Rumor: Pistons open to trading the No. 12 pick in 2017 NBA Draft

As the draft inches closer and closer, rumors will begin to pop up out of nowhere. Some of these rumors will be completely unfounded while others will have some legitimacy to them.

According to Marc Stein, the Pistons are looking to possibly trade the No. 12 pick for some immediate help. That immediate help is reportedly a “win-now veteran.”

A “win-now veteran” is a very broad term that could mean a wide range of players. Any player who is not a rookie could even be considered a veteran. However, based on how the young Pistons folded down the stretch last season, I would have to suspect that Stan Van Gundy is looking for a more experienced player.

If you are looking at the kind of trade we could be looking at, look at last year’s draft when the Indiana Pacers traded their 20th overall pick in the draft to the Brooklyn Nets for Thaddeus Young.

Keep in mind, the 12th pick should theoretically hold more value, but the Pistons are also up against the cap which complicates who the Pistons could acquire.

The Pistons options are pretty limited due to their cap situation. It’s not like they are a team like the Nets or 76ers who have loads of cap space to take on almost any contract they want. Any deal the team makes would likely involve other players in order to make it work salary-wise.

I definitely feel like this rumor could have some legitimacy to it. The Pistons are a young team and Stan Van Gundy probably does not want to have to develop another young player while he is still trying to bring along Stanley Johnson and Henry Ellenson.

However, I expect nothing to come from this rumor and the Pistons to be selecting 12th in the 2017 NBA Draft on June 22.