PF targets

[Mr Peanut]

It's been said earlier in the thread, but we can't be considered a team serious about making noise in the East if we go into next season with Tobias as our lone rotation quality PF option. Ausar/Holland are good for spot minutes but shouldn't be relied upon to play significant time alongside Stew in our bench rotation (and Ausar will be our starting SF anyway). Fontecchio's production was not deserving of minutes last year and we can't just assume he will suddenly return to his 2023/24 form. It doesn't necessarily have to be Portis, but you do need another rotation quality PF on the roster. Injuries happen.

There was a similar discussion on this board last off-season following the draft/FA when Cade and Ivey were the only ball-handlers/reasonable PG options on the roster, and many of us were advocating for another PG because it was clear that Sasser wasn't ideal in this role and we were an injury away from trouble. Lo and behold Ivey got injured and we faced that situation - we were fortuitous that Schroder was available at the deadline, but ideally you don't want to rely on mid-season trades to fix your roster deficiencies and need to plan your depth in advance for these scenarios.

I'm all for it if it doesn't open up even bigger holes elsewhere by depriving the Pistons of Beasley or Schroder. But that's the trouble: anyone they add in that situation is going to be a 10th man (behind Cade, Ivey, Schroder, Beasley, Ausar, Holland, Tobias, Stewart, and Duren, assuming he's not replaced) who might average 10 MPG in a healthy rotation, and finding a solid player who'll be satisfied with being guaranteed so few minutes is likely to be tough. Do you have anyone in mind?

For what it's worth, I think this particular gap is substantially smaller than the gaping pre-Schroder hole where another reliable lead handler should've been.

Finally -- though I don't believe you're claiming otherwise -- I think that many here might be overestimating the degree to which the front office is prioritizing "making noise in the East" next season versus focusing sufficiently on development and building sustainably. This was a 43-win team last season in a weak conference, and it's got youth with substantial room for potential growth. Though I understand why folks want more wins, this roster is not in a win-now situation.

No particular backup PF in mind just yet. I think when our season finished I was pretty comfortable with us "running it back" and looking to re-sign Beasley/Schroder and largely keeping the roster as is, with some small moves around the edges. But as the playoffs have worn on and certain events have occurred (the Tatum injury, Indy's improbable run to the Finals, Bane trade to Orlando, Miami's possible acquisition of KD), I've pondered whether sitting on our hands (a) potentially leads to us being "left behind" as other teams in the East make significant improvements (b) results in us not taking advantage next season of a conference with no clear elite team, and the lost opportunity of potentially making our own run to the Finals like the Pacers have this year.

I'd be open to at least kicking the tyres on guys like JJJ and Trey Murphy III - acknowledging that it would take a sizeable haul for those teams to even consider trading them. And then if/when that fails moving on to more realistic options like Aldama and Naz Reid, with the strong likelihood that those end up as S&T scenarios with matching salary and we could still retain some cap space to at least keep Beasley.

I don't think any of the above are just "win now" moves as those guys all fit the timeline of our young core. But they do help us to keep up with other teams making moves and then take the next step into the upper echelon of the East. Call me sceptical that we will get there with just internal development alone.

So it's hard for me to say who we should chase as our backup PF as I think we should actually be trying to chase a starting one first and then working backwards from there.

[Crymson]

I don’t think Memphis wants to pay him that much. They are already trying to cut corners for a massive JJJ extension. They also have guys that can fill in that spot.

By dumping Konchar's $6.2m salary (well under 5% of the cap), the Grizzlies can open enough space to offer JJJ a max renegotiate-and-extend while also maintaining Aldama's cap hold and thus retaining the opportunity to re-sign him with Bird rights afterward. He is highly unlikely to cost much more than 10% of the cap, and they would be otherwise losing a valuable bench player for nothing.

They have nobody who can fill in that spot unless GG Jackson finds his way again (he had an injury-riddled and disappointing sophomore season), and they're thin enough on the wing after losing Bane that they'd probably want Jackson to play down to small forward anyway. If they want to continue competing, they've got nothing to gain by letting him go for nothing.

If the Pistons send over someone valuable who fits a position of need, maybe the equation changes, but the Pistons have nobody of the sort. There's always the possibility of a three-team deal, but that's where things get nebulous.

And again, the minutes just aren't here anyway unless one of Schroder or Beasley is let go. The loss of the former would mean the loss of this team's only qualified lead handler after Cade, and the loss of the latter would mean the loss of last season's send most important offensive player and a ton of both shooting and play options. In order for a S&T to go forward, Aldama needs to agree.

I've seen all sorts of fan talk about bringing on Aldama, but none of it addresses how bringing him here in a way that would be satisfactory both for the roster's effectiveness and Aldama himself.

