The Detroit Pistons were active this summer, but didn't make the blockbuster trade for a star some fans were hoping for. Entering the offseason, the Pistons were everyone's favorite landing spot for the stars on the trade block due to their status as a potential title contender and the combination of assets and flexibility they possessed.
Such a trade never materialized. The biggest acquisitions the Pistons made were for Isaiah Joe and John Collins. Both players will certainly help, but they are unfortunately not the splashy names who will make the Pistons a Tier 1 championship contender.
The latest report by The Athletic's Hunter Patterson reveals that the Pistons front office is satisfied with the additions they have made. He didn't completely close the door on more offseason moves, but said, "The Pistons are more than likely finished making any big moves. Detroit traded many of the assets that teams might have had interest in."
Detroit's lack of aggression going after stars has to be disappointing
While that is certainly disappointing, that's not even the most frustrating revelation in his column. He added that the Pistons were interested in Kawhi Leonard, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, and Trey Murphy, but "couldn’t rationalize jeopardizing their future to make a win-now move in a shortened window." The Pistons reportedly thought that the asking price for these players was too high.
Instead, Detroit pursued restricted free agent Austin Reaves, per Patterson. Before the Pistons could sign him to an offer sheet, he re-signed with the Lakers for a four-year, $180 million deal. This is higher than the max contract he could have signed with another team, suggesting how improbable it was for the Pistons to actually poach him.
It almost seems like the Pistons knew that the Lakers wouldn't let Reaves go, so they wanted to give the impression that they were being aggressive in free agency to save face with the fanbase.
Any front office would have guessed that the Lakers would match any offer sheet for Reaves, especially after letting LeBron James go. If this was indeed the Pistons' Plan A for a star acquisition without a proper Plan B, that is very disappointing.
It also raises the question of why the Pistons were fine giving 28-year-old Reaves a four-year deal with an average salary of $44.5 million, but didn't want to acquire 26-year-old Trey Murphy, who is on a three-year deal worth $29 million per season.
Sure, the Pistons would have had to give up significant draft capital for Murphy, but he is such a better fit in terms of age and contract that their unwillingness to swing big for him should be considered a mistake. Not going after Kawhi, KD, or Kyrie may be understandable for timeline reasons, but putting Murphy in that category doesn't make a lot of sense.
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