Lakers Rumors: The best fits for Isaiah Thomas this offseason
By Jason Reed
2. Detroit Pistons
Just gauging what I have seen reading other writers’ opinions and the general consensus of people on Twitter, this seems to be Thomas’ best fit outside of LA. The Pistons already have two stars in Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond but still need more star power to succeed; even in the Eastern Conference.
Griffin and Drummond have been decent together but what the Pistons really need is someone that can stretch the court and score effectively in the backcourt. Thomas has proven that he can be just that and the pick and roll combination with Blake Griffin would be absolutely deadly.
However, there is one underlying issue regarding Isaiah Thomas going to the Detroit Pistons; cap space.
According to Spotrac, the Pistons have -$15 million in practical cap space this offseason. The Pistons have $116 million in cap allocations while the NBA salary cap stands at $101 million. This is what happens when you owe Griffin and Drummond a combined $57 million next season.
The Pistons can free up space this offseason. Point guard Reggie Jackson is owed $17 million and could be shipped off with a young star like Luke Kennard. Jon Leuer’s $10 million owed would be easier to free.
This would be a lot of hoops to jump through for the Pistons that quite frankly do not make much sense. As great of a fit on paper this is, the Pistons would really need to get creative in order to bring in Thomas while not jeopardizing the future.