When Duncan Robinson signed a 3 year/$48 million contract with the Detroit Pistons it looked like an overpay and a bit of a gamble, as Robinson is 31 years old and who knows what he’ll look like in three years. But when you look at the full details of the contract, it’s an obvious slam dunk for the Pistons that may hint at their future plans.
There were writers who slammed the Pistons for this deal, calling it an overpay that they already regret (no), but Detroit essentially signed a one-year deal with Robinson since years two and three are not fully guaranteed.
Detroit is only on the hook for $2 million for the second season and the third season is completely non-guaranteed, so this is a deal the Pistons can get out of at any time.
This was a smart move by Trajan Langdon, as if things work out with Robinson, great! If they don’t, the Pistons can cut bait at any time without wrecking their cap sheet.
Brian Windhorst discussed Robinson’s contract on a recent episode of “The Hoop Collective,” and how it gives max flexibility to the Pistons to make a big move.
The Detroit Pistons could go big at the trade deadline
I’m sure Trajan Langdon would prefer his young team were dominating at the trade deadline so that a big trade wasn’t necessary. Then he can just nibble around the edges and hope to make an impactful addition like he did last year with Dennis Schroder.
But if the Pistons want to go big, they have the ammo to do it. Tobias Harris gives them a $26 million expiring contract that could be used to match money. Same with Duncan Robinson, whose $16 could be useful in the same way, especially considering it is essentially an expiring deal with no long-term obligations.
Detroit has a plethora of young players and one of them could end up getting moved if things don’t click or the fit doesn’t appear to be there.
Add in control over all of their future draft picks, and the Detroit Pistons are perfectly set up to make an impact addition as soon as next trade deadline, especially if Langdon sees an opportunity to add a player that could push them over the top.
The Pistons have aspirations of being a top four team in the Eastern Conference next season, so aren’t as far away from competing for a title as some might think. We should hope they can do it with the team they already have, but if needed, they are set up for a big move because of the flexibility of the Robinson contract, which now looks like genius.