Between Tim Hardaway Jr, Dennis Schroeder, and Malik Beasley, the Detroit Pistons have a number of key veteran contributors hitting unrestricted free agency in July. Many fans want to see these guys back, but there are also many who want the Pistons to start making "win-now" moves for star talent alongside Cade Cunningham.
Trajan Langdon seemed to hint that he might be in the former camp as he preached "continuity" in his press conference on Thursday.
Pistons Can't Rely Entirely on Continuity Next Season
That would imply that Langdon will prioritize bringing back most of these veteran free agents while simultaneously keeping guys like Jaden Ivey, Tobias Harris, or Ron Holland off the trade market. Some degree of continuity certainly makes sense, given how much success this group had, but as a GM, you should always be searching for ways to improve the roster. Counting on internal development makes sense with players who have shown potential like Cade, Ausar Thompson, or Jalen Duren, but you must be ready to move on from players who have shown you what they are.
This situation sounds eerily similar to the Orlando Magic last season. The Magic had a great seven-game series against the Cavs but ultimately came up short. In the offseason, the GM made zero additions to the roster outside of rookie draft pick Tristan Da Silva and veteran Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. The Magic had a clear need for shooting alongside Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero, but Magic President Jeff Weltman preached "internal development". Lo and behold, the Magic got six games worse year-over-year, once again failing to get past the first round.
Orlando should serve as a cautionary tale that relying on internal development and continuity may sound nice, but doesn't actually meaningfully improve your team. This is a great free agent class, and there are also lots of star names on the trade market. Langdon must not shut his eyes to the opportunity for the sake of "continuity".
The Pistons have a few untouchable players in Cade Cunningham and Ausar Thompson, but outside of those two, everyone should be available for the right price. No one is saying to blow the roster up, just that running it back in this league isn't enough. Langdon has a lot of cap space to improve this roster around Cade, so he must capitalize on it while Cade's cap hit is still below $40 million.
Hopefully, Langdon substitutes the word "improve" for the word "continuity" in his approach to the offseason.