Usually, when you’re a team like the Detroit Pistons (not that there are any others like this one), who are far out of the playoff hunt after losing 28 games in a row, you become trade deadline sellers.
But these Pistons aren’t your average team. Their 2-29 record has proven that.
Yet, if we need more evidence, look to The Athletic’s James Edwards III, who reports that the Pistons have “no plans” to trade Bojan Bogdanovic. Unless, of course, an offer emerges that is far too good to refuse, anyway.
The main reason that Detroit doesn’t want to trade the 34-year-old, who has just one partially guaranteed year left on his contract with the Pistons, is because the team “wants to be good” right now. They also noted a desire not to trade good players.
While he is aging and clearly doesn’t fit this team’s competitive timeline, the sharpshooter definitely qualifies as a good player.
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Bogdanovic led the Pistons in scoring a year ago when Cade Cunningham was dealing with his injury, and he’s back to ranking second this season too.
- Bojan Bogdanovic stats this season: 19.7 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 2.8 APG, 0.9 SPG, 45% FG, 37% 3PT
Meanwhile, he’s also on a reasonable contract for his production, being paid $20 million this season and has another $19 million cap hit next year. But any team that takes on his contract won’t be forced to pay it in the future if they don’t want to, as it’s only guaranteed for $2 million in 2024-25. This makes Bogdanovic a valuable trade chip, not only for his on-court play but also as an expiring contract. It’s no wonder the Pistons aren’t eager to move on before they have to, as the NBA trade deadline doesn’t pass until Feb. 8, 2024.