Pistons Sign Free Agent Forward John Collins To Three-Year Deal, Bringing Him Back To Fantasy Relevance

The Detroit Pistons have agreed to a three-year $51 million deal with former Los Angeles Clippers power forward John Collins. Collins is projected to be their new starting power forward. The 28-year-old saw a drop in both production and minutes last season in his only year with the Los Angeles Clippers after previously playing two seasons with the Utah Jazz.

Free agent John Collins has agreed to a three-year, $51 million deal to sign with the Detroit Pistons, sources tell ESPN. Frontcourt addition and a new lob threat for Cade Cunningham in Detroit. pic.twitter.com/kYZlpHVcDz
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2026

This is a big move for the Pistons frontcourt, which is likely to lose center Jalen Duren in free agency this offseason. He will be a key piece in what could be a very different-looking frontcourt heading into the 2026 - 2027 season.

Fantasy Impact

F John Collins, Detroit Pistons

Last season, Collins scored just 13.6 points per game, while pulling down 5.3 rebounds and dishing out 1.0 assist per game. He also contributed with 0.7 blocks and 0.9 steals per game. His numbers were down across the board, with his rebounds, assists, and blocks being the lowest of his career.

A big reason for that was that he played just 27.1 minutes per game; that was his lowest total since his rookie year with the Atlanta Hawks back in 2017 - 2018. The previous season with the Jazz, playing 30.5 minutes per game, he averaged 19 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 block, and 1.0 assist per game. That is a significant boost in production from last season.

His value will depend on the eye of the beholder. Some fantasy owners can view last season as the start of his decline and a sign of things to come, while others could view it as a blip on the radar and chalk it up to being a bad fit in Los Angeles.

We believe he will post numbers closer to what we saw with the Jazz than what we saw last year with the Clippers. The Pistons likely aren't done making roster moves, but we'd expect him to get back up over 30 minutes per game in Detroit this season.

With free agency still in full swing, things can still change; however, we expect this move to boost his fantasy value. If nothing else, just getting out of Los Angeles was a much-needed move for Collins. That was clearly not the right fit for either him or the organization. A fresh start with the Pistons should be beneficial to his fantasy value.

More Fantasy Sports On SI News

Add us as a preferred source on Google