- Cade Cunningham‘s shin injury has dealt the Pistons a major setback through the one-third mark this season but there are silver linings, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com writes. Killian Hayes has begun to blossom in his third NBA season and rookies Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren have shown major talent while jumping right into the rotation.
The Mavericks and Pistons recently “touched base” on trade talks in which Nerlens Noel was among the players discussed, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv. Begley adds that Noel has drawn interest from multiple playoff teams in need of rim protection.
Noel was traded from the Knicks to the Pistons over the summer in a salary-dump deal and isn’t part of Detroit’s regular rotation in a crowded frontcourt that features Isaiah Stewart, Marvin Bagley III, and rookie Jalen Duren. Noel has appeared in just six contests this season and hasn’t played more than six minutes in a game since November 4.
Still, the former lottery pick is only 28 years old and has some solid seasons on his NBA résumé, including his first year in New York in 2020/21. He averaged 5.1 PPG, 6.4 RPG, and 2.2 BPG in 64 appearances (24.2 MPG) that season, providing energy and athleticism in the middle.
Since Noel has a team option for 2023/24, he’s essentially on an expiring contract, but his $9.24MM cap hit is sizable enough not to make him a positive asset. So if the Pistons hope to move him for anything of value, they may have to either attach another trade chip or take back some unwanted multiyear salary.
Dallas would be an interesting trade partner for the Pistons given that offseason signee JaVale McGee hasn’t gotten off to a great start as a Maverick, falling first out of the starting lineup, then out of the rotation entirely.
A report earlier this week suggested that the Mavs could explore the trade market for another center, with a preference for a defensive specialist who is a contrast to Christian Wood — Noel fits that bill. Plus, even though he earns more this season than McGee ($5.46MM), Noel’s expiring deal looks more team-friendly than McGee’s three-year contract, which will pay him $5.73MM next season with a $6MM+ player option for 2024/25 (he’ll turn 37 that season).
Noel had a previous stint in Dallas that began in February 2017 when he arrived in a trade from Philadelphia. That experience may have left a sour taste in his mouth, given that he turned down a $70MM offer from the Mavs as a free agent that summer, played on a $4.1MM qualifying offer during the 2017/18 season, and left Dallas in 2018 to sign a minimum-salary contract with Oklahoma City. Noel later filed a lawsuit against Rich Paul for the advice he received during that 2017 offseason; the case has since been redirected to NBA arbitration.
The Pistons have started big men Isaiah Stewart and Marvin Bagley III alongside one another in the frontcourt in each of their last five games, with longtime starting forward Saddiq Bey moving to the bench as Bojan Bogdanovic holds onto his starting spot.
James L. Edwards III of The Athletic believes the two-big lineup will be one that the Pistons use for the foreseeable future, since it fits how they want to play — “bigger and more physically imposing,” as Edwards puts it. Detroit also envisions Stewart and rookie Jalen Duren as its long-term frontcourt of the future, Edwards adds, so it makes sense to get Stewart accustomed to playing next to another big man.
Bey had started 142 consecutive games for the Pistons before being demoted to the bench in the 15th game of the 2022/23 season. The third-year forward’s numbers have dipped this season – his 28.8% mark on three-pointers is by far a career worst – but he’s accepting his new role in stride, as Mike Curtis of The Detroit News (subscriber link) writes.
“It’s an opportunity to try and help the team win as much as possible,” Bey said. “Whatever role the team needs me to do, I’m ready to do. It’s me walking the walk. This is the role (head coach Dwane Casey) needs me to do to help us win and I’m just going to try and contribute as much as I can and just play hard.”
For what it’s worth, Casey said that he still looks at Bey “as a starter” even though he’s currently asking him to be the primary scoring option for that second unit.
Here’s more from around the Central:
- It’s still unclear whether or not Myles Turner has a future in Indiana beyond this season, but the Pacers center seems to be enjoying himself and is more consistently engaged than he ever has been in the past, according to Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star (subscription required). “I’m having a great time,” Turner said. “My main focus is to come out and help this team win. I can sit and talk (about my future) in general all I want to, but that’s not what’s going to help this team win.”
- In a separate article for The Indianapolis Star, Dopirak writes that Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard “desperately wanted” Andrew Nembhard in the 2022 draft despite his modest college numbers. Nembhard is making Pritchard look good so far, enjoying the best game of his young career on Monday when he racked up 31 points, 13 assists, and eight rebounds in a road win at Golden State. Head coach Rick Carlisle recently expressed a belief that the No. 31 pick will end up being a top-12 or top-15 player in this year’s draft class.
- Spencer Davies of BasketballNews.com makes the case that center Jarrett Allen is the most crucial part of the Cavaliers‘ success, breaking down his impact on both ends of the court.
Top pick Paolo Banchero has missed some games due to an ankle sprain but the top pick of the draft still leads ESPN Jonathan Givony’s rookie power rankings (Insider link). The Magic forward was averaging 21.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game entering the week. The sixth overall pick, the Pacers’ Bennedict Mathurin, sits in second place while averaging 18.5 points off the bench. Pistons guard Jaden Ivey (15.9 points, 4.3 assists) holds the No. 3 spot.
