The dust is still settling on the huge Giannis Antetokounmpo trade that saw the Milwaukee Bucks former MVP take his talents to South Beach for the Miami Heat. It was a long-rumored deal that, in several permutations, also included the Detroit Pistons as a potential third team, presuming the Bucks were looking to offload veteran Tyler Herro for additional young assets.
That is very much still on the table as the Giannis trade won’t be made official for another two weeks, and that leaves plenty of time for this wheel to sprout new appendages involving new teams. However, the deal might have also outlined a Plan B (or Plan C?) for Detroit if the price for Herro is too rich for them.
NBA writer Yossi Gozlan writes on his Third Apron Substack that the Pistons are adding Powell to their list of potential targets as they seek to add some scoring and ball handling to their roster.
“Sources say that the Pistons indeed intend to add Powell, who is coming off his first All-Star season, to their list of potential offseason targets,” Gozlan writes.
The thinking seems to be that with the Giannis trade, the Heat just priced themselves out of the Norm Powell business. That sentiment was backed up by NBA reporter Brian Windhorst, who said on Get Up Live on Tuesday morning. “They’re gonna lose their All-Star, Norman Powell. Unless he takes a crazy discount. He’s gonna be gone.”
The cap math gets difficult for the Heat because the Heat are hard-capped with several roster spots to fill and are unlikely to come to terms with Powell when he has other legit suitors with deep playoff aspirations.
Where Powell ranks on Detroit’s target list, which reportedly includes Tyler Herro, Trey Murphy, Isaiah Joe, and even Zach LaVine remains to be seen.
Detroit Pistons cap situation
The Detroit Pistons can create around $28 million in cap space to chase an unrestricted free agent, but it would force the Pistons to make some painful moves. That includes renouncing its rights to Tobias Harris, who the team wants to retain, and waiving Duncan Robinson and eating only the little amount of guaranteed money left on his deal. That would technically open the space needed to create the room needed to give Powell a compelling offer.
Alternatively, the Pistons could explore some sign-and-trade options where they send out some depth and a bit less money to help Miami fill out its roster while adding a starter-level talent of their own.
The Pistons seem willing to part with players like Caris LeVert, Marcus Sasser, Isaiah Stewart, and a truckload of seconds in order to round out its roster with some more reliable offensive talent. Could some of those pieces help grease the skids in a potential sign-and-trade involving Powell?
Who do you think makes the most sense as a target, considering talent, measureables, age, and cost — Tyler Herro or Norm Powell?
