Pistons Hit Obstacle With Landing Austin Reaves, but There Are Other Options

The Detroit Pistons’ hopes of landing Austin Reaves this offseason have hit a roadblock.

Unquestionably one of the hottest free agents this summer, Reaves averaged 23.3 points per game for the Los Angeles Lakers last season, and the league has seen tremendous upside to his game, his attitude, and his impact this season, despite minor injury setbacks.

It was reported that the Pistons were interested in tabbing Reaves, as they search for another scorer to matchup with superstar Cade Cunningham, with The Athletic stating that the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks were also in the running.

However, veteran NBA writer Marc Stein has seemingly put an end to the rumors surrounding Reaves by stating in his NBA Dump that the Lakers are widely expected to re-sign the sharpshooter.

“The Lakers are widely expected to re-sign Reaves, whose fondness for Lakerland as well as his blossoming backcourt partnership alongside Luka Dončić are regarded as strong lures that suggest the sides will ultimately come to terms on a new pact,” Stein wrote on his Substack page on Sunday, June 14.

Despite the rumours swirling around Reaves, it comes as no shock that he will want to re-sign with the Lakers due to his loyalty to the team, plus they have the upper hand on Reaves, especially as the Pistons are not widely expected to explore the free agency market and instead aim to make trades as they look to build a championship roster this summer.

Why not seeing Reaves in a Pistons uniform isn’t the end of the world

While the idea of having an emerging scorer like Reaves is attractive for the Pistons, it was always going to be a long shot.

With Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson as potential long-term fits for the Pistons, they will be focusing on that; plus, the Lakers can offer Reaves a five-year, max deal worth up to $239.3 million. The most a rival team can offer is a four-year, $177.4 million deal.

But in reality, this was widely known.

With plenty more fish in the sea, and Detroit looking towards the future.

The more sensible option could be Brooklyn Nets’ forward Michael Porter Jr., who would bring solid offense, as he comes off a career-high in points and respectable averages from the field last season.

Trading Duncan Robinson for Porter Jr. would be seen as a wise move, with Drake Powell thrown in to part ways with Ron Holland II.

There’s also potentially a free agency signing of Kyrie Irving, but with injury concerns riddled over his current resume, he will only land in Detroit for a championship-or-bust scenario.

The Pistons’ thirst for a secondary scorer is clear; Reaves would have been a great move, but it’s always been a pipe dream.

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