The Detroit Pistons could go any number of ways at this year's NBA trade deadline, which is now just a week away.
The market is not shaping up for them to make a big trade, and it's not catastrophic if they don't, as this season is long over and they will have more to offer in a potential blockbuster on draft day.
This might lead to the Pistons just selling off some of their veterans for parts, or they could lean into Troy Weaver's modus operandi and go after a low-risk/high-reward guy as they have many times in his tenure.
It hasn't worked much so far, as the Pistons made what ended up being a terrible trade for Marvin Bagley III, especially after a disastrous extension that led to him having to be dumped along with picks just to get rid of him.
Guys like Kevin Knox, Josh Jackson, Dennis Smith Jr., RJ Hampton and James Wiseman got mixed results (mostly bad) but the idea of giving up little for a player with potential does have some appeal, especially for a team that lacks the trade assets (for now) to make the big splash they need and has limited options in free agency.
Here are three forgotten players that might be worth a flyer for the Detroit Pistons.
More busts for the Detroit Pistons
Bones Hyland
Hyland makes the least sense out of these three players, as the Pistons already have plenty of guards, including one undersized shoot-first option in Marcus Sasser.
But if Detroit could swap Killian Hayes for Hyland, why not? Hyland is getting no run for the Clippers and has shown that he can be a lightning-in-a-bottle scorer off the bench and had some big games for the Nuggets.
He was second-team All-Rookie in 2023, which shows you exactly how little that matters in the grand scheme of a player's career.
He's not a long-term answer, but he'd be practically free and doesn't have any long-term financial obligations, as he has just a team option remaining on his contract after this season. If the Pistons were to trade some of their guards at the deadline, Hyland might be worth a flyer as a bench scoring option for the rest of the season.
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