NBA salary cap exercise: What player would every team amnesty?

Detroit Pistons – Blake Griffin

As the cap sheet for the Detroit Pistons continues to clean up naturally there is one big elephant in the room. Blake Griffin was brought in by the previous regime to be the face of the franchise. He was traded to Detroit during the first season of a max contract. Last season, his first full season with Detroit he helped return the Pistons to the playoffs and named an All-Star and to the All-NBA team.

This year the wheels fell off and things have turned to the worst-case scenario for the Pistons. Many said they should have traded Griffin when he was healthy and looked like one of the best players in the league. For a small-market franchise thirsting for a playoff berth to hopefully fill their new arena that was not tenable.

Multiple injuries that seem to be a problem that will plague Griffin for the rest of his career have proven costly. A cap hit of $36.6 million next season followed by a player option for $38.9 million is far too steep for many teams to stomach for a player so often injured. Before last season Griffin had played 61 games or less for three straight seasons. This year he played in 18. He went from averaging 24.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.4 assists while shooting 36.2 from distance to 15.5 points 4.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists on 24.3 percent shooting from long range.

The Pistons are finally getting closer to clean cap slate this summer. After moving on from longtime cornerstones Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson the Pistons will only have $71.9 million committed in salary next season. Over half of that is committed to Griffin. Being able to amnesty the former All-Star would be a franchise-altering move.

Yes, this summer’s free agent market is limited but it goes beyond that. First, the Pistons will be hoping to re-sign Christian Wood after watching him blossom in the Motor City now that he has been given an opportunity. They should then be looking to take chances on young players and absorbing bad contracts to take on assets. This is the start of a rebuild with a new direction. The more space the better.