The world of free agency hasn't always been a happy hunting ground for the Detroit Pistons, and over the years they've secured very few players who have really moved the needle for the franchise through this medium – with one notable exception, that is. But while there is a clear best free agent signing in Pistons history, who comes after that is a little more difficult to sort out. Having said that, there have still been a handful of solid players to represent the Pistons who were picked up in free agency, so let's sort out the best of them with the top seven Pistons free agent signings in history.

7. Derrick Rose (2019)

Derrick Rose didn't exactly have an enormous impact during his time in Detroit, but it's indicative of the relative lack of great free agent signings the Pistons have made over their history that he's still on this list. And hey, even if he only played 65 games over less than two seasons with the team, it's always exciting to have a former MVP come to your team, especially when that team hasn't won a playoff game in over a decade. Rose joined after having bounced around the league for the previous couple of years and played 50 games in his first season in Detroit. Though he was a shadow of his former self by that stage, Rose still contributed a solid 18.1 points and 5.6 per games that year and provided a little bit of excitement for a supporter base long starved of it. He played just 15 games for the Pistons the next season, before being shipped off to the Knicks.

6. Lindsey Hunter (2003)

Lindsey Hunter wasn't a traditional free agent signing. He was actually traded by the Pistons after one season with them to the Celtics, but re-signed with them just a few days later and would remain there for the next four seasons, bringing his time in Detroit to a total of five years. The Pistons made the Eastern Conference Finals in each of those five years, winning in the first of them, and though Hunter was only a role player and primarily came off the bench, his hard-nosed defense was valuable on a team which was so renowned for it. Offensively he didn't do a whole lot, never averaging more than five points, but as a consistent member of a team which enjoyed as much success as the Pistons did throughout the 2000s, he is one of the better free agent signings the franchise has ever made.

5. Jerami Grant (2021)

After six seasons in the league, Jerami Grant clearly felt as though he was capable of more than the relatively minor role which he was given on a Nuggets team which, admittedly, was stacked with a fair bit of offensive talent. So, after averaging just 12.0 points in his solitary season in Denver – just slightly under the most he had ever averaged in his career to that point – he signed with a team on which he would be given a lot more responsibility. And early on in his career with the Pistons, Grant excelled. In his first season with the team he was long the nominal favorite for the Most Improved Player Award, and though a bunch of missed games late in the season meant he was ultimately overtaken by Julius Randle, he still finished second courtesy of averages of 22.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. The next season he averaged similar numbers but played just 47 games, and a relative lack of efficiency in his increased role made it clear that he was not a number one option who was going to take the Pistons very far. He was subsequently moved on to the Blazers after two seasons, but in that time he still had a big impact on the team.

4. Terry Mills (1992)

Terry Mills signed with the Pistons just as their Bad Boys era was coming to an end, and helped to usher in a new period for the team. In the first three of his five seasons with the team he played a fairly significant role, averaging at least 14.8 points per game to go with up to 8.4 boards, and over those years he gradually developed into one of the pioneering stretch big men. He actually improved his three-point percentage every season with the team, going from 27.8% in his first year in Detroit to 42.2% on more than five attempts per game in his last. Over his past two seasons in Detroit Mills' role diminished as the team began to climb its way back up the Western Conference standings, but he was still a solid player off the bench, averaging around ten points and five rebounds per game and providing a consistent outside threat for the team.

3. ML Carr (1976)

ML Carr was certainly among the more talented players the Pistons have ever picked up through free agency, and though he only played three seasons in Detroit he was an important player for them during that time. His best season with the team was his last, in which he played over 40 minutes per game and averaged 18.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists and a huge 2.5 steals – the latter of which was the most in the league. That season he was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team, but unfortunately that was the last Detroit would see of him. He moved to Boston the next year, where he played out the final six seasons of his career and enjoyed the success which was so notably lacking during his time with the Pistons, winning two championships with the Celtics.

2. Antonio McDyess (2004)

Antonio McDyess made a habit of being a quality free agent signing, also slotting in as one of the best Nuggets' free agents after he signed with them in 1999. But after a strong couple of years, a knee injury saw his tenure in Detroit end relatively ignominiously and over the seasons beginning in 2001-02, he played just 52 games across three different teams. That didn't deter the Pistons from signing him in 2004 though, and it turned out to be a great move. McDyess had to take on a smaller role behind Ben and Rasheed Wallace, but he was a willing bench player and still wound up playing over 20 minutes per game every season while averaging nearly 10 points per game and up to 9.8 rebounds in his final season with the team. Unfortunately he missed out on a championship with the team, but they did finish in the top two in the East each of his first four seasons with the team and enjoyed some deep playoff runs.

1. Chauncey Billups (2002)

Was there ever any doubt who would sit atop this list? Chauncey Billups signed with the Pistons in 2002, five years into an NBA career which was, to an extent, stagnating in Minnesota. Alongside the Wallaces and Rip Hamilton, Billups helped the Pistons to develop into consistent championship contenders. They made the Eastern Conference Finals in each of his six full seasons with the team, making it through to the finals in 2003-04 and 2004-05 and winning the championship in the first of those. Billups played a major role in that success. He averaged 16.2 points per game in his first season with the team, and that would be the lowest during his tenure with the team, while he also turned into an elite facilitator, jumping from 3.9 assists per game in his first year there to 8.6 in his fourth. Billups was a 3x All-Star, 1x All-NBA and 2x All-Defensive Team member with Detroit, but most significant was the role he played in the 2004 championship. He averaged 21 points and 5.2 assists during the NBA Finals while also demonstrating the elite defense for which he was so renowned, and he was crowned NBA Finals MVP for his efforts. Billups career in Detroit had a little bit of everything and ultimately saw his number one jersey retired by the team, solidifying his position as the best free agent signing in Pistons history.