Teams whose struggles could open the door for a Pistons trade

The Detroit Pistons’ offseason hasn’t had the fireworks some expected, though they did improve their shooting and set themselves up for a future deal. 

No one wants to hear about the February trade deadline in August, but the Pistons will have more tradable contracts then and are set up to make a deal. 

We never know how things will shake out in the NBA or who will be available, so I tried to choose teams other than the standard Nets for Michael Porter Jr., Pelicans for Trey Murphy III and Jazz for Lauri Markkanen. 

There may be some surprising teams looking to blow things up that could provide the perfect addition for the Pistons to make a deep playoff run next season. 

Orlando Magic: Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, Jalen Suggs 

Let’s start with a team we haven’t heard much about this summer, the Orlando Magic, who will be under pressure to improve under new head coach Sean Sweeney, who will be tasked with trying to make the Wagner/Banchero pairing work. 

But if it doesn’t, they won’t have a coach to scapegoat this time, so we could see Orlando blow things up. 

I do see this one as the least likely, as the Magic nearly knocked off the Pistons in the first-round last season, so it’s not like they were terrible, and with better health, they could be one of the surprise teams next season. 

If it goes the other way, we could see one of these three players on the trade block. Banchero and Wagner seem like distant long shots, but I’ve always liked Jalen Suggs if the Pistons are looking for another creator.  

The Magic are going to be an interesting team to watch either way next season. 

The Houston Rockets are on borrowed time 

Much like the Magic, the Rockets will be under pressure to improve upon last season. They won 52 games, so were good, but they are at a crossroads with their roster, which is very expensive and about to get even more pricey. 

The obvious target would be Kevin Durant, who would be a perfect mercenary for a deep playoff run and is essentially on an expiring deal. 

Fred VanVleet is another interesting player, as he’s coming off an injury and could be trade bait if the team isn’t living up to expectations.  

Expect the Durant trade demand at some point, and the Pistons will be ready. 

The Mavericks could lean into the youth 

The Mavs could actually be good next season if Cooper Flagg makes a big leap, but they also have a lot of players who are not on the same timeline as their young star. 

If Kyrie Irving is back, looks healthy and is playing well, he could be the biggest name on the trade market at the deadline unless Dallas is surprisingly good. 

If they aren’t, they will have to consider moving Irving, PJ Washington, and Klay Thompson to add more young talent around Flagg. 

Iring and Thompson only have one guaranteed year left on their respective deals (Kyrie has a player option for a second season), so if the Mavs don’t move or extend them, they risk losing these players for nothing. 

Let’s hope things work in the Pistons favor to line up the perfect deadline trade next season. 

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