There are lots of articles floating around right now about who the Pistons should use their cap space to sign. There are plenty of great players on the market, but I worry about overpaying a mid-level player stunting the rebuild. The Pistons have done this a few times.
In 2009, the Pistons traded Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson and his expiring contract in what turned out to be a disaster. The Pistons used the cap space from the expiring contract to overpay Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva. They both seemed to have legitimate claims to receiving larger contracts for expanded roles. Villanueva was coming off a career year and Gordon had established himself as a top 6th man in the NBA. Both flopped for the Pistons. In fact, in an attempt to correct the mistake, the Pistons traded Gordon along with a first-round pick for Corey Maggette.
In 2013, the Pistons signed Josh Smith and acquired Brandon Jennings through a sign-and-trade (which sent Khris Middleton to Milwaukee). We all know what a mistake the Josh Smith signing was. It was not too long ago his stretch provision finally ended. Brandon Jennings, while not the best acquisition, at least has the "what-if he didn't get hurt" argument to soften the blow. The point is that, once again, the Pistons spent money on what seemed like good ballplayers that ended up stunting the rebuild.
Then, in 2016-2018, the Pistons resigned Andre Drummond and traded for Blake Griffin. The Pistons had roughly $55 million attributed to two players that couldn't get a playoff win. The point here is not about the talent of the players or how their careers turned out after receiving large contracts. The point I'm making is about how the Pistons have turned out after their acquisition.
Multiple attempts at a rebuild have been deterred and delayed due to poor decision-making. All of these choices led to three first-round sweeps since 2009 (2009, 2016, 2019). So, before everyone decides that the Pistons should use their cap space on some player, let's consider the ramifications of overspending for a player. I've heard lots of names thrown around, but look at what the Pistons have been building. I think we should be cautious not to derail the most promising rebuild in two decades.
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