Detroit Pistons: D.J. Augustin could be a bargain in free agency

The Detroit Pistons will need to restock their backcourt through NBA free agency. Point guard D.J. Augustin could be just the right fit.

As the Detroit Pistons look to rebuild, they’re going to have plenty of cap space at their disposal in the 2020-21 offseason. As NBA free agency kicks off, however, it’ll be important for them to find bargains where they exist. Just because you’ve got money to spend doesn’t mean you need to blow it, and finding value on deals that can be flipped in trades later is essential.

One such area where value can be found may be in the form of veteran backup point guards. It doesn’t seem like the most important piece of the puzzle, at least not until you need one. For the Pistons, pending Orlando Magic free agent point guard D.J. Augustin is a player they should keep an eye on.

Augustin is a former Piston himself, and he had a fantastic run at the end of his brief time in Detroit before he was traded to the OKC Thunder in the deal that brought Reggie Jackson to the Motor City. He was signed as a free agent in 2014 and backed up Brandon Jennings, but when Jennings tore his Achilles, he took over as starter.

In the 10 games between Jennings’ injury and the trade deadline, Augustin lit the world on fire. He averaged 20.3 points and 8.2 assists per game with shooting splits of .468/.432/.963 as the lead scorer and playmaker on the roster, and that explosive showing does make one wonder how the last few years would have played out in Detroit if Stan Van Gundy had trusted him with the reins rather than trading for Reggie Jackson.

In retrospect, things probably would have played out quite a bit better for the Pistons.

Be that as it may, Augustin has bounced around the NBA over the next couple of years between OKC and the Denver Nuggets, and he found a home for himself the last four seasons with the Orlando Magic. He started at point guard in all 81 games he played in 2018-19 and he started to begin the 2019-20 season before Markelle Fultz took over the job.

In his four years with the Magic, he played 291 games (the most he’s played with any team), starting 150 of them. He averaged 10.1 points and 4.1 assists in an average of 24.0 minutes per game, and he had stellar shooting splits of .429/.388/.861.

This past season was a down shooting year for him, which isn’t a great situation going into free agency. His shooting splits were .399/.348/.890, but he thrived both in the pick and roll and off the ball. According to Synergy, he scored .939 points per possession (PPP) as the pick and roll ball-handler, placing him in the 73rd percentile.

He was in the 81st percentile on spot-up opportunities scoring 1.14 PPP, and he scored a sparkling 1.388 PPP on catch-and-shoot opportunities, good enough for the 96th percentile. His ability to play on or off the ball could make him a solid fit alongside any of Derrick Rose, Luke Kennard or Bruce Brown, although his defense leaves plenty to be desired.

However, you could do a whole lot worse for a point guard entering his age-33 season, and he can be a more-than-adequate backup who could spot-start in a pinch.

The Detroit Pistons should absolutely put in a call to D.J. Augustin when NBA free agency begins.