NBA Trade Grades: Bucks expand Pistons trade to scoop Nikola Mirotic
Detroit Pistons
After shipping out Bullock for rookie Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and a second round pick, it appeared the Pistons were prepared to take on projects and consider retooling the roster, even sitting only 1.5 games out of a playoff spot.
This move doesn’t fully confirm the theory that they’re tearing it down just yet, but it certainly reinforces it now that Detroit is trading another (somewhat) established rotation player for a younger, long-term project like Maker. Either that, or they really value shooters like Svi and Maker, and simply recognized Reggie Bullock was unlikely to stay in free agency this summer.
In either case, the Pistons just took another step away from the 2019 NBA Playoffs, which begs the question about what’s coming next. Wednesday’s reports indicated they were still interested in trading for Mike Conley, but these deals seem counterproductive to that kind of move.
The Grizzlies, meanwhile, continue to press in their efforts to move Marc Gasol (Charlotte in the lead) and Mike Conley (Detroit and Utah are deeply interested but are yet to meet Memphis' asking price)
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 6, 2019
Though Stanley Johnson is a more established player at this point, he also joins Thon Maker in the category of former top-10 picks who are looking more and more like busts. A change of scenery was needed for both, and as the season continues to slip away for a Detroit team that’s five games under .500, Maker should get the minutes he wasn’t going to find until playoff time based on Milwaukee’s matchups.
The days spent dreaming about Stanley Johnson becoming an elite two-way wing were probably wasted ones, with the fourth-year Arizona product averaging just 7.5 points and 3.6 rebounds in 20.0 minutes per game on .381/.282/.804 shooting splits. Two different head coaches tried to hand him the starting job on the wing, and both realized he wasn’t ready.
Johnson has lockdown defensive potential, but his offensive deficiencies were always going to prevent him from reaching his ceiling on a Pistons team desperate to return to the playoffs. Maker may only be averaging 4.7 points and 2.7 rebounds in 11.7 minutes per game over his 35 appearances this season, but Detroit’s goals seem to have changed.
Bearing that in mind, finding a backup for Andre Drummond (no offense, Zaza Pachulia) was a decent move, even if Johnson is the better player right now. Fit can mean everything for young players in the NBA, and avoiding Johnson’s upcoming restricted free agency is a plus.
Grade: C