Detroit Pistons get aggressive in lopsided trade proposal

Detroit Pistons: Pascal Siakam is on an expiring deal

The only reason the Raptors are trying to trade Siakam in the first place is that he is on an expiring deal and has said repeatedly that he has every intention of testing the waters of free agency.

So even though the Detroit Pistons would be giving up three players that are not likely to be on the roster next season anyway, two first-round picks is a steep price to pay for a one-year rental.

There are also some questions about how Siakam fits with what the Pistons currently have but those questions become less daunting if they are keeping Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks in the transaction, as they should still have plenty of shooting to offset Siakam’s lack of a 3-point shot.

The contract is the real issue, as the Detroit Pistons would have to have assurances that Siakam would sign an extension, and even then it might not be worth it, as his next contract is going to be huge and the team that pays it will be getting the latter part of his prime and could be overpaying by the end of the deal.

The risk is compounded by the extension that the Pistons just gave to Isaiah Stewart (presumably to play power forward) as now Detroit would have a ton of money wrapped up in the position.

If Siakam were 25-years-old, this would be a no-brainer, a risk worth taking, but now the best-case scenario is that the Pistons are giving a 30-year-old a max deal that might look awful before it’s over.

If Siakam were locked into a contract already, Detroit would jump all over this, but Siakam’s next deal is scary and it may not be worth giving up all future flexibility for a guy who doesn’t match the timeline of the rest of the roster and could leave for greener pastures.

Detroit has a history of acquiring great players who were past their prime, which has burned them in the past. So in many ways, this would be a very Detroit move to make, but Weaver has shown patience so far and hopes to avoid making a signature Pistons’ bad move.