Detroit Pistons: This trade may have set the market for Killian Hayes

The Detroit Pistons haven’t made a ton of offseason moves so far, but there is still time for another trade.

They’ve already drafted Ausar Thompson and Marcus Sasser and made trades for Joe Harris and Monte Morris, moves that have largely gotten favorable reviews.

But with logjams at both guard and center, it’s possible that we will see another trade before training camp opens next month.

Killian Hayes is one of the most likely to be traded, as the additions of Monte Morris and Marcus Sasser make his spot in the rotation more precarious than it has ever been. He’s also on an expiring deal and the Detroit Pistons have shown no interest in extending him.

But the Pistons are in a tough spot with Hayes, whose trade value is in the gutter, so what could they realistically expect to get in a trade? A recent move may have set the high end of the market.

Detroit Pistons: Obi Toppin trade sets market for Killian Hayes

Like Killian Hayes, Obi Toppin was taken in the top-10 of the 2020 NBA Draft but hasn’t done much in his career so far.

Toppin didn’t get on the floor much for the Knicks, never averaged double digit points or even five rebounds per game and was a below-average 3-point shooter. If you look back at the 2020 NBA Draft, Toppin and Hayes (along with Isaac Okoro) are probably the most disappointing players from the top 10.

Toppin was dealt to the Indiana Pacers in July for a pair of second round picks, which would be the high end of what the Detroit Pistons can expect for Killian Hayes.

Killian is still three years younger, so there’s that, but he’s had plenty of minutes on bad teams while Toppin has mostly been buried on pretty good Knicks teams. Toppin’s shooting splits are far better than Hayes’ and he’s at least shown he can be a productive backup forward.

You could argue about which player has the higher upside at this point, but given what they’ve done so far, the Toppin trade is probably the best the Detroit Pistons can hope for in terms of draft picks if they end up trading Killian Hayes.