Tim Hardaway Jr. trade looking worse by the day for Pistons

Tim Hardaway Jr. Has been a pleasant surprise for the Detroit Pistons this season. 

He came via trade in what looked like a bog-standard salary dump where Dallas sent the Pistons a couple of second-round picks to take on THJ’s salary. 

I didn’t expect him to play a huge role after falling out of favor in Dallas, but he’s been one of the Pistons’ best shooters and it’s safe to say they would not be where they are without him, though he has struggled since returning from injury. 

In the end, THJ is a net positive, as he’s providing spacing, has been a solid veteran influence and garnered the Pistons some much-needed draft assets. Detroit may be able to flip him at the deadline for even more, so this should be a fruitful move for the Pistons. 

But it did come with a cost. 

The Pistons sent Dallas Quention Grimes in the trade and he’s been coming on just as THJ is falling off. The Pistons won’t regret trading for THJ but they might regret throwing in Grimes, who has made an impact in Dallas. 

Detroit Pistons: Trading Quentin Grimes 

I was puzzled by the inclusion of Grimes in the THJ trade right away for a couple of reasons. 

The first is that they absolutely didn’t have to, as Dallas was desperate to clear cap space and the Pistons were the only team that had any. The Mavericks had no leverage and were in no position to be making demands of any kind. 

The second is that Grimes is the archetype of the player they need around Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey, a big guard who can defend multiple positions and hit the 3-ball. 

Grimes had been dealing with some physical issues and there were rumblings he didn’t want to be in Detroit, but that doesn’t mean you just give him away as a throw-in in a salary dump trade. 

If they thought trading Grimes was necessary, why not move him in a separate deal for more assets? Given his salary, he wouldn’t have been hard to flip. 

His overall numbers aren’t going to blow you away this season, but he has averaged 11.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists while shooting 51 percent from the field and 45 percent from long range over his last five games, a span in which the Mavs are 4-1. 

The Pistons could use that depth they gave away now with Cade Cunningham out and Ausar Thompson waiting to make his debut. They could also use his defense as a point-of-attack defender on the perimeter, where they have struggled. 

This isn’t to say they shouldn’t have traded for THJ, as that will end up being a positive for them, but there was no reason to include Grimes, who would have had more value in a separate deal or coming off the bench for the Pistons.