The Detroit Pistons are off to an incredible start, so are not thinking about trades, but Javonte Green, Duncan Robinson and Caris LeVert will all be eligible to be traded on December 15th.
The Pistons are currently 13-2, so wouldn’t want to do anything to disrupt their mojo anyway, but things could look different in less than a month.
While none of these three players will be huge names on the trade market, they give the Pistons roster and financial flexibility if they want to make a big move.
Javonte Green
Green has been an unexpected contributor for the Pistons this season and is a guy JB Bickerstaff can’t keep off the court.
Green is not only on a minimum deal but offers the Pistons depth at several positions as a versatile defender who can guard 2-4.
Given these two factors, he’s a guy the Pistons will likely keep around unless they absolutely needed his money to match a trade. Green gives the Pistons roster and financial flexibility, as he is contributing on a lowball deal that could allow them to make other moves.
Caris LeVert
LeVert’s contract only extends through next season, so he’s another player on a tradable deal, and this is one the Pistons could actually move.
It’s not as if they are eager to trade LeVert, who has shown signs as a playmaker, though he has missed plenty of games with injury. But his salary may be necessary if the Pistons want to make a big trade, so LeVert is a guy we could certainly see dealt, but only as a salary matcher.
The emergence of Daniss Jenkins as a secondary creator and playmaker could make LeVert unnecessary even though they don’t play the same position.
Duncan Robinson
It would be more difficult to trade Robinson, who has been shooting the lights out of late and is averaging 42 percent on over seven 3-point attempts per game, as the Pistons don’t have another sharpshooter.
But Robinson is another player whose short-term contract could make him a potential salary matcher in a big trade, as his deal is not guaranteed past this season.
The only way the Pistons can trade Robinson is if they are getting a bona fide shooter back in return, as they have painfully little 3-point shooting as it is. The Pistons are 27th in the NBA In made 3-point shots per game, so even though Robinson is on a very tradable deal, his skillset is more important than LeVert’s.
The Pistons are in a great position heading into December, as they are winning even without their full lineup and have the flexibility to augment their roster if they feel they need to.