We have more NBA-related info:
- Celtics forward Jayson Tatum tops USA Today/Gannett staffers’ early-season Most Valuable Player ratings, propelled by Boston’s strong start. Tatum entered Monday’s action ranked fifth in the league in scoring (30.7). Former MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo holds the runner-up spot with the Suns’ Devin Booker in third place.
- Negotiating the Collective Bargaining Agreement for the first time, National Basketball Players Association executive director Tamika Tremaglio is leaning on players agents to determine the best course of action, Liz Mullen of the Sports Business Journal reports. Tremaglio has reached out to all NBPA-certified agents for advice and is having frequent discussions with the most influential agents. One likely point of contention is the NBA’s desire for a stronger upper limit on player salaries, which some agents view as a hard cap.
- Traveling calls are piling up, culminating in 13 such turnovers during the Cavaliers–Knicks game on Sunday. Carrying and palming calls are also on the rise. “My job as the head coach — for lack of a better description — of our team, is to make sure that the rule book is being enforced,” the NBA’s senior vice president of referee development and training, Monty McCutchen, said to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps. “And when we emphasize traveling and sequencing and it picks up another part of footwork, then it needs to be adjudicated properly.”
- Pistons head coach Dwane Casey recently provided some details on Isaiah Livers‘ right shoulder sprain, which the second-year forward sustained last week when Mavs center Dwight Powell committed an offensive foul, according to Mike Curtis of The Detroit News (subscriber link). “They cracked him on a screen. He went shoulder-first. …That was something that was unfortunate because Isaiah has quietly become one of our better on-ball defenders. We’ll miss him but now it’s an opportunity for somebody else to step up and take that role,” Casey said. There’s no timetable for Livers’ return.
- Pistons center Jalen Duren has exceeded external expectations for his rookie season, but not his own, per Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. “I expect greatness out of myself,” Duren said. “I work hard every day. For me, it’s all about winning. If me on the floor is going to help us win, then cool. And if me on the bench is going to help us win, then that’s cool, too.” The 13th overall pick of June’s draft, Duren is averaging 6.5 PPG, 6.7 RPG and 0.9 BPG through 22 games (21.6 MPG).
- Pistons forward Isaiah Livers will miss some time with a shoulder sprain he suffered in Thursday’s game, according to James L. Edwards of The Athletic (Twitter link). Coach Dwane Casey didn’t provide a projected timetable for Livers, who has started the team’s last seven games.
- As the No. 7 overall pick in the 2020 draft, Killian Hayes faced high expectations entering the NBA. The Pistons guard has mostly struggled offensively during his first three seasons, but he’s played better of late starting in place of the injured Cade Cunningham, and Detroit’s patience with Hayes appears to be paying off, according to James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Since he entered the starting lineup, Hayes is averaging 11.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.4 steals on .442/.400/.889 shooting in 11 games (29.5 MPG).
Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart will likely return on Tuesday night after missing the last seven games with a sprained toe, tweets James L. Edwards of The Athletic. He’s currently listed as questionable.
Stewart was the starting center for Detroit’s first 15 games and is averaging 12.0 points and 9.3 rebounds. His return is expected to give the Pistons more flexibility to experiment with two big men on the court, since Stewart has shown the ability to stretch the floor a little.
The Pistons were relieved that Bojan Bogdanovic‘s injuries weren’t more severe, according to Mike Curtis of the Detroit News. Bogdanovic was injured late in Friday’s game against Phoenix when Torrey Craig stepped on his ankle.
Bogdanovic, who leads the Pistons in scoring, missed Sunday’s game against Cleveland due to right knee and ankle soreness.
“It was a torque action where he stepped on his ankle and it went to his knee,” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. “… It’s not as bad as it seemed, but it’s still sore and still hurting. Bogey’s a tough kid, a tough guy. He’ll fight through it and come back from it.”
We have more on the Pistons:
- Casey says there’s no update on Cade Cunningham, who is out indefinitely due to a shin injury that could require season-ending surgery, Curtis relays in the same story. “I have no clue,” Casey said of the Pistons star guard. “It’s up to the medical group and to Cade. Whatever’s best for his health, I’m all for it. One way or the other, whatever he decides to do, I’m 100% behind him, his family, his people,”
- While many NBA observers believe the Pistons may look to trade Alec Burks for an asset, there’s a good chance they’ll retain the second-unit guard, James Edwards III of The Athletic writes. The Pistons, who hold a $10.49MM option on Burks’ contract next season, want to become a legitimate playoff contender next season and they’d have a tough time finding another productive player like Burks at that price tag.
- Forward Saddiq Bey was the only Pistons opening-night starter to answer the bell against Cleveland. Bey, who missed the previous four games with a right ankle sprain, scored 15 points. “I thought he came back with a focus,” Casey said, according to Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press. “I was concerned about his game conditioning, but he came in and gave us what he had. I thought he was sharp in the first part of the game, and as the game went on he wore down a little bit.”
- Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic appears to have avoided a serious injury after a collision on Friday (Twitter video link from Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic). Bogdanovic is listed as questionable for Sunday with knee and ankle soreness, tweets Keith Langlois of NBA.com