The Detroit Pistons haven't landed the impact player they are looking for, and may have to cave on the price if they want to get one, and that includes Trey Murphy III of the New Orleans Pelicans.
The Pistons have been attached to everyone from Jaylen Brown to Tyler Herro this summer, but so far there has been plenty of smoke but no fire.
According to insider Jake Fischer (subscription), the Pelicans are stil holding firm to their demand of three first-round picks in exchange for TMIII, a price no team has been willing to match. He reported that multiple teams had offered two picks, though didn't name the Pistons specifically as one of them.
The Pelicans have no real reason to trade TMIII other than a desire to sell while the price is high, as he's a young enough player on a team-friendly deal, which means the Pistons may eventually have to cave on the asking price if they want to land one of the summer's biggest prizes.
Should the Pistons go all-in on Trey Murphy III?
I've watched TMIII quite a lot having covered the Pelicans when he came into the league, and he is a very good player, but the Pistons can't treat him like a superstar, because he isn't.
But that doesn't mean the Pistons shouldn't want him, as he'd slide into the starting lineup and give the Detroit all the shooting they need for next season after already acquiring sharpshooter Isaiah Joe.
If the Pistons can land him for the cost of a couple of contracts and three first-round picks, they'd have to at least consider putting that on the table.
But Detroit doesn't have to completely cave here, as they might be able to go the route Minnesota just went with LaMelo Ball, giving up multiple swaps instead of straight-forward picks. If the Pistons could get the price down to two picks and a swap, it might be one they can live with if draft assets are main value in the deal.
The value of draft picks is up in the air right now with the new lottery rules set to come in and a big void after the trial period where no one knows what the draft process will look like.
That makes trading future picks a big risk, but the Pistons will have to take some amount of risk if they are going to land a quality player who is locked into a team-friendly contract for the next several seasons.
It will be interesting to see who blinks first, as so far, teams seem unwilling to give into Troy Weaver's demands, but one side may get desperate enough to move soon.
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