The Detroit Pistons had an unexpectedly dramatic offseason but may have emerged better for it.
We all know the story by now: It appeared it was going to be a quiet offseason that focused on retaining their own free agents, but the Pistons quickly had to turn to plan B after Malik Beasley was reportedly under investigation for gambling.
That whole saga has gone back and forth, with Beasley downgraded from “target” to “subject” of the investigation, which doesn’t clear him, though some made it seem otherwise.
The Beasley saga could have hung over the whole offseason, but the Pistons couldn’t wait around and managed to improve the roster even though they didn’t get their original target. And with the Beasley situation still up in the air, what looked like a disaster could turn out to be a silver lining for the Pistons.
The Detroit Pistons' roster is better, and they can still sign Malik Beasley
The Pistons have mostly received mediocre offseason grades from pundits after losing Beasley, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Dennis Schroder in free agency, which is a stance I just don’t understand.
THJ and Shroder played their roles well for Detroit, but the Pistons will essentially be replacing THJ with Duncan Robinson, a better shooter and more well-rounded offensive player, and replacing Schroder with Jaden Ivey, who should be a substantial upgrade.
That leaves Caris LeVert and Malik Beasley, two very different players, and though LeVert is not nearly the level of volume 3-point shooter Beasley is, he’s better at pretty much everything else. He’s bigger, a better defender, a better creator and far more versatile than Beasley, who is essentially just a catch-and-shoot sniper.
The best part of this comp is that it may not matter in the least, as the Pistons can still sign Beasley before the season if they feel comfortable doing so, and have a big advantage over the teams reportedly after him, as Detroit has his Bird Rights, can offer more money and he seems to want to stay in Detroit.
The Pistons are already a better team and can still add Beasley which will negate the biggest loss of the offseason, give them plenty of shooting and another player on a short-term contract with no daunting financial obligations.
When the Beasley stuff started, I thought the Pistons were in trouble, but they improved anyway and may be able to get him back at a discount, so there is a silver lining to all of the drama.