Why the Pistons Dumped Enforcer Isaiah Stewart to Grizzlies for Second-Round Picks

The NBA draft has been quiet with trades on the player front. The Pistons made an interesting move, however, on the second night of the draft by sending big man Isaiah Stewart to the Grizzlies for three second-round picks.

The move, first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania, is a peculiar trade on the surface. Detroit moves on from its longest-tenured player who has been a critical part of the team’s identity. The Pistons took a step forward by winning 60 games and earning the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, so why would they move on for nothing but cap room and future second-round picks?

Offloading Stewart makes one thing clear: The rest of the offseason will be interesting for Detroit as the franchise aims to take the next step and make a run at the NBA Finals.

Why the Pistons dealt Isaiah Stewart to the Grizzlies

Stewart has two years left on his contract on which he will make $15 million next season with a $15 million team option on the final year of the deal in 2027–28. The Pistons could clear his salary by declining the team option a year from now, but president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon chooses to get the money off the books immediately for flexibility this offseason.

The Stewart move signals Detroit is serious about upgrading its roster and addressing needs now, also hinted at by trading up from No. 21 to No. 17 in the draft for Stanford guard Ebuka Okorie. Okorie brings shot creation the Pistons sorely needed around Cade Cunningham, but he may not be ready to fill such a big role on a contending team right out of the gate.

Per Spotrac’s Keith Smith, the Pistons can get to $21 million in cap space by renouncing their free agents, other than All-Star big man Jalen Duren who’s slated for a new contract. Smith says Detroit can get up over $30 million in cap room through other waivers and cost-cutting measures, too.

Although Stewart is one of the best rim protectors in the NBA and he does so off the bench, he fell out of the Pistons’ playoff rotation toward the end as he averaged just 9.3 minutes per game over the second-round series against the Cavaliers. Detroit has a bit of a logjam at center with Duren and Paul Reed—the latter had a great postseason and is on a more affordable contract. Plus, the Pistons have a floor-spacing problem with Duren and Ausar Thompson. Stewart is a decent shooter for his position, but he doesn’t shoot at the volume needed to solve the hole.

The most logical answer to improving the roster is adding a secondary scorer and creator next to Cunningham that helps minimize the inherent spacing issues with Duren and Thompson on the floor together. Shedding Stewart’s salary gives Detroit more flexibility to make a big addition to address its needs over the offseason. The Pistons had rumored interest in Tyler Herro, who was recently traded from the Heat to the Bucks in the Giannis Antetokounmpo deal. Miami’s Norman Powell, who will be a free agent that the Heat could have difficulty retaining, is an option, too.

Whether it’s another trade or a free-agent signing, sending out Stewart signals that Langdon is serious about addressing roster needs this offseason opposed to kicking the can down the road and hoping the team can compete as is. We’ll just have to wait and see the next move the Pistons make. A splash is only a matter of time for the young team on the rise.

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