The Detroit Pistons have looked like a playoff team at times this season and at others like a team headed back to the lottery.
That inconsistency is reflected in their record, as the Pistons are clinging onto the 10th and final play-in position, but have a losing record and are closer to the bottom four in the Eastern Conference than they are to the top six.
It was also reflected in Bleacher Report’s most recent NBA power rankings, which had the Pistons at just 24th, ahead of only the dregs of the league in the Trail Blazers, Raptors, Hornets, Pelicans, Jazz and Wizards.
Considering the Pistons just got blown out at home by the 29th ranked Jazz, it’s hardly a ringing endorsement and has put Trajan Langdon in a tough position as the trade deadline gets nearer.
That decision has been complicated further by the play of Cade Cunningham, who has been amazing of late and looks to be headed to his first All-Star game.
Langdon has three choices, and given his team’s precarious position in the standings, it’s not going to be an easy call.
The Pistons can do nothing
The Pistons are at least frisky and do have some amount of chemistry brewing, so there is an argument for just staying put and letting this team finish out the season and see what happens.
If they make the play-in, great, if not, they keep their pick and re-tool the roster in the offseason with more tools at their disposal.
This wouldn’t be the greatest use of their assets nor the best way to max out Cunningham’s potential, so this is the option I don’t see happening. The Pistons are going to do something, which brings us to the next two choices.
The Pistons try to improve
Whether it is trying to make a play for a star or just adding some depth at positions of need, the Pistons have the cap space, expiring contracts and young players to make it happen.
It might be a premature to go all-in, but Langdon could choose to make a moderate move as he did last summer when he added inexpensive veterans on short-term deals.
There are players out there the Pistons could acquire who would help them without costing a fortune, so it’s definitely an option if Langdon thinks the chance to play meaningful games down the stretch is more important than keeping their 2025 draft pick.
The downside to this is that it might not work, and the Pistons could lose assets without much to show for it. It’s also important to keep the context of the Eastern Conference in mind, as the Pistons are only in the position they are in because the conference is so bad. Detroit’s record wouldn’t have them near the play-in in the West, so is this team actually a play-in team or just a product of a mediocre conference? It's a fair question to ask.
If you think it’s the latter, then it leads us to the final choice.
Pistons sell at the deadline, get as many assets as they can and try to make a big move in the summer
The Pistons have a couple of veteran shooters teams will call about at the deadline and also have cap space that they could use to try and grab draft assets in a trade by taking on a bad deal.
There is an argument that they should, as it would open up more playing time for their young core and put them in a position to make a bigger move in the summer. Collecting draft picks is not a popular choice, but the Pistons need them, as they can’t make a substantial trade right now, as they still owe a pick to Minnesota.
It would give Langdon the chance to better evaluate his core, which is crucial considering Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren are both up for extensions this summer.
The next few weeks will likely decide which direction the Pistons take, but Langdon is going to anger a portion of the fanbase no matter what he does.