The Detroit Pistons don’t have a pick in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft, but that doesn’t mean it won’t have an effect on them.
The San Antonio Spurs continued their annoying streak of lottery luck and moved up to the 2nd pick in the draft, where they are eyeballing guard Dylan Harper, who most have ranked as the 2nd-best player in the draft behind Cooper Flagg.
Given the Spurs already have De’Aaron Fox, not to mention Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle, there are some questions about fit with Harper, but that’s not going to stop the Spurs from taking the best player available if they think Harper is that guy.
None of the three guards (Fox, Castle and Harper) are good 3-point shooters (yet) so there are real questions of how it would work around Victor Wembanyama.
This has led to speculation that the Spurs might trade Castle, which seems unlikely given that he just won Rookie of the Year and is the type of smart, hardworking player the Spurs love.
He also fits the prototype of a player the Pistons would covet, as he’s a very good defender with size who can handle some of the playmaking duties.
But before you get too excited, there are some real obstacles, starting with the fact that the Spurs aren’t likely to trade him.
Stephon Castle would be nice, but probably not for the Pistons
The Spurs have the advantage of having Wembanyama, the world’s greatest defender, so they may be able to use unconventional lineups in front of him, especially considering Castle is a versatile defender who can guard up.
Castle isn’t a shooter, but does everything else well, so is the type of player that can slide into any lineup. And we’ve seen shooters improve over time, so if Castle gets up to league average, he’ll be a very productive player.
The real issue may be Fox and Harper, who are both shoot-first guards who want to have the ball.
The Spurs will figure it out, or at least give it a try, so it’s doubtful Castle is available right away, even if they do draft Harper.
Even if Castle did hit the market, there isn’t a clear trade match with the Pistons, as they already have young guys who can defend and can’t shoot, so the two teams would really just be trading talented problems, though I do love the idea of Castle as a Derrick White-type next to Cade Cunningham.
Castle is certainly a player the Pistons would have considered with the 5th pick had he fallen to them in the 2024 Draft, but it’s likely to remain a what if unless these two teams do something shocking on draft day.