The NBA offseason is officially underway and there has already been plenty of action. The Detroit Pistons are certain to be a part of it at some point after already making moves to clear their front office and coaching staff.
Trajan Langdon has a lot on his plate with a coaching search and the NBA Draft less than a week away, especially when deals are already being cut around the league.
Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports reported that the Pistons were “evaluating the market” for Isaiah Stewart, who has been the subject of trade rumors in the past.
Detroit’s willingness to part ways with Beef Stew could mean a couple of things.
There’s a trade market for Isaiah Stewart
Stewart has missed a lot of games, but he’s improved each year he’s been in the league, boosting his 3-point shooting along the way. He’d be the perfect backup big man for a team that already had a center, which is the role the Pistons should use him in if he is not traded.
Teams are increasingly looking for defensively versatile bigs, especially for the playoffs, when traditional centers who can’t move on the perimeter get targeted.
Stewart is on a reasonable deal, young and locked in for the next four seasons. He’s a Naz Reid-lite and a good fit for a lot of teams, including the Pistons, unless they have other plans.
Trading Stewart could mean a center is coming in free agency for the Pistons
If the Pistons are willing to deal Stewart, it could be part of a bigger plan. They’ve been rumored to be interested in free-agent centers like Nic Claxton and Isaiah Hartenstein, and if they were to sign a guy like that, you have to wonder where it would leave Stewart.
If Stewart is coming off the bench as a stretch-five that is one thing. If you are going to pigeon-hole him into a power forward role with a non-shooting big (could be Jalen Duren coming off the bench) then he makes less sense, as we’ve seen the results of that experiment.
If the Pistons think they have a chance at a starting caliber center who could push Duren to the bench, then Stewart could be the odd man out.
“Evaluating the market” doesn’t mean a trade is imminent, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Pistons shake up their big man rotation with a trade.