The 2023-24 season has not been very kind to the Detroit Pistons. They own the league's worst record at 4-39 and also set a record for the longest losing streak in a single season in NBA history with 28 consecutive losses that spanned from October 30th to December 30th. That stretch alone dictated the Pistons' fate as sellers at the NBA trade deadline, with any hope of contention for a play-in spot out of the window.
The Pistons should be selling before the NBA trade deadline comes and goes in a couple of weeks, but their most recent move has gone the other way. They traded Marvin Bagley, Isaiah Livers, and a couple of second-round picks to the Washington Wizards for Mike Muscala and Danilo Gallinari.
That move was to bring in a couple of more veterans to help their young roster as well as clear some of the glut out of their frontcourt. Adding more veterans to help guide their young players isn't a bad idea, but it's a better idea to dish some of the veterans remaining on their roster for more draft capital. Two current Pistons stand out as marquee trade chips between now and the NBA trade deadline.
Bojan Bogdanovic, Forward
If it feels like Bojan Bogdanovic has been in trade rumors forever, that's because he has for the last couple of seasons. This year is no exception.
Bogdanovic's play has remained steady this season despite the Pistons' futility. He's still averaging 19.5 points per game on a solid 46.5% shooting from the field and 41.1% from three despite the team being deprived of top-notch playmaking outside of Cade Cunningham.
Bogdanovic has never been the most stout defender out there, but he tries. Anybody who is 6-foot-7, 226 pounds and tries on that end of the floor is going to win their fair share of battles.
That's a long way of saying that Bojan Bogdanovic is still a quality basketball player and can help just about any team with aspirations of winning a championship.
It could be tricky for some of those teams to meet Bogdanovic's $20 million cap hit, but that also isn't an impossible number to match to make the money work. Maybe a team like the Oklahoma City Thunder can throw Davis Bertans and a couple of picks Detroit's way to make a deal happen.
Regardless, Bogdanovic should have a robust market, and now seems like a great time for the Pistons to capitalize on that demand.
Alec Burks, Guard
One Piston who is having a low-key solid season is Alec Burks. Burks hasn't shot it well from the field this season (39.2%), but he is shooting a robust 40% from three and 90% from the free-throw line. At 6-foot-5, 214 pounds, he is big and nimble enough to defend multiple positions.
Burks has already been the subject of trade rumors and those rumors should continue to reverberate.
One team that would make a lot of sense to trade is the New York Knicks, who have already been mentioned as a potential landing spot for Burks. New York could use another shot-creator off the bench after they traded Immanuel Quickley to Toronto as part of the trade that brought back OG Anunoby.
It shouldn't be that hard to construct the bones of a Pistons trade for Alec Burks. He is making roughly $10.5 million this season. That's a low enough number for most teams to be able to make the money work. He is also on an expiring contract.
It would behoove the Pistons to move him now before he hits free agency, especially after shoveling out a couple of second-round picks earlier this month. A trade could also free up more playing time for rookie fifth-overall pick Ausar Thompson. Trading Burks before the trade deadline makes a lot of sense for the Pistons.
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