The first big trade of the season happened yesterday and the Detroit Pistons were not part of it.
The Knicks acquired OG Anunoby for a package of players and a pick, and even though the Pistons may have missed out on Anunoby, the trade could still affect their future.
That's because Toronto likely isn't done, as Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Raptors could look to move forward Pascal Siakam next.
"Toronto is expected to continue to explore trades involving forward Pascal Siakam, but there are no deals with traction for him now, sources said."
The Detroit Pistons have been thin at power forward since Jerami Grant was traded and are even thinner right now with Isaiah Stewart out with a toe injury. Stewart may be better served as a do-it-all big man off the bench anyway, so he shouldn't stop the Pistons from exploring every option.
The elephant in the room with Pascal Siakam and the Detroit Pistons
In many ways, Siakam is exactly what the Pistons need, as he is a consistent scorer and solid defender who would take a lot of the pressure off Cade Cunningham to do everything.
As we saw last night when he dropped 35 efficient points in the loss, Siakam can carry an offense and when he gets it going, he's tough to stop. He'd give the Pistons what they don't currently have, which is a four who can create matchup problems on the offensive end.
The problem with Siakam is that he is on an expiring deal, so any team that trades for him will be taking a risk that he leaves as an unrestricted free agent.
He'll also be 30 years old in April and there is a risk that whoever signs him will be paying max dollars for non-prime years.
Given Detroit's complete failure to draw free agents of his stature, there is no way they could count on him re-signing in Detroit unless there was a "wink wink" deal in place for an extension.
The 2024 free agent class is not great, and Siakam is now one of the only guys who could move the needle for Detroit.
So should they trade for him now to get the inside track on his free agency? Do they even have what it takes? How will his contract status affect his trade value?
Detroit Pistons trade for Pascal Siakam
It's hard to say what Siakam's value is on the trade market. This is a guy who is a multiple All-Star in the middle of his prime, but his contract status makes him dubious.
Now that Toronto has traded Anunoby and gotten two young players back in return, would they want more young players? Draft assets? A combination of both?
The Pistons are light on trade assets and would almost certainly have to break up the "Core Four" to land Siakam.
Giving up Ivey for a guy who could leave would sting and be very risky for the Pistons, who would have to have some assurances that Siakam would stay. Harris and Hayes are just there to make the salaries work, though getting rid of them could be addition by subtraction.
Detroit could try to slide Isaiah Stewart in there instead of Ivey, but that might not be enough. Toronto is rumored to be looking for the equivalent of three first-round picks for Siakam. They may not end up getting that, but there are teams out there including the Pacers and Hawks who could certainly put together packages that are close.
The 2nd-rounder from WAS should be a good pick in the low 30's, but would that, Ivey and expiring deals be enough? It will depend on other teams and what they offer, but even if this package could get it done, should the Pistons risk it?
The risk/reward of trading for Pascal Siakam
Troy Weaver has been extremely risk-averse the last few seasons, making the decision not to use his cap space on anything other than expiring deals and salary dumps.
At some point, the Pistons are going to have to take a risk. There is not a perfect solution out there for them, a guy who is a perfect fit on the roster, who is the right age and has the right contract status and who is also available. That player does not exist.
The risk is that Siakam is in decline (didn't look like it last night) and the Pistons will have to pay him a max deal to get him to stay and he could leave anyway.
The risk is that they give up Jaden Ivey for nothing.
But there is also risk in not making such a move, as Cunningham and Ivey are still an unproven duo and shooting guards are easier to come by than All-Star power forwards.
The unsatisfying answer is that I have no idea if the Pistons should do a move like this because I don't have a crystal ball. I don't know what Jaden Ivey will become (is he a future All-Star or just a nice complementary player?) and I don't know what plans Pascal Siakam has for his future.
I do know that the Pistons aren't going to be able to make the roster changes they need without taking some amount of risk.
Is this the right one? Does it even matter? We'll find out before this year's trade deadline.