The Detroit Pistons are, at least on paper, one of the more logical star-searchers in NBA trade season. They have a clear shot at contention, flaws that threaten to hold them back, and a rich enough collection of trade assets to dream as big as their imagination allows.
But not every available star makes sense for this squad. In fact some, like James Harden, feel like downright brutal fits, and yet, some around the Association have highlighted him as "a good piece for Detroit to go add," NBA insider Jake Fischer relayed in a live stream for Bleacher Report. Fortunately, the Pistons seem to understand that Harden isn't their answer.
James Harden is nowhere close to being what the Pistons need.
If you set concerns about timelines and play styles aside, you might be able to see why some would like Detroit to the bearded baller. The Pistons could use another high-end scorer and capable creator to take some heat off of Cade Cunningham, and Harden checks those boxes with ease.
But he has always done his best work when he's had complete control of an offense, and that's obviously not something Detroit is offering to anyone other than Cunningham. While you'd want to believe Harden could scale down and serve as the ultimate co-star, his game has never functioned like that.
If the Pistons do any degree of big-game hunting—Fischer cautioned that they've "signaled repeatedly that they are not looking to expedite their process"—they'd be in the market for a play-finisher. Someone who'd be comfortable outside the spotlight but able to shine under its glare in spurts.
Harden isn't that. He's an initiator through and through. He has taken 518 shots this season, and 359 of them (69.3 percent of his attempts) were hoisted after he dribbled the ball at least three times, per NBA.com. Nearly half of all his shots (241, 46.5 percent) followed at least seven dribbles.
He'll pound the ball into oblivion. And he should. This league has seldom seen isolation scorers of his quality.
That's what makes him a really good (formerly great) player. It's also part of the reason he'd be an awful fit for this franchise.
While the ideal co-star would ease Cunningham's burden, the addition of Harden would pull way too many touches away from the Pistons' best player. Well, that or Detroit would acquire a high-profile, high-priced, 36-year-old player and immediately task them with dramatically changing the approach that's essentially solely responsible for all of their sucess.
The duo would be doomed from the start. And that's before even digging into how Harden would be such a terrible fit for the timeline. Or how his bouts of defensive indifference would be immediate culture clashers with the coaching staff. Or how any team might be weary of going all-in on a player with such a shaky track record in the biggest playoff moments.
For so many reasons, Harden would be the wrong player for the Pistons. Good thing they seemingly see it that way, too.