The Caris LeVert signing hasn’t yet paid dividends for the Detroit Pistons, but his contract will be important even if he never makes an impact on the court.
LeVert was signed to bring more scoring pop and shot creation to the Pistons’ bench, things he has yet to provide consistently.
Part of it is that LeVert has been dealing with nagging injuries all year, a problem the Pistons probably should have seen coming considering it’s an issue that has plagued his entire career.
LeVert is out with a sprained wrist, and we’ll have to see if Marcus Sasser or Kevin Huerter can play their way into his minutes. I’m sure coach Bickerstaff will give LeVert another shot, but even if he doesn’t play again for the Pistons, he’ll end up being important.
Caris LeVert’s contract could be the key to a trade
The Pistons were hampered from making a big move at the trade deadline, as they only have one big expiring contract and had no interest in trading Tobias Harris, who JB Bickerstaff has often referred to as the team’s “security blanket.”
That problem won’t go away in the summer. If the Pistons want to add an impact player, they will need contracts to match salary, which is where LeVert could play an important role.
LeVert will have just $14.8 million left on his deal, which may be necessary for salary matching purposes, especially if they are trading with a team that doesn’t want to take back any long-term money.
LeVert still has time to be more than an expiring contract
JB Bickerstaff has expressed trust and faith in Caris LeVert, so I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of him this season, especially if Huerter and Sasser don’t play well in his absence, which is still pending.
LeVert has had explosive scoring games off the bench in his career, and it’s something the Pistons will need in the playoffs when they are desperate for points, so as bad as LeVert has been, he may yet have a part to play and I wouldn’t rule out big X-Factor game from him in the postseason.
That said, the experiment can’t last forever, especially when Huerter has already shown he can hang defensively and has been a better ball mover and gravity creator than LeVert was when he was healthy.
A fair amount of attention has been spent on LeVert, some would say too much considering he’s a role player, but the Pistons are still looking for the shot creation and scoring he was supposed to provide, so it is important, and will be even more when the games slow down.
Regardless of how LeVert plays, his name will officially be “Caris LeVert’s expiring contract” as soon as the offseason starts. It’s only a matter of whether he can provide anything before then.