With the trade deadline on the horizon, the Detroit Pistons have been mentioned as a possibility for just about everyone, even though they’ve consistently indicated that they aren’t going to do anything big. One player who could be a comfortable middle ground would be Norman Powell of the Miami Heat.
I had not heard his name mentioned as a possibility until a recent episode of the Game Theory Podcast, when Bryce Simon dropped him as a guy who would be an ideal fit.
The Pistons need shooting and consistent secondary scoring and Powell is a certified bucket getter averaging over 23 points per game while shooting 47 percent from the floor and 39.2 percent from long range on 7.3 attempts per game, numbers that would look great next to Cade Cunningham.
Powell’s name has not been mentioned much, which is surprising given that he’s on an expiring contract and will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.
Miami is clinging to playoff hopes as the 7th seed, just a half game behind the 76ers for the final guaranteed spot and may have interest in not only making a run with Powell this season but extending him beyond on a new contract.
But the Heat do have one big reason to move Powell this season.
The Miami Heat are gearing up for a run at Giannis Antetokounmpo
Next summer is going to be all about Giannis, especially if the Bucks continue to descend in the standings. He hasn’t officially asked out yet, but the writing is on the wall, and Milwaukee has few ways to improve the team around him.
The Heat are reportedly licking their chops, so may want to clean up their cap sheet and grab more assets that the Bucks might want, i.e. young players and draft picks to include in a monster trade package for Giannis.
And if they are going to make a move like that, re-signing Powell to a new deal would be difficult anyway, especially after he’s coming off the two best seasons of his career.
Given all these factors, what would the Pistons have to give up in a trade?
Detroit Pistons: Trading for Norman Powell would be value impact
Most of the impact players we see in fan fiction trades are on massive contracts that would require multiple rotation players to match, which makes it tough for the Pistons who are trying not to disrupt the chemistry and depth that have been a big part of their success.
It’s also difficult to give away Tobias Harris in any deal that doesn’t involve a power forward, as they don’t have any others, which somewhat limits the pool when we are talking about guys who could make meaningful impact.
Powell is making $20.4 million this season, a bargain number that is less than Harris making, so he wouldn’t be part of the deal unless there were other players.
The question is whether the Pistons really have anything of interest to the Heat. Detroit could send them LeVert, Ivey and a couple of picks, but that hardly seems worth the trouble for Miami when Ivey is a restricted free agent who would just add to their problems next offseason.
I do agree with Bryce that Powell would be a great addition, it’s just hard to see how the Pistons would get there without dipping into assets they don’t want to touch.