The NBA trade deadline is nearly upon us, and the Detroit Pistons have been attached to just about every rumor, including for sharpshooting wing Trey Murphy III of the New Orleans Pelicans.
While TMIII might be the perfect archetype for the Pistons to target, the idea has cooled somewhat since it was reported the Pels had no interest in trading him.
I absolutely agree with this assessment, as you don’t trade 25-year-old scoring wings on team-friendly contracts, and the Pistons don’t have that enticing of a package to send back when you consider their picks will likely fall outside of the lottery.
But all of that logic didn’t stop Bleacher Report from coming up with a trade that not only lands the Pistons TMIII but also two other valuable role players:
Again, it’s hard to imagine why the Pelicans would make such a deal, but it would be an interesting one for the Detroit Pistons, as they would plug some holes and add championship experience.
The Pistons may as well dream big
I suppose if you are going to dream of a trade that isn’t likely to happen, then you may as well dream big, which would be the case here, as the Pistons would be adding three valuable players for a fairly low cost of Harris’ expiring contract, Jaden Ivey, Chaz Lanier, two picks and a swap.
Since these picks are not likely to be good ones, the Pistons are adding a fringe All-Star for the price of a couple of picks in the 20’s.
I also love Jose Alvarado as a backup point guard who is a great point of attack defender who can shoot the 3-ball a little. Kevon Looney hasn’t played much this season and likely wouldn’t for the Pistons, but he’d still give them another veteran who has been on three title teams.
That’s nice experience to have in an emergency backup, but even with all of this, it would be a tough trade for the Pistons to make.
What about power forward?
One thing fans and pundits keep ignoring is that the Pistons don’t have another power forward behind Tobias Harris. Maybe it wouldn’t matter, and they could just use their versatile wing guys to plug the gaps, but they’d be giving up size all over the court.
It will be difficult for the Pistons to trade Harris without replacing his archetype, which is a guy who can at least bang bodies down low with bigger fours. You could argue that player is Isaiah Stewart, and a starting five of Cade Cunningham, Ausar Thompson, TMIII, Beef Stew and Jalen Duren does have some appeal on both sides of the ball.
It’s not a trade I expect to happen, but until the trade deadline passes, we are going to hear Trey Murphy III’s name attached to the Pistons.