The Detroit Pistons don’t currently own a first-round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft but that could change quickly.
Detroit had to send their pick (the 17th) to Minnesota as part of the Isaiah Stewart draft trade from way back in 2020 after it went on a long journey and passed through the hands of several teams.
The Pistons do have a sneaky-good asset in the 37th pick, as it is high enough in the second round to use as a trade chip to move up, especially if there is a tax team that doesn’t want the guaranteed cost of a first-round pick.
The Pistons have extra second-round picks to use as sweeteners, so if there is a prospect they really like that may not fall to them, we could see Detroit move up with one of these three teams.
Minnesota Timberwolves
It would be a big jump from the 37th pick to the 17th, but the Timberwolves are a team in financial peril that may not want the guaranteed money of a guy who probably won’t crack their rotation.
Of course, the opposite is also true, as Minnesota might look at this draft as a way to add cost-controlled developmental talent who can eventually give them some low-cost production.
I assume it will be the latter, and Detroit would likely have to tack on more than just second-round picks to move up this much. Outside of the lottery is a crap shoot anyway, so it may not even be worth the assets it would take to move up this much, which makes this one a long shot.
OKC Thunder
The Thunder have more picks than they know what to do with and already have a ton of young talent on the roster. What a great problem to have.
The Thunder have the 15th and 24th picks in this draft and it’s hard to see them adding two more first-round picks to a roster full of them. OKC might be interested in moving down to the 37th pick to add more of a developmental player to their pipeline for cheap.
Phoenix Suns
The Suns are the league’s most expensive team and failed to make the postseason, so things are likely to change in the Valley this summer, starting with shopping Kevin Durant.
The Suns do have the 29th pick in the draft but are also a second apron team that might look for every way possible to save money, which would include trading back a few spots into the second round.
The Suns are going to be busy this summer and will be one of the teams for the Pistons to monitor in the Draft.