The case for the Detroit Pistons chasing a flawed star this summer

Coming off of the worst season in franchise history and heading into year five of the "restoration", the Detroit Pistons face a crucial offseason. Yet, as we sit here in early May, we still don't know who the President of Basketball Operations will be. We don't know if Troy Weaver will be launched into space or demoted to a lesser position. We don't know if our head coach cares about coaching this team. Moral of the story: it's an absolute mess right now. So how should the Pistons go about fixing this mess?

Enter Trae Young. I can feel the Pistons community ready to throw tomatoes at my face and boo me off the stage. Just hear me out for five minutes. Trae Young is without a doubt going to be on the trade block this offseason. Here he is talking about his future on his From the Point podcast:

I can hear the Pistons community now. "THE PISTONS AREN'T READY TO WIN NOW! WHY WOULD HE WANT TO COME HERE?!" Everyone yelling that at the screen right now is absolutely correct. The Pistons are most certainly not on Young's "Team's I want to go to and win now" list. I acknowledge this.

However, we weren't on Blake Griffin's list either. We weren't even on his radar. The point is Young is under contract until 2028, so Landry Fields (GM of the Hawks) has the final say on where he trades the 3x All-Star. If the Pistons can give Fields an enticing enough offer, then sorry Trae but welcome to the Motor City. For what it's worth, the Pistons have been mentioned as a "wild card" destination for Young.

The Pistons should make Young priority #1 this offseason and here are three reasons why they should.

The Detroit Pistons need star power

The Pistons need stars and badly. Not potential stars, but proven stars. This restoration has failed because Killian Hayes did not become a star...or even a basketball player. Saddiq Bey did not become a star. Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey: Not stars. Cade Cunningham, to me, is a star. However, he is a star on the worst roster in the NBA.

The goal this offseason should be to focus solely on Cade and build a roster that complements him. If we don't prove to Cade this offseason that we're serious about winning, he will pack his bags and leave and I wouldn't blame him for a second. If only there were a proven star who wants out of his current situation!

Say what you want about Trae Young, but he is a proven star, a 3x All-Star in fact. Young is an extremely talented scorer, averaging 25 points per game and shooting 36 percent from three during his six years in the league. He also gets others involved, dishing almost 10 assists a game. You aren't going to win anything in the modern NBA if you don't have All-Star bucket-getters on your team. Trae Young is an All-Star bucket-getter who gets to the line, shoots a respectable percentage from three on high volume, and is unselfish with the rock. He may not be everyone's first choice, but you'd be lying to yourself if you think he won't help Cade and this rock-bottomed Pistons organization.