’t be surprised if Detroit extended Morris, but either way, his contract is not going to kill them.

Monte Morris and Killian Hayes

For the first time in his young career, Killian Hayes will have to compete for minutes against someone other than Frank Jackson, Saben Lee or Cory Joseph. This could actually be a great thing for Killian, as he will be pushed to be better and have to be to earn minutes.

He and Morris can potentially play together as well, so it’s not like the addition of Morris necessarily spells the end for Hayes in Detroit.

But the two of them are on expiring deals, and it’s not likely they will both be on the Pistons by the start of next season, so adding Morris gives the Pistons options when it comes to trading Killian Hayes.

This is a make or break year for Hayes with Detroit, so he either steps up to the competition and wins a spot and possible a future, or he’ll get shipped out at some point.

Getting Monty Williams a reliable and proven backup point guard will help this team on and off the court and could be a good thing for Killian. Or not.