Detroit Pistons Trade Rumors: Norman Powell likely headed out of Toronto

Recently the Detroit Pistons have been linked to Norman Powell of the Toronto Raptors.  Like how I felt about the Victor Oladipo rumors, general manager (GM) Troy Weaver should have no interest in adding Powell.

It goes without saying, Pistons head coach Dwane Casey is familiar with Powell who he coached during his time with the Raptors.

Powell is in the midst of a career year, and Detroit fans will be quick to recall we’re only about a week removed from Powell, dropping a career-high 43 points on the Pistons.  The Raptors shooting guard is a bit of a late bloomer as he’s really coming into his own at 27-years old.

When you consider the Raptors depth chart over the past few years, you understand that Powell had primarily been a rotational depth player behind Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet.  Powell has seen an uptick in minutes averaging over 30 minutes per game for the first time in his career this season due to the league’s COVID-19 protocols and injuries.

After being selected in the second round of the 2015 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks 46th overall, like an abundance of NBA Draft prospects, Powell’s rights were quickly flipped to the Raptors in exchange for Greivis Vásquez.  The Bucks also sent Toronto a future 2017 first-round pick in the agreement.

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The Detroit Pistons should shy away from giving up a young player or draft capital for Norman Powell.

Powell is averaging a career-high 19.5 points per game in 2020-21, after averaging 16 a year ago.  Before that, Powell had never averaged double-digits (7.1) combined in the previous four seasons.

The soon-to-be 28-year old guard earns a fraction under $10-million this season and has a player option for next season set at $11.6 million that he is expected to turn down.  Reports suggest Powell will seek upwards of $20-million per season on the open market.

Knowing Powell is set to become a free agent, the Detroit Pistons should hope to sign the guard in the offseason.

The same goes for Victor Oladipo.  Why trade for a player now that you could potentially sign in free agency?  Sure adding a player now allows the team to begin negotiations before said player hits the open market but it seems in the NBA players already have a figure plus a destination in mind.

It’s apparent the Pistons are in the market for a shooting guard being linked to both Powell and Oladipo. However, I still hope to catch a glimpse of Hamidou Diallo, who, by all accounts, is remarkably athletic and is only a fraction of the price.  Diallo will become a restricted free agent (RFA) at the season’s end.

Overall I’ve been extremely supportive of Pistons GM Troy Weaver.  I enjoy his aggressive management style, along with his willingness to pull the trigger on a deal he feels betters the organization.  We often refer to Weaver as ‘trader Troy’ for good reason.

Jeff Fischer of Bleacher Report suggests the Pistons, along with Cleveland, Atlanta, Dallas, Boston, and Minnesota, have all shown interest in Powell. The Cavs are trying to move center Andre Drummond, and earlier in the year, the Raptors had an interest; will they still have interest in adding the pending free agent?

The Pistons are unlikely to trade any of their rookies, leaving the one youngster potentially on the board.  Will Weaver consider moving the often used 20-year old forward Sekou Doumbouya?  After the franchise bought-out Blake Griffin, I suspected it would open the door for Doumbouya to see a significant bump in minutes, but he clearly remains one of the last options on head coach Dwane Casey’s bench.

It’s difficult to give up on a 20-year old player selected in the first round just a year ago, but I’m starting to become suspicious of his future with the Detroit Pistons.