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Detroit Pistons 2021 offseason cheat sheet: How they can improve in Troy Weaver's 2nd year

Marlowe Alter, Detroit Free Press
·6 min read

Another season of Detroit Pistons basketball, another year without a playoff win. That's 13 consecutive seasons, but who's counting?

And yet, it was a good year for the Pistons, despite the second-worst record in the league in 2020-21. They finally got off the treadmill of mediocrity, and chose the rebuild restoring path. The franchise is surfacing again, and there is hope for the future in a city where all four major professional teams are among the worst in their respective leagues.

It'll be the second year under the direction of general manager Troy Weaver, and the team has a nice base of talent, starting with all four 2020 draft picks.

JEFF SEIDEL: Troy Weaver showing Lions, Tigers how to rebuild a team the right way

Forward Jerami Grant said in late April he expects the Pistons to do "something big next year." In order to do that, they'll need more talent added to the pipeline to compete in the competitive Eastern Conference.

Here's a cheat sheet to a crucial offseason for the Pistons, as they continue their long march back to relevancy in the East.

*Salary cap based on NBA projections

WINDSOR: Pistons need some luck; here's hoping it's in the NBA draft, instead of lottery

ANALYSIS: Pistons 2021 offseason checklist: What to watch for this summer

2021 NBA draft

Dates to know: NBA draft lottery is June 22 (ESPN); NBA draft is July 29 (ESPN).

Pistons 2021 draft picks: First round: Guaranteed to be no worse than sixth. Second round: No. 37 (from Toronto; Bruce Brown three-team trade with Brooklyn), No. 42 (from Charlotte; Derrick Rose trade with New York), No. 51 (from L.A. Lakers; Delon Wright trade with Sacramento). Pistons owe their second-rounder to New York at No. 32 overall (from Khyri Thomas draft pick in 2018).

Lottery odds: Own No. 2 slot heading into June 22 lottery. They have a 52.1% chance to get in the top 4. Here are their odds to land at each pick.

No. 1: 14%

No. 2: 13.4%

No. 3: 12.7%

No. 4: 11.9%

No. 5: 27.8%

No. 6: 20.1%

Top 5 draft prospects: PG/SF Cade Cunningham (Oklahoma State); C Evan Mobley (USC); G Jalen Suggs (Gonzaga); SG Jalen Green (G League); F Jonathan Kuminga (G League). Read about how each player would fit with Pistons in the second half of this article.

ANALYSIS: Why Timberwolves show the Pistons draft lottery luck isn't everything

Free agency, salary cap outlook

Re-signing athletic guard Hamidou Diallo might be among the Pistons' biggest priorities this summer. Acquired from Oklahoma City in March, he'll be a restricted free agent.
Re-signing athletic guard Hamidou Diallo might be among the Pistons' biggest priorities this summer. Acquired from Oklahoma City in March, he'll be a restricted free agent.

Dates to know: Free agency negotiation period opens Aug. 2 at 6 p.m.; free agents can begin signing Aug. 6 at 12:01 p.m.

Pistons free agents: SG Wayne Ellington, PG Dennis Smith Jr. (restricted, $7.7 million qualifying offer); SG Hamidou Diallo (restricted, $2.1 million qualifying offer), SG Frank Jackson (restricted, $1.8 million qualifying offer), PG Saben Lee (restricted, two-way contract).

PAYDAY: Hamidou Diallo making case for bigger Pistons role — or to get paid in free agency

Pistons team options: PG Cory Joseph ($2.4 million guaranteed of $12.6 million), SG Rodney McGruder ($5 million non-guaranteed); PF Tyler Cook ($1.7 million non-guaranteed).

Pistons 2022 expiring contracts: PF Blake Griffin ($29.8 million from buyout), F Josh Jackson ($5 million), C Jahlil Okafor ($2.1 million).

NBA salary cap, luxury tax: The salary cap is expected to be $112.4 million, an increase of over $3 million from 2020-21. The luxury tax threshold will be around $136.6 million.

Pistons 2021-22 salary cap situation: $88.2 million in guaranteed salary with nine players under contract; excluding draft picks. (If they stay at No. 2, that pick is slotted for about $9 million in Year 1.)

Waived players affecting salary cap: Dewayne Dedmon (stretched) counting $2.9 million against cap for four more seasons; Zhaire Smith (stretched) counting $1.1 million against cap for two more seasons; Blake Griffin (buyout) counting $29.8 million against cap for one year.

LESSONS: What GM Troy Weaver can learn from Pistons' failed Blake Griffin trade

Mid-level exception (Non-taxpayer): They should operate as an over-the-cap team, after re-signing a few of their own free agents, possibly a mid-tier free agent and including their top-6 lottery pick, so they'll have the larger standard mid-level worth about $9.5 million in 2021-22 season, according to HoopsRumors.com. It may be split among multiple players. Can offer up to a 4-year, $41 million deal.

Bi-annual exception: Pistons used it in 2019-20 on Markieff Morris, so it was unavailable to them in 2020-21. Worth $3.7 million in 2021-22, according to HoopsRumors.com. Can offer a 2-year, $7.6 million deal.

Trade exception: $2 million, expiring around midseason, exact date based on start of 2021-22. From Derrick Rose trade with New York.

Needs and fits

Entering the offseason, the Pistons' biggest need appears to be shooting. They were 21st in the NBA in attempts per game (32.9) in 2020-21, and 22nd in 3-point percentage (35.1%). Here are three free agents who could address that need, and potentially be had with part or all of the mid-level exception.

Doug McDermott: 13.6 points per game, 53.2% overall shooting, 38.8% from 3 in 2020-21.

Bryn Forbes (player option): 10 PPG, 45.2% from 3.

Kent Bazemore: 7.2 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 40.8% from 3.

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Contracts to watch

Pistons point guard Cory Joseph has a team-friendly contract because only a small portion of his salary is guaranteed next season.
Pistons point guard Cory Joseph has a team-friendly contract because only a small portion of his salary is guaranteed next season.

Joseph and McGruder both have contracts with non-guarantees, meaning the Pistons could use them to salary match and the receiving team could waive them with little or no money tied up. Joseph is only guaranteed for $2.4 million, but for salary matching purposes, his contract counts for $12.6 million; McGruder has no money guaranteed on his $5 million deal. The guarantee date for Joseph's contract is Aug. 1, per BasketballInsiders.com; McGruder's is Aug. 16.

MORE: Pistons' Delon Wright for Cory Joseph swap opens summer flexibility

Future draft picks

Outgoing: 2022 first-rounder to Houston (protected 1-16 in 2022, 1-18 in 2023-24, 1-13 in 2025, 1-11 in 2026 and 1-9 in 2027 — if not conveyed by 2027, Detroit instead sends its 2027 second-round pick to Houston); 2022 second-rounder to Sacramento, Chicago or Washington; 2023 second-rounder to New York; 2024 second-rounder to L.A. Clippers; 2025 second-rounder to L.A. Clippers; 2026 second-rounder to L.A. Clippers.

HELP: Grading Detroit's rebuilds, from promising to failing: Lions, Pistons, Red Wings, Tigers

Incoming: 2023 second-rounder from Cleveland or Golden State (less favorable); 2024 second-rounder from Sacramento.

Free Press sports writer Omari Sankofa II contributed to this report.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons 2021 offseason cheat sheet: How they can improve