The Detroit Pistons have as close to a blank slate as they’ve had in years. As they seek to rebuild, Meyers Leonard may be a solid free agent big man target.
The Detroit Pistons are looking to rebuild after more than a decade of mostly ineptitude, and they’re not going to be able to do it all at once. The coming free agent market is a weak one overall, and although the Pistons have plenty of cap space relative to the rest of the NBA, they wouldn’t likely be able to woo a big-ticket free agent to Detroit anyway.
With that being the case, the Pistons will likely need to assemble a free agent haul that includes some cheap bargains, and one such bargain could come in the form of pending Miami Heat free agent Meyers Leonard.
For the majority of the regular season, Leonard started games at center for the Heat, allowing Bam Adebayo to play power forward for stretches. In February, however, he sprained his ankle and wasn’t ready to play before the season was suspended in March due to the still-ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
His rehab was disrupted by the pandemic, and thanks in part as well to a blockbuster trade that brought Andre Iguodala, Jae Crowder and Solomon Hill to Miami, his spot in the rotation was lost when the NBA season resumed. While he didn’t see much action in the NBA bubble and only played 31 minutes in the playoffs, he was a consummate professional and outstanding teammate, pumping his squad-mates up from the bench.
As we near the beginning of free agency, perhaps just a few weeks away now, Heat team president Pat Riley is noncommital about Leonard’s fate with the team.
"“But they [Leonard and Derrick Jones Jr.] know they’re in a good organization. They went to the Finals, and they got an opportunity. They are both free agents. We’re going to talk to them, obviously, like everybody else.”"
That’s not a great endorsement for a possible return, but Riley also had some kind things to say about Leonard in his recent conversation with the media:
"“I have not probably been around a player like him that is sincere with his enthusiasm for the game and his teammates and life. Plus, he’s a helluva player. He makes threes, big body, sets the best picks in the league, started for us all year, and things changed in the bubble.”"
Riley nailed several of Meyers Leonard’s best assets in this description. He’s a lethal 3-point shooter who hit 41.4 percent of his attempts last season and has shot 39.0 percent in his career, and he uses his size and strength well to set picks and roll to the basket.
As the roll man in a small sample of 36 possessions, he scored 1.306 points per possession (PPP) and 1.405 PPP off cuts. Especially if the Pistons pick up a solid playmaking point guard in free agency, Leonard could have a renaissance season on the offensive end.
He’s not a defensive stalwart, however, which may limit him in the matchups he can be played in, but for a 12-to-20 minute per game player, that’s not a disqualifying limitation by any means.
As shooting big men go up in value around the NBA, this might be the opportunity the Detroit Pistons need to get one of their own on the free agency market.