Even though the Detroit Pistons are 24-8 and clinging to first place in the Eastern Conference, they still have needs to address if they want to make a real run at the East this season.
Detroit is near the bottom of the league in 3-point shooting and could certainly use another 20+ppg scorer to take some heat off of Cade Cunningham, whose All NBA-level efforts the last two games have been wasted because no one else chipped in.
This problem isn’t likely to go away in the playoffs, so we could see the Pistons address it at the trade deadline. All indications are that the Pistons are not going to make a blockbuster trade, but there are smaller moves out there that could help without costing them a member of the core.
But the Pistons are in a tricky position when it comes to matching salaries, as they only have one big expiring in Tobias Harris and he’ll be difficult to move for a couple of reasons.
Trading Tobias Harris could create more problems for the Pistons
The Pistons could use an upgrade at power forward, whether it’s a depth move or one to replace Tobias Harris, as he is shooting just 32 percent from long range and Detroit needs someone to space the floor other than Duncan Robinson.
If they could find a direct upgrade at the four spot, great, but otherwise, it’s going to be tough to trade Harris without creating other problems. Harris is really the only power forward on the roster right now, so if Detroit moves him, it almost has to be for a guy who plays the same position, as they don’t have anyone else.
Even if the Pistons were able to find that consistent scoring threat they need, it would be difficult to use Harris’ expiring deal if that player were a guard, as the Pistons would then be smaller than they already are.
It’s like a game of whack-a-mole where you beat one problem down just for another to pop up.
Detroit still has other ways to improve, with contracts like Caris LeVert’s to dangle along with draft picks, but if they want to trade for a player on anything close to a max deal, Harris will almost have to be involved to make the money work.
Trajan Langdon will either have to bring back a power forward in any trade he makes or get creative to find ways to improve around the fringes as he did at last year’s trade deadline.