The only thing to look forward to with the present-day Detroit Pistons is the future.
The Pistons are the worst team in the league again, on a three-game slide before the All-Star break after playing some of their best basketball of the season with a shorthanded roster.
Detroit made sweeping changes at the trade deadline, but they still need talent and Troy Weaver will be under pressure to make a big move if he is the one making the decisions. The Pistons only have six players under contract for next season, so there is plenty of work to be done.
The Pistons will once again have a huge amount of cap space, but there are limited free agents, which led some to speculate that Tobias Harris would be the primary target.
No offense to Harris, but there are some questions about fit and whether he would really move the needle, especially if he’s eating up a big chunk of cap space.
The Pistons' best chance to land a star is to trade for one and there may be some interesting names available.
NBA rumors: Possible trade target for the Detroit Pistons
In a recent article, The Ringer speculated about which stars may become available this summer, including one name in particular who may interest the Detroit Pistons.
"The same goes for the rising New Orleans Pelicans, who have three pricey stars and a surplus of talented young players who will be getting big raises soon—a major strain for a small-market team that’s allergic to paying the luxury tax. “New Orleans has to make a decision between Zion [Williamson] and [Brandon] Ingram,” said an Eastern Conference exec. “I think that happens this summer."
The question is whether that Eastern Conference exec was Troy Weaver.
The Pistons need a star forward and both Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram qualify. Ingram seems the more likely to be traded, given his age and contract, as well as the fact that Zion is a huge draw under contract for four more seasons at what now seems like a reasonable price.
On paper, Ingram would be perfect for the Pistons, but he does come with pros and cons and what would it take to get him?
Detroit Pistons trade with the New Orleans Pelicans
The Pistons don’t have a trove of trade assets, so any trade for a player of Ingram’s caliber would have to start with the their 2024 draft pick, which can’t be traded officially until draft day. It will undoubtedly be a top-5 pick, which is their biggest trade asset along with the Core Four.
Ingram is a 26-year-old with one year left on his deal at $36 million before he’ll become an unrestricted free agent and get paid. The Pistons would have to think they’d have a chance to re-sign him before giving up their best assets, as he could walk after a season.
His next contract is going to be huge, but we’ll get back to that in a minute.
The Pels would likely want one of the Core Four along with the 2024 pick, a second pick and a few swaps. If the pick this season ends up being the #1, would that be enough to get the Pistons a young veteran All-Star without giving up one of the core?
I have no idea if this is enough or if it would b the best offer the Pelicans could get, as I said, if the Pistons end up with the first pick, that could move the needle. Stewart is also under a reasonable contract and they'd net around $20 million in cap space, which the Pelicans do care about.
Ingram's contract status could lower his value somewhat but if a team like Houston or OKC wanted to throw more draft picks at them, the Pistons may not be able to compete.
Let’s assume Detroit could put together a tempting enough package for the sake of argument. Brandon Ingram does come with some pros and cons.
The pros and cons of Brandon Ingram for the Detroit Pistons
Pros
I covered the Pelicans for a few years and saw plenty of Ingram play and I’ve always liked him. He’s a dawg who doesn’t back down from the moment and when he gets going, he’s tough to stop as a 6-foot-9 forward with a massive wingspan.
He can score from all over, and even though his efficiency isn’t the greatest, he makes up for it by getting to the line. He’s a bucket and a solid 20 points, five rebounds and five assists a night. He’s not an elite defender, but he gives effort and has the length to defend either forward spot.
Con
He’s not a volume 3-point shooter, averaging just 3.9 attempts per game and knocking down 36 percent of them.
Pro
He’s shown he can shoot a high volume and percentage, as he’s had two seasons in which he attempted more than six per game and hit 39 percent of them. He’s never played with a real point guard and will get more attempts with two guards that can distribute.
Con
He gets hurt a lot. He’s been reliable this season but has only played in more than 62 games once in his career, and that was his rookie season, when he played 79 games. Since he’s played 59, 52, 62, 61, 55, 45 and 51 games (this season).
Pro
He’s only 26 years old, so while the injuries are concerning, he’s healthy now and still very young. He doesn’t have anything chronic and many of his injuries have been bad luck, things like a broken nose, concussion and surgery on an injured finger.
The pros and cons of Brandon Ingram for the Detroit Pistons
Pro
He’s 26, in his prime and has already been in the league for eight years, so he can provide experience but still fits the timeline. If the Pistons could re-sign him, they’d been getting most of his prime years at a position of need.
Cons
That’s a big “IF.” Ingram only has one year left on his deal and could decide he doesn’t want to stay in Detroit. Even though the Pistons would have the inside track to his free agency, he could test the market and flee to greener pastures. Then they just gave up their best asset this trade deadline for nothing.
Pros
Given that there is only one year left on his contract, the trade price could be lower, as any team trading for him knows he can leave. That should allow the Pistons to get in the mix without adding one of their core guys. Detroit doesn’t need more youth, they need guys who can play, so if they can get one giving up only draft assets (one of which is in this uninspiring draft), they should jump on it.
It’s an interesting debate, as Ingram does come with risks, but the Detroit Pistons are not going to get anywhere near a star player without taking some. It may be a dream anyway, as Detroit is light on trade assets and may not even have the juice to make this kind of deal.