Grade the trade: Pistons take another salary dump in proposed deal
Detroit Pistons trade for Tim Hardaway Jr. of the Dallas Mavericks
Would Troy Weaver dare to go the salary dump route again? If he is still the GM after the new president of basketball operations is hired, he will be under pressure to put a winner around Cade Cunningham, so this seems like a move that would only be made as part of a larger scheme.
A desperate GM is a dangerous one, but Weaver may not see the options in free agency as much better than this trade proposed by Bleacher Report:
Mavs THJ trade
In this trade, the Pistons essentially take on Tim Hardaway Jr’s final year in exchange for a future second-round pick, finally putting all of those second rounders to good use!
The Mavericks will be desperate to cut payroll and Hardaway Jr. hasn’t been a big part of their playoff rotation, essentially losing his spot to Derrick Jones Jr, who is a much better defender and a guy the Pistons should explore as a free agent.
Hardaway Jr. has only played in two of the Mav’s four playoff games so far for a total of 22 minutes and six points.
While he is not a player who is going to move the needle on his own, he is a solid shooter who doesn’t miss a lot of games, something the Pistons could use, but is this the type of deal they should be looking for?