The Detroit Pistons found themselves in myriad trade rumors this summer, but Trajan Langdon stuck to the plan and smartly didn’t move any of his young players.
Fans are famously impatient when it comes to team building, which is why trade rumors are still the most read and shared content in the NBA, and there were plenty of ideas on the table.
The Pistons were rumored to be in the hunt for a stretch big, so fans dreamed of Myles Turner or Naz Reid coming to Detroit, only to watch Turner sign with the rival Bucks and Reid stick with the Timberwolves, both at prices the Pistons were smart to avoid.
We saw Jaden Ivey’s name mentioned in a ton of rumors, as the Pistons made the playoffs last season without him, which made him expendable in the minds of some fans and pundits.
But Trajan Langdon resisted the urge and instead stuck to his plan and vision for his team, which will require patience, at least for now.
The Detroit Pistons will be better set up for a trade at the deadline
Trajan Langdon has made it crystal clear that he plans to see more of his young core before he makes any decisions about their long-term futures, and that includes extensions for both Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren, which don’t appear to be coming.
He’ll give them until at least the trade deadline and go from there, and the Pistons may be rewarded by waiting.
Not only will they have easy-to-trade contracts in Tobias Harris, Duncan Robinson and Caris LeVert, but by then, Langdon will have a better idea of how his young team fits together.
The Pistons also control all of their draft picks, so have plenty of ammo to make a move, and when/if they do, they will have more information in hand.
It would have been easy for Langdon to get caught up in the hype and try to bypass steps of development and evaluation, but his patience will lessen the chances that the Pistons end up with a bad contract on the books.
There are always players available at the deadline and Langdon has positioned the Pistons to make a big move if he sees one that will push them into contention. Until then, Pistons fans have the easy job of cheering for an exciting team that plays hard and embodies the spirit of the city, which isn’t a bad consolation prize.