[tmorgan]

The real question is… what are Memphis’ intentions? They probably just want to make JJJ happy, but they did just trade their 2nd best non-knucklehead player for mostly future draft picks. I’ll continue to assume they’re just retooling and plan to compete, but if not, Aldama possibilities exist.

[theBigLip]

I don’t think Memphis wants to pay him that much. They are already trying to cut corners for a massive JJJ extension. They also have guys that can fill in that spot.

By dumping Konchar's $6.2m salary (well under 5% of the cap), the Grizzlies can open enough space to offer JJJ a max renegotiate-and-extend while also maintaining Aldama's cap hold and thus retaining the opportunity to re-sign him with Bird rights afterward. He is highly unlikely to cost much more than 10% of the cap, and they would be otherwise losing a valuable bench player for nothing.

They have nobody who can fill in that spot unless GG Jackson finds his way again (he had an injury-riddled and disappointing sophomore season), and they're thin enough on the wing after losing Bane that they'd probably want Jackson to play down to small forward anyway. If they want to continue competing, they've got nothing to gain by letting him go for nothing.

If the Pistons send over someone valuable who fits a position of need, maybe the equation changes, but the Pistons have nobody of the sort. There's always the possibility of a three-team deal, but that's where things get nebulous.

And again, the minutes just aren't here anyway unless one of Schroder or Beasley is let go. The loss of the former would mean the loss of this team's only qualified lead handler after Cade, and the loss of the latter would mean the loss of last season's send most important offensive player and a ton of both shooting and play options. In order for a S&T to go forward, Aldama needs to agree.

I've seen all sorts of fan talk about bringing on Aldama, but none of it addresses how bringing him here in a way that would be satisfactory both for the roster's effectiveness and Aldama himself.

Good post. The “what” is not important if there isn’t a “how”.

[MotownMadness]

I don’t think Memphis wants to pay him that much. They are already trying to cut corners for a massive JJJ extension. They also have guys that can fill in that spot.

By dumping Konchar's $6.2m salary (well under 5% of the cap), the Grizzlies can open enough space to offer JJJ a max renegotiate-and-extend while also maintaining Aldama's cap hold and thus retaining the opportunity to re-sign him with Bird rights afterward. He is highly unlikely to cost much more than 10% of the cap, and they would be otherwise losing a valuable bench player for nothing.

They have nobody who can fill in that spot unless GG Jackson finds his way again (he had an injury-riddled and disappointing sophomore season), and they're thin enough on the wing after losing Bane that they'd probably want Jackson to play down to small forward anyway. If they want to continue competing, they've got nothing to gain by letting him go for nothing.

If the Pistons send over someone valuable who fits a position of need, maybe the equation changes, but the Pistons have nobody of the sort. There's always the possibility of a three-team deal, but that's where things get nebulous.

And again, the minutes just aren't here anyway unless one of Schroder or Beasley is let go. The loss of the former would mean the loss of this team's only qualified lead handler after Cade, and the loss of the latter would mean the loss of last season's send most important offensive player and a ton of both shooting and play options. In order for a S&T to go forward, Aldama needs to agree.

I've seen all sorts of fan talk about bringing on Aldama, but none of it addresses how bringing him here in a way that would be satisfactory both for the roster's effectiveness and Aldama himself.

Damn GG went to crap this year. I was thinking they would just play him in that role but he shoots under 40%.

[the_l_train]

I don’t think Memphis wants to pay him that much. They are already trying to cut corners for a massive JJJ extension. They also have guys that can fill in that spot.

By dumping Konchar's $6.2m salary (well under 5% of the cap), the Grizzlies can open enough space to offer JJJ a max renegotiate-and-extend while also maintaining Aldama's cap hold and thus retaining the opportunity to re-sign him with Bird rights afterward. He is highly unlikely to cost much more than 10% of the cap, and they would be otherwise losing a valuable bench player for nothing.

They have nobody who can fill in that spot unless GG Jackson finds his way again (he had an injury-riddled and disappointing sophomore season), and they're thin enough on the wing after losing Bane that they'd probably want Jackson to play down to small forward anyway. If they want to continue competing, they've got nothing to gain by letting him go for nothing.

If the Pistons send over someone valuable who fits a position of need, maybe the equation changes, but the Pistons have nobody of the sort. There's always the possibility of a three-team deal, but that's where things get nebulous.

And again, the minutes just aren't here anyway unless one of Schroder or Beasley is let go. The loss of the former would mean the loss of this team's only qualified lead handler after Cade, and the loss of the latter would mean the loss of last season's send most important offensive player and a ton of both shooting and play options. In order for a S&T to go forward, Aldama needs to agree.

