There aren’t many teams in the NBA that will have money to spend this offseason. One of the teams projected to have money to spend is the Detroit Pistons.
Detroit is in the earlier stages of a rebuild, but they are expected to be aggressive in free agency to upgrade their roster. Any move that the front office makes should be made with Cade Cunningham, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, in mind. He is the face of the franchise and they will go as far as he can take them.
Adding players that fit around him should be the goal for the Detroit Pistons this offseason. With as much cap space as they have, they should be able to make multiple upgrades. According to Bleacher Report, they are looking to make an addition to the backcourt and frontcourt.
For the backcourt, Jalen Brunson of the Dallas Mavericks and Collin Sexton of the Cleveland Cavaliers have been mentioned. In the frontcourt, the team has its sights set on Mitchell Robinson of the New York Knicks and Deandre Ayton of the Phoenix Suns.
“The Pistons, sources told B/R, are expected to use their cap space to acquire one impact player in the frontcourt and backcourt. While Brunson and Sexton are known as guards of real interest to fill that backcourt slot, Detroit is said to have an eye on Knicks center Mitchell Robinson, in addition to Phoenix Suns restricted free-agent big man Deandre Ayton.”
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Robinson would provide the Pistons with an anchor to their defense with his shot-blocking and rebounding. While his offensive repertoire is lacking, he is efficient and plays well above the rim as a lob threat.
However, Deandre Ayton is likely who they will pursue more aggressively. While not as bouncy and athletic as Mitchell Robinson, he has a more polished, well-rounded game. Ayton already can knock down mid-range shots with confidence and looks like he can expand that out to 3-point range.
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But, the nice thing about both players is that they fit the Detroit Pistons’ timeline. They are both established players but young enough that they can grow with the young core already in place and continue developing their skills.
