The Detroit Pistons may have made the most underappreciated trade deadline acquisition. The Pistons were able to trade for Marvin Bagley, a center who has the potential to be a high-level player in this league in the future.
While some fans might not agree with the reasons why their team traded for this player, it was a great decision from the front office. There was clearly an area in which they needed to improve and while Bagley isn't the perfect answer, he is still someone who has a lot of potential for this team.
Let's take a look at three reasons why Marvin Bagley was an excellent addition to this youthful Detroit Pistons squad.
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Marvin Bagley Pistons
3. He's no longer in Sacramento
At the age of 19, Marvin Bagley was picked by the Sacramento Kings and played his rookie season in the 2018-2019 season. Given the amount of buzz around him in college, many anticipated him to be one of the best big men in the NBA when he entered the league.
Unfortunately for Marvin Bagley, that hype did not live out in Sacramento, but that may not be an insurmountable obstacle. The Sacramento Kings are, without a doubt, one of the worst NBA franchises. Everyone that goes there, especially a 19-year-old youngster, doesn't seem to find the kind of success they're searching for.
He made it apparent that he didn't want to be in Sacramento since the first day he arrived. It makes sense, given that the Kings had just acquired a future star and he understood there wasn't much chance for them to make the playoffs or do anything. There were even tweets from his father declaring that he no longer wanted to remain in Sacramento, and it was all a jumble.
Bagley leaving Sacramento, which may turn out to be a gift in disguise for him. Despite the fact that the Detroit Pistons have struggled in recent seasons, they remain one of the NBA's most renowned teams and a squad with a promising future. Getting out of Sacramento may be the best thing for his career, allowing him to finally develop into the star player that everyone anticipated him to be when he came from college.
2. Gets a chance to play actual minutes every night for the first time.
Marvin Bagley has only played 21.9 minutes for the Sacramento Kings this season. He had been averaging just over 25 minutes each night in his previous three seasons. That isn't necessarily a low number of minutes; but he has the potential to play 30-plus minutes every game for the Pistons, which will undoubtedly benefit his growth. He understands that he won't have to worry about winning games in Detroit because the team isn't in a position to win an NBA championship in the next several years. All he needs to worry about now is continuing to grow and improving with the guys around him.
It will also be interesting to see whether he can become more dominating now that he is paired with Cade Cunningham and Jerami Grant. Grant's choice to remain on the roster by the Detroit Pistons was a wise one, and it will undoubtedly benefit the franchise in the future.
Marvin Bagley was the ideal addition for this Detroit squad because he has the potential to be one of the best big men in the NBA if he can just stay focused on his game and everything will fall into place for him.
1. Has the opportunity to demonstrate why he was one of the best in college
After everything he's been through in Sacramento, it's now time for him to get out there and just play basketball. If he can prove why he was the second overall choice in the draft, the Detroit Pistons have just gotten a great deal in this transaction.
It's understandable that he'll go to Detroit and perhaps be the player he was expected to be coming out of college, given that he won't be under as much pressure as he was in Sacramento, and he'll be in a city where he presumably wants to play.
It would be fascinating to watch how he performs in Detroit, given that he didn't have the year he had hoped for with Sacramento, but everything can change in a matter of seconds. The Pistons will be able to speed up the rebuild process far faster than they anticipated if he can be the dominant inside force that everyone expects him to be. The future of this Detroit team is bright if they can locate a great big man to play alongside Cade Cunningham.