The Detroit Pistons are coming into the offseason with major decisions to make and a trade with Josh Smith could be an option over Andre Drummond as the team tries to sign restricted free agent Greg Monroe, as he is on the market and is a target for the Miami Heat, Atlanta Hawks and NY Knicks in free agency after he was mentioned in trade rumors earlier in the season.
Monroe is one of the best young big men in the league and the Pistons have a log jam up front and could try and loosen things up by trading either Josh Smith or Andre Drummond. According to Pro Basketball Talk, Monroe wants Smith traded or moved in the near future before he signs back with the team, as he had to deal with losing minutes each night while splitting time with Smith and Drummond. The report says that Grantland.com writer Zach Lowe has spoken with sources saying that Monroe wants Smith traded if he is going to sign back with the team and while Monroe's people have denied it, it's not a crazy request.
Smith is getting paid a nice amount of cash after signing a big deal last season and he came in under Joe Dumars and now Smith has $40 million coming his way the next three seasons. The team wants to keep Monroe and they have already struck a deal earlier in the year with Drummond and those are the two players they are hoping to build around. Smith will be hard to trade and even though the Kings came up as an option, so far no deal has come close to happening. Monroe is a restricted free agent so the Pistons have the power to match deals for him, but they could get out of their price range if other teams target Monroe.
Earlier in the offseason and last season Monroe was mentioned in trade rumors and those came up again when Stan Van Gundy took over as coach and team president. Monroe is a restricted free agent so he only has so many moves he can make regarding leverage with the Pistons and he could be in line for a large contract from another team and the Pistons come in with just under $10 million left in cap space after signing Jodie Meeks. Monroe could sign the qualifying offer with the Pistons and that would make him an unrestricted free agent next summer, but he is looking to settle things now.
Monroe is a major target on the market and is comes after he averaged 15.2 points and 9.3 rebounds over the past three years. Monroe is just 24 years old and the Blazers could be an option for him, as they have also been eyeing Roy Hibbert. Luol Deng is a top free agent option for the Dallas Mavericks and Atlanta Hawks and they all could go after Monroe if they miss on Deng. According to Pro Basketball Talk, Monroe is the main target for the Hawks and they could give him a nice offer if they clear some more cap space. The Pistons are looking at trades, but it may take time to move Smith if they go that route