The NBA offseason never fails to send at least one shockwave across the league each summer, and this year, there have been multiple.
Of the latest moves to catch the league by surprise is the blockbuster trade between division rivals, with the Boston Celtics sending All-NBA forward Jaylen Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers for Paul George and draft capital.
From the outside looking in, from the Detroit Pistons' perspective, this move should be viewed as bittersweet.
Boston's return is nowhere near the value they hoped to get for Brown, and the Celtics arguably got much worse. As for Philadelphia, it cost them an aging star on a bad contract to upgrade their roster, and the Sixers are now a real threat to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference.
Obviously, the verdict is still out on whether the Celtics are done making moves or not, but according to Bill Simmons of The Ringer, he'd be shocked if there is not another part to this move, suggesting George could be rerouted.
If that's the case, Jalen Duren's interest in the Celtics immediately turns all eyes to Detroit for a potential deal that the Pistons should be firmly against.
Pistons shouldn't even kick the tires on acquiring Paul George
George is still a fine player, and by no means is he a waste of a roster spot at this point of his career.
However, at 36, on a $54 million contract with a player option after next season, the production he's put forth, mixed with his lack of durability, makes his deal one of the worst in the league.
There's an argument to be made that his fit in Philly was bad from the jump, especially alongside a ball-dominant guard like Tyrese Maxey, but that doesn't take away from the fact that he's simply not worth the money he's making right now.
Duren's interest in the Celtics put all eyes on a potential sign-and-trade deal between Boston and Detroit, and NBA Insider Jake Fischer made it a point not to rule that out on Wednesday evening.
There's still a world in which that remains a possibility with the Pistons receiving George in a trade instead of Brown, and while the nine-time All-Star would offer Cade Cunningham the second option the team has been looking for, it would be a move that arguably makes them worse, even with PG only having two years on his deal left.
Detroit made a run for Kawhi Leonard, who's 35, but even Leonard, who's near the same age as George and lacks durability himself, is still a top 15 player in the league, while it's safe to say that Paul George has fallen far from that range.
The Pistons need help in the frontcourt after losing Tobias Harris in free agency, but that help should not come from George.
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