The Detroit Pistons have completed one of the best turnarounds in NBA history. Detroit went from an NBA-worst 14-68 last season, with a 28-game losing streak in between, to 44-38 this season and the sixth seed in the East.
The Pistons are now battling with the Knicks in the first round and have all the tools to pull off an upset. No matter what happens with New York, this is a successful season for Detroit. They have a budding superstar in Cade Cunningham, stability at head coach with J.B. Bickerstaff, and a good young nucleus of Jaden Ivey, Ausar Thompson, and Jalen Duren.
One area that could use some improvement, though, is giving Cunningham a running mate, specifically in the backcourt. Cunningham thrived with high usage this season, leading to a career year across the board, but he would benefit from another creator next to him.
The Detroit Pistons should save cap space and assets for a potential run at Devin Booker
No matter how brash and confident owner Mat Ishbia sounds in his end-of-season press conferences, the Phoenix Suns are a disaster. They will be looking for their fourth head coach in four years, have no assets to make the team better unless they trade Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal is taking up cap space and has been awful in a Suns uniform, and there are no young players waiting to break out.
Yes, Booker has said he wants to finish his career as a Sun, but what if home came calling? Booker is a Michigan native. He grew up rooting for the Lions and Pistons. Detroit is on the upswing, whereas Phoenix isn’t (imagine saying that a year ago). Cunningham is still growing into the best version of himself, and having a playmaker like that next to him has to be enticing to Booker.
Booker has also shown that he can play off-ball, where he is mostly at his best. He has grown as a playmaker, but he is more of a secondary one than a primary one. Cunningham is a primary playmaker, and his gravity will give Booker a lot of easy looks.
A trade may not happen this offseason, as the Suns want to try and make things work with a retooled roster, and the Pistons likely want to be patient. However, keep a close eye on what Detroit does this offseason. They won’t have major cap space, but if they make moves around the margins and hold onto their draft assets, it could signal they are looking at a Booker mega trade.
Booker is preaching patience, and he and Ishbia are reportedly aligned. What we do know, though, is that a superstar’s patience should never be taken advantage of. If Phoenix doesn’t start showing results soon, Detroit needs to be ready to pounce.