The Pistons didn’t make the splashy move this offseason, but the idea of one still hangs over the season. Detroit stayed put while the Eastern Conference around it loaded up, leaving John Collins as the biggest addition for last season’s No. 1 seed and reopening the question of whether the Pistons have enough to hold their place near the top.
That’s why Kyrie Irving enters the conversation. If Detroit decides it needs a real jolt during the season, the former All-Star point guard could be the cleanest way to change the team’s ceiling - if Dallas is open to moving him.
ESPN’s Vincent Goodwill said the Pistons are "fond" of Irving’s game.
"If Detroit has the stomach to go after it this year, they could go after someone like Kyrie Irving in Dallas," Goodwill reported. "Several staffers are fond of Irving’s game, shot creation and malleability next to ball-dominant stars like James and Luka Doncic."
That blend is what makes the fit easy to see. Cade Cunningham is already Detroit’s lead guard, so Irving wouldn’t need to walk in and run everything.
He showed in Dallas that he can adapt alongside another high-usage star. Even with Irving in the mix, Doncic still averaged nearly 10 assists per game, while Irving made himself a major factor without needing to be the sole engine.
For Detroit, that matters. Cunningham is the centerpiece, but the Pistons still have to prove they have the right second option if they want to make a real run in the East.
Their offense outside of Cunningham was the main issue when they dropped Game 7 of the East semifinals to the Cavaliers in the spring. Irving, assuming he’s healthy, would directly address that problem.
The question is whether Dallas would actually move him. It would make sense for the Mavericks to let Irving show he’s back after 19 months out following a torn ACL, but the source points to a possible midseason opening if the new regime led by Masai Ujiri and Dusty May settles into tempered expectations this season.
In Other News...
Pistons Are Betting On Daniss Jenkins To Fill A Real Roster Void
Detroits offseason left a familiar kind of opening on the roster: the Pistons never brought in a clear secondary ball creator, so the answer has to come from inside the building. That puts added pressure on internal development, with Ausar Thompson and Daniss Jenkins both expected to shoulder more of the ball-handling load as the team looks for someone who can steady possessions when the offense needs a different look.
Jenkins is the name worth watching because he already showed enough last season to earn a larger role, but the next step is about efficiency and trust. If he is going to become a real solution rather than just a useful stopgap, he has to cut down on turnovers and make the kind of cleaner decisions that let the Pistons lean on him in bigger moments. [Read more 🡒]
Pistons Have 3 Early Preseason Standouts Fans Need To Watch
Halfway through the preseason, the Pistons have split their first two games, and a few unexpected names have already started to push their way into the conversation. Detroits early exhibition work has offered a useful look at the rotation battle, with Ebuka Okorie, Paul Reed and Ron Holland II each turning in performances that stood out for different reasons as the team sorts through its options ahead of the next tune-up.
Okorie has given the coaching staff a spark, Reed has provided steady production around the paint, and Holland showed why he remains one of the more intriguing young pieces on the roster after leading the club in scoring in the opener. None of that settles anything yet, but it does give the Pistons something worth monitoring as the preseason rolls on and the lineup picture starts to come into focus. [Read more 🡒]
John Collins Gives Pistons Fans One Big Offensive Fit Concern
John Collins has arrived in Detroit with a very different offensive profile than the one Tobias Harris brought to the power forward spot, and that distinction matters for a team still sorting out how its half-court attack will function. Through two preseason games, Collins has looked like an off-ball scorer first, the kind of big who can finish plays, cut into space and stretch a defense, while the Pistons are banking on his size and 3-point range to give them some lineup flexibility.
The fit, though, depends on what comes from the rest of the roster. Collins is not being asked to drive the offense, and the early look suggests Detroit will need more shot creation from its guards and wings if his value is going to show up the way the front office hopes. If the ball handlers can consistently put defenses in rotation, Collins can help open the floor and even slide into small-ball center looks, but the margin for error shrinks if the team expects him to do much more than finish the possession. [Read more 🡒]