For a team to be successful in the NBA, its executives should be willing to pay a hefty extra. The Detroit Pistons know this for a fact and are willing to do so for a franchise-altering player.
Per Rod Beard of the Detroit News, Pistons senior adviser Ed Stefanski said that the team is willing to pay the luxury tax if they can get a player who can propel the franchise to the Top 4 of the Eastern Conference.
#Pistons Stefanski on potential for going into the luxury tax: "If we can get a guy who moves the needle to us being top 4 in the East, Tom (Gores) will pay the tax."
— Rod Beard (@detnewsRodBeard) June 17, 2019
Under new head coach Dwane Casey, the Pistons finished eighth in the regular season. Come playoff time, they were swept by the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.
It was just their second playoff appearance in the last 10 years. Though it's a tangible sign of progress, the Pistons — given their willingness to spend more — want to be contenders right away.
In the past, teams who have won it all did not mind paying the luxury tax. They know that it's simply foolish to sign a bunch of minimum deals or even shortchange players and expect them to perform well. Per Frank Urbina of Hoops Hype, teams like the Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, among others, have paid the luxury tax. And all these teams have achieved a good amount of success in the past few years.
Perhaps the bigger question is: can they lure that one player who can turn them into contenders?
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