I've seen all sorts of fan talk about bringing on Aldama, but none of it addresses how bringing him here in a way that would be satisfactory both for the roster's effectiveness and Aldama himself.

Damn GG went to crap this year. I was thinking they would just play him in that role but he shoots under 40%.

Yeah never really got it going post injury.

With his value lower, wish we were going after him instead of Aldama honestly.

[MotownMadness]

Watching Ku break down Santi stats and try to make a case for him as a future starter.

Stats per 75 possessions

W/O JA (1057 mins) 19.1ppg, 8.9 rebs, 4.4 ast, 60.1 TS%, 38.8% 3pt, 74% RIM%

[Crymson]

Watching Ku break down Santi stats and try to make a case for him as a future starter.

Stats per 75 possessions

W/O JA (1057 mins) 19.1ppg, 8.9 rebs, 4.4 ast, 60.1 TS%, 38.8% 3pt, 74% RIM%

It leaves aside that he's nearly without any utility as a creator, that he was extraordinarily inconsistent from three and literally alternated between good and bad from the perimeter with every successive month of the season, at that his offensive profile is unusual for a center but unimpressive for a power forward, and that he's average at the very best on defense. A player like that is unlikely to be a viable starter for a contender unless he's the fifth-best member of the starting lineup by a significant margin.

It also leaves aside that his non-Ja minutes were a potpourri of low-sample-size, statistical outlier lineups that featured either Pippen or Bane at point guard and were in the main either astronomically good or extremely bad.

Edit: his splits from three:

October: 39.3%
November: 28.8%
December: 50.0%
January: 30.4%
February: 43.5%
March: 24.5%
April: 43.3%

[SuperBad]

I think Tristan Del Silva though not great after one season, fits the type of forward we need, and is still 24. I wonder if we could flip Sasser for him, or even Fontechio, but I feel like for Orlando to do it they would want bring a guard back, pretty equal in draft position one year apart, Sasser had the better draft class.

[blog_pistons]

Could Yabusule be an option for us? Maybe with the bi anual (5,1M)

[Crymson]

Could Yabusule be an option for us? Maybe with the bi anual (5,1M)

If the Pistons run it back, he can get better money and more minutes elsewhere.

[DetroitSho]

Could Yabusule be an option for us? Maybe with the bi anual (5,1M)

I mean, I think the discussion of who we want to add as our 11th man should maybe happen further into the summer.

Sent from my SM-S918U using RealGM mobile app

[pistons4ever]

SAW a tik Tok video where trey Murphy wears a Detroit shirt....not a Pistons one but with Detroit on IT.....Love it

[the_l_train]

SAW a tik Tok video where trey Murphy wears a Detroit shirt....not a Pistons one but with Detroit on IT.....Love it

Please provide screenshot.

This is like when Reggie Jackson wearing the Detroit Bad Boys hat pre-trade.

[pistons4ever]

Its from April 2023.....nothing to do with roumors...how can i post a screenshot

[pistons4ever]

Its from April 2023.....nothing to do with roumors...how can i post a screenshot

[pistons4ever]

https://www.google.com/search?q=trey+murphy+iii+tiktok+street+interview&client=ms-android-xiaomi-terr2-rso2&sca_esv=1d16e2ca45199368&udm=2&biw=392&bih=735&sxsrf=AE3TifNNQ96Z2ybkKF5M5hvzpGDyWm-2XQ%3A1750432465609&ei=0XpVaOTwJP6sxc8PntPskAE&oq=trey+murphy+iii+tik+tok+street+interw&gs_lp=EhJtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1pbWciJXRyZXkgbXVycGh5IGlpaSB0aWsgdG9rIHN0cmVldCBpbnRlcncqAggAMgQQIRgKSLVhUNUNWJtZcAB4AJABAZgB4AGgAcgkqgEGNS4zMi4xuAEByAEA-AEBmAIYoAKhGcICBxAjGCcYyQLCAggQABiABBiiBMICBxAAGIAEGBPCAgUQABiABMICBBAAGB7CAgYQABgTGB7CAgQQIRgVwgIGECEYFRgKwgIEEB4YCpgDAIgGAZIHBjEuMjIuMaAHu2eyBwYxLjIyLjG4B6EZwgcIMC43LjE0LjPIB38&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-img#sv=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

[ducler]

I thought Murphy was more a SF like Ausar

[Crymson]

I thought Murphy was more a SF like Ausar

He's about three quarters of an inch taller. Same wingspan, looks to be about the same weight, less athletic.

[the_l_train]

I thought Murphy was more a SF like Ausar

He's about three quarters of an inch taller. Same wingspan, looks to be about the same weight, less athletic.

They would be interchangeable as our forwards. Great front court partners since Trey does everything Ausar can’t and vice versa.

Positions really don’t matter in this case.