Unlike the past several seasons, the Detroit Pistons brought in veterans this offseason to compete with and complement their young players.
Fans speculated that the additions of Ron Holland, Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr. might mean the Pistons were about to trade Jaden Ivey.
There is really no reason to, as all of the veterans are on short-term deals that line up with Ivey’s next contract, so the Pistons have two seasons to evaluate Ivey’s future with the team.
It’s a smart timeline, as the Pistons don’t want to give out big extensions until they know what players like Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren can be.
There’s also an argument for trading Ivey while his value is high, as another mediocre season would move him from “high-upside prospect” to “potential bust” overnight, which happened to the Pistons before with Saddiq Bey and Killian Hayes.
Possible Detroit Pistons trade with the Brooklyn Nets
The Pistons could try to swap Ivey for future draft assets, or a player who is a better fit with Cade Cunningham, which is what happens in this one-for-one trade proposed by Bleacher Report:
In this trade, the Pistons swap Jaden Ivey for Cam Thomas, an interesting idea that would present some advantages and disadvantages for the Detroit Pistons.
On paper this seems like a fair trade of two players who are the same age, but would it be worthwhile for the Pistons?