If Jerami Grant is the grand prize...
Pistons forward Jerami Grant seems to be on the move, but is he truly the grand prize of this year's trade deadline?
Last week, Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report (a reporter quickly becoming as credible as Shams and Woj) wrote about Pistons forward Jerami Grant, revealing that many teams are operating under the assumption that Grant is the grand prize of the upcoming trade deadline.
Here's the full report from Fischer, so you can follow along.
The Pistons are playing well in 2022, but seem destined to snag a top-3 pick and partner-in-crime for Cade Cunningham. Grant, truly, is Detroit's most valuable available asset: a 6'8" wing who defends, protects the rim, and can score with or without the ball. As the article notes, he fits on every team — but in my opinion, the team acquiring Grant may walk back that statement once he enters their building.
The word may in that last sentence is carrying some weight. Those who have watched the Pistons over the last season and half can appreciate Jerami Grant's development from signature defender and slasher to primary scoring option. For stretches, Grant was the Bugatti in a trailer park — the only real NBA-caliber scorer on a team afraid of putting the ball in the hoop.
If you've watched Jerami Grant over the last season and a half, you also know that being in that role for too long has prompted him to force mid-range jumpers and take precious development reps away from Saddiq Bey and Cade Cunningham.
I can see it now: Grant catches on the wing, jabs to his left, backs up, does his super loose crossover, sprints into the lane, stops on a dime, and continues to add to the pile of bricks the Pistons have been building for the entire game. Meanwhile, Saddiq Bey stands in the corner, part-human and part-scarecrow.
A team trading for Grant needs to have a clearly defined role for him before they make the deal. Teams like Atlanta and Memphis have their stars, and need Grant's cutting, screening, scoring off-ball, and on-ball defensive chops. If Grant walks in and starts firing like he has in Detroit, that's not good.
Let me be clear about something: the mid-range is not a bad shot if you have the right players taking them. Phoenix leads the league in both mid-range shot attempts and wins. They have Devin Booker and Chris Paul taking the majority of those shots. The same goes for the Bulls with DeRozan and LaVine, and the Nets with Kevin Durant and James Harden. On the contrary, teams like the Rockets, Thunder, and Magic find themselves in the top-10 of three-point attempts but bottom half of the league in three-point percentage. Sometimes doing the right thing is actually wrong.
Jerami Grant is a good NBA player who has worked his way from Process Sixer to the featured player on a terrible team. What the Pistons should know and capitalize on is that Grant's presence on the floor will hinder the development of their young players going forward. The top-3 pick Detroit is aiming for? All three candidates play Grant's position. It's time to move on from him.
But where will Grant go? And which teams are smart enough to have pre-installed packages for how they see Grant helping them contend?
From Fischer:
The Lakers, Trail Blazers, Knicks, Jazz, Wizards, Celtics, Pacers, Timberwolves and Kings have all signaled interest in the 27-year-old.
I spend my entire day thinking of Jerami Grant trades, so I won't take up any more of yours. But it's important to distinguish just what kind of grand prize Jerami Grant is. Do teams see him as the Powerball, or a $25 gift card to the local smoothie shop?
About last night...
Jayson Tatum. That's it.
Tatum, at age 23, is the Celtics' all-time leader in 50 point games. He's also scored 50 points five times over the last two seasons, which is more than every other player. The Celtics are the only team in the NBA that has two players who have scored 50 points in a game this season.
One more for the road:
Before DeMar DeRozan was the mid-range maestro, he made a living off dunking on people's heads. Jalen Suggs got retribution for LeBron, Embiid, Rubio, Turner, Harrell, Gobert, Kyle Singler, Anthony Tolliver, Timofey Mozgov, and Tristan Thompson.
Sorry DDR, it's your turn:
We fell into it again. We were quick to write Jalen Suggs off. He's good! And the 2021 rookie class continues to look better by the day.
Scores, stats, & notes
Knicks 110, Clippers 102 — RJ Barrett with 28 points, 14 rebounds, and six assists. A true third-year leap.
Celtics 116, Wizards 87 — "Did you know Jayson Tatum and Bradley Beal are friends?" is the new "Did you know Matt Stafford and Clayton Kershaw went to high school together?"
Heat 113, Lakers 107 — Miami almost blew a 23-point lead. Jimmy Butler now has more triple-doubles in a Heat uniform than LeBron James. Box score watching tells me that this was Westbrook's best game of the season! 24-9-9, three turnovers.
Magic 114, Bulls 95 — DeRozan scored 41, Coby White scored 22, and that was the majority of the scoring for Chicago. Mo Wagner scored 23 off the bench and got into it with DDR.
Trail Blazers 114, Raptors 105 — Toronto chopped a 34-point deficit down to just four with under 90 seconds left. It feels as if the Raptors need to acquire one more guy. Two to three of their core guys play over 40 minutes a game, it seems.
Hawks 113, Hornets 91 — Kelly Oubre saw what Grayson Allen did and one-upped him. Here's the video. I hope De'Andre Hunter is okay. This tweet was responsible for about five minutes of laughter. Why is he wearing that?
Sixers 115, Spurs 109 — I think Joel Embiid is just good for 38, 12, and six assists now. I think that's the world we live in.
Mavericks 104, Grizzlies 91 — The Luka-Ja debate isn't real. 37 points, 11 rebounds, nine assists from Doncic. Only an intergalactic superstar makes plays like this:
Timberwolves 136, Nets 125 — Anthony Edwards was helped off the court with a leg injury... when he wasn't in the game. Really, really hope he's okay:
Nuggets 117, Pistons 111 — Dwane Casey almost figured out a way to score four points on one possession in the clutch. Props to him for trying. Jokic with 34-9-8.
Warriors 94, Jazz 92 — Holy shit, Jordan Poole:
