The biggest question hanging over the Detroit Pistons as the February 5th trade deadline approaches is what they are going to do with Jaden Ivey.
Insider Jake Fischer fanned those flames today when he mentioned that the Pistons are “at the very least, known to be gauging the market for fourth-year guard Jaden Ivey.”
“Gauging the market” is a fairly vague phrase that doesn’t necessarily mean the Pistons are shopping Ivey but at least that discussions have been had and they are somewhat open to the possibility.
Given his pending restricted free agency and lack of clear role, Ivey does seem the most likely of the young core to be moved, though the Pistons have repeatedly pushed back on the idea that they are going to make a splashy trade.
It’s hard to gauge what Ivey’s trade value would be at the moment, as he’s still not playing big minutes, so some team would be biting on his potential or possibly looking for a buy-low flyer on a guy with upside.
The Pistons could either package Ivey for a bigger trade or possibly do a swap of a player in a similar tier that might be a better perceived fit.
So, while the Pistons aren’t necessarily being aggressive here, Ivey’s future the team is murkier than it’s ever been.
Trade rumors aren’t the only signs the Detroit Pistons are giving on Jaden Ivey
I feel for Ivey, as he’s coming back from serious injuries and has not had the luxury of playing his way back into form on a team that is competing for the Eastern Conference.
He was hampered by early minutes limitations and by teammates who were playing better and making a larger impact.
But Ivey has said himself that he is no longer on any kind of minutes’ restriction, yet he still hasn’t played more than the 28 minutes that he did against the Clippers and that was back on December 28th. He’s instead been benched in crunch time in favor of other players, with even rookie Chaz Lanier getting run in his place at times, even with all of the injuries.
It’s not a great sign for Ivey, who still hasn’t had the kind of signature outing that would tell the Pistons he’s getting close to himself again. You could argue that every guard on the roster has been more impactful than Ivey, so it’s going to be tough to continue to give him chances moving forward if he doesn’t start producing.
I hope he does, and that all of this noise dies down, as Ivey has taken these challenges in stride and remained a team player, but he’s going to get frustrated if he’s not unleashed soon.
Coach JB Bickerstaff is in a tough spot trying to negotiate all of these moving parts, as he tries to get Ivey the minutes he needs while keeping everyone else happy and continuing to win games.
We don’t know anything for sure yet, but the signs continue to point in one direction for Jaden Ivey and the Pistons.