The Detroit Pistons are in an enviable position as the trade deadline approaches, as they don’t really need to do anything.
Detroit could certainly use another scoring option, preferably one who can knock down 3-point shots, but with the best record in the Eastern Conference and a five-game cushion on the pack, the Pistons are not in desperation mode as they have been in the past.
Any move they make will likely be a complementary one that can help this team make a deep playoff run.
The Pistons won’t be trying to dump aging veterans like they were at so many trade deadlines of the recent past, and they won’t be taking on any “second draft” guys or taking flyers on players who have failed elsewhere.
The Pistons are good, have plenty of young talent that has not yet peaked and have financial flexibility going forward, all of which has rinsed off the stink of desperation that used to hover over the franchise, and has put them in a refreshing position.
It’s also stopped them from being involved in any of the riskiest trades currently circulating the NBA universe.
The Pistons don’t need to take chances at the trade deadline
It’s been a while since the Pistons went into a trade deadline without serious issues to address. Yes, they would benefit from more shooting, but it’s splitting hairs for a team that has raced out to a big lead in the East.
In the past, the Pistons were dealing with structural problems, bad contracts, young players who hadn’t lived up to expectations and veterans who were past their prime and whose trade value was rapidly declining.
The Pistons don’t have any Alec Burks or Bojan Bogdanovics to get rid of, and they don’t have a Killian Hayes taking a roster spot for no apparent reason.
This is a winning team that will look to get better, not worse, so the days of hoping for post-deadline losses are long gone.
If the Pistons make a move, it will be one that is for this season, not five seasons down the road, as this team thinks it can compete for a title. We’ll have to wait for the playoffs to see if that is true, but they are better positioned going into this deadline than they have been for years.
Trajan Langdon has the advantage of patience, as he can wait until the summer to evaluate his team and go from there, and he’ll do so with the same assets and financial flexibility at his disposal that he has now.
It’s refreshing to not be desperate at the trade deadline, and it’s keeping the Pistons from even being mentioned in trades for risky players like Trae Young or Ja Morant.
The Pistons are set up to win as is, so can go into the trade deadline with an open mind, but don’t have to reach or take chances they might have in the past.
The priority is to win, but the Pistons don’t have to take wild swings to get there.