As expected, the Detroit Pistons picked up Ron Holland’s final team option, which will pay him $11.5 million in the 2027-28 season.
Holland has as much at stake as any Pistons player this season, as exercising that option doesn’t necessarily mean Holland will play next season in Detroit.
Ron Holland is entering a critical 3rd season, but where will he play his 4th one?
If the Pistons are ever going to be able to play their two #5 picks together, something has to change, as right now, neither Holland nor Ausar Thompson can shoot.
If one of them has to go, it’s going to be Holland, as the Pistons have already locked up Ausar Thompson for the foreseeable future.
Holland’s lack of offense hasn’t been a problem thus far, but his salary jumps up to $11.5 million next season, which is not a small amount for a guy with his limitations.
That doesn’t mean Holland has to have an All-Star season to avoid being traded at the deadline, but there do need to be some signs of progress, or we are going to see his name thrown into every fake trade.
His salary this season is large enough to make a dent in an incoming contract, so if Trajan Langdon doesn’t envision Holland being able to make the playoff rotation, it’s certainly possible we’ll see him traded.
There are also a couple of scenarios in which Holland could end up back in Detroit.
Trading Ron Holland
As of right now, I am not sure how much of a trade market there is for Holland, as teams are being far less patient with project prospects than they have been in the past.
He’s mostly potential at the moment, and $11.5 million is a lot to pay for potential. We’ve recently seen young players bounced out of the league before their second contracts, a trend Holland hopes to avoid.
If teams don’t see Holland as an enticing sweetener or a guy worth taking a risk on, Holland could just end up playing out his contract in Detroit and becoming a restricted free agent after next season.
The more appealing option is that Holland does have the breakout season and becomes too valuable to trade, in which case he could just play out his contract in Detroit and become a restricted free agent, same as the first option, only in this hypothetical, the Pistons would want him back.
But if the Pistons are looking to make a big move and Holland still has some trade value, it wouldn’t be shocking if some other team was paying his salary next season.
Season three starts today, and Holland will be in the spotlight as he tries to play his way into the Pistons’ future plans.
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