The Detroit Pistons had themselves quite the offseason. Aside from the Oklahoma City Thunder, they were arguably the busiest team in terms of transactions made from start to finish. It was safe to assume that no one, not even the front office would know what the final roster would look like heading into training camp, and even that could change.
The bulk of the Pistons' moves however are locked in place. While at some points it seemed as though they were pulling together pieces to move into playoff status for the upcoming year, at other times it appeared that they were simply mounting pieces for the future.
Detroit hasn't been a relevant force in the Eastern Conference for years now. While their last playoff appearance came in 2019, it resulted in a first-round sweep at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks. Even though it's easy to throw the Motor City under the bus, they've also been without the services of their best player Blake Griffin for a majority of his time there. Through three seasons, Griffin played in more than 70 games in only one season.
The Pistons will march into the 2020-21 season with a somewhat-new look after revamping their roster. Still, some of the moves they made were questionable, while others deserved credit.
Offseason Grade: B-
Draft
It's hard to pinpoint exactly what aspect of the Pistons' offseason was the heaviest, but the draft definitely deserves some consideration. Walking away from everything as it stands, the Pistons are set with their own first-round picks through 2027, which even then is conditional given that they owe the Houston Rockets at least one of those picks at some point.
Still, the Pistons made good on their selections on draft night. The lottery ticket for the front office was Killian Hayes, who apparently will be receiving the starting nod over Derrick Rose this year. Hayes is a 6-foot-5 guard that is all of 19-years old, and he'll have to adjust on the fly. His defense is next level for a rookie, while his decision making is impressive given his age. Obviously, he's shown a high ceiling so far with head coach Dwayne Casey electing to start him.
The 19th pick, Saddiq Bey, was also a decent grab by Pistons brass after agreeing to a three-team trade with the Brooklyn Nets. The Villanova standout wasn't viewed as one of the premier wings in the draft, but his skills and IQ are undeniable. The 6-foot-8 forward averaged 16.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists last year. There's a bit of a logjam at the forward spot right now, which means Bey could receive those end-of-the-bench rookie minutes for now.
Free Agency
There were some big moves from the Pistons in free agency, a club that wasn't thought to be a major factor during the offseason.
Jerami Grant was one of the hottest free agents after drastically improving his stock during the playoffs. At one point it was thought that he'd simply stay put with the Denver Nuggets where he'd started to become a household name. All the while, Grant believed his skillset had far exceeded his time with the Nuggets, which resulted in him signing a three-year, $60 million deal with the Pistons instead as he searched for a bigger role.
Grant will undoubtedly be the starting forward with Detroit, which was something that'd been called into question in Denver with the development of Michael Porter Jr.
One of the more questionable moves by the Pistons was grabbing Mason Plumlee, which many pundits have attributed to general manager Troy Weaver's apparent love for centers. They signed Plumlee to a three-year, $24 million contract. At the age of 30, it becomes a bit of a head-scratcher as to why Plumlee was a priority in the frontcourt for Detroit. He averaged 7.2 points and 5.2 rebounds last season with the Nuggets through 17.3 minutes per game.
To make matters worse, the Pistons were willing to let go of Christian Wood, who was a bonafide piece in the frontcourt structure. The front office ended up trading the developing big man in a sign-and-trade deal that led to an eventual salary dump of Trevor Ariza.
For strictly glitz and glamour purposes, the Pistons did also sign LiAngelo Ball, brother of Lonzo Ball and LaMelo Ball. LiAngelo at one point had practically ended the chances of his NBA career after some reckless mistakes during his UCLA days. While he's the lesser talented of the trio, LiAngelo could likely play his way into an unproven rotation if he shows some impressive outings with the G League.
Outlook
The Pistons' overall job was to build for the future while trimming down on uncertain players. They'll be obviously banking on the health of Griffin as a major factor in their success rate this season, though the six-time All-Star has reassured fans that he's ready to prove himself once more. They'll have a decent roster coming into the 2020-21 season, which could give Casey his first chance at competing at a high level since his Toronto Raptors days.
The supporting cast is a bump-up from the yesteryears, and the rookies have some intriguing promise.
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