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Well, we have our first deal of Deadline Day, and it surprisingly involves the Pistons:
Sources: Detroit is sending center Willie Reed to the Bulls for Jameer Nelson, who shores up Pistons' PG rotation.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 8, 2018
Sources: As part of Jameer Nelson deal, Bulls and Pistons are swapping their second-round picks in 2022.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 8, 2018
Immediately, this is a move that makes a decent amount of sense. The Pistons’ need at backup center has been filled by staggering Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond, while the Pistons’ need at backup point guard (while starter Reggie Jackson is out) has been filled inconsistently by the likes of Dwight Buycks and Langston Galloway.
The move also reunites Jameer Nelson and Stan Van Gundy. Nelson played the best basketball of his career under SVG, including an All-Star appearance and a NBA Finals run in 2008-09. I don’t think Stan is trading for Dwight Howard anytime soon, but this move does speak to the level of familiarity between the two.
Financially, this move is a wash - both Willie Reed and Nelson are set to be unrestricted free agents this offseason and were signed to minimum deals (Nelson is due more money, but his minimum is higher because he’s been in the league longer). The future second-round pick swap is interesting, but it’s difficult to say how good (or bad) both these teams will be in three years.
Stay on Detroit Bad Boys for continuing coverage of today’s trade deadline and more analysis of this trade.