The Detroit Pistons are expected to make a huge offer for Brooklyn Nets free agent Cam Johnson. Can they pull off the move?
According to Marc Stein (subscription required), the Pistons are expected to make a huge offer for Cam Johnson this offseason.
Johnson is a restricted free agent so the Pistons will have to make an offer that is big enough for the Nets not to match.
It seems like the number that the Pistons are willing to go to is unconfirmed. They are getting mentioned more and more often when it comes to a signing between the two teams.
The Nets got Cam Johnson in the trade return of the Kevin Durant trade. Johnson was the second-best player on the team post-Kevin Durant/Kryie Irving era. Johnson is a very good 3-and-D wing in a league that thrives on 3-and-D players. He is looking for a major payday because of it.
The Nets are looking to compete and not totally trying to rebuild due to the fact that they do not have control of a lot of their draft picks going forward. It seems like the team will not overpay for Johnson but they do not want to lose him in free agency. The team realizes that without a true All-NBA type player (Mikal Bridges does not count), they cannot overpay for him or be stuck in mediocrity going forward.
Why would the Pistons try to go for Cam Johnson?
Adding Johnson to the Pistons lineup would be very good for this young team. Asuar Thompson is a very skilled draft pick who looks to be a very good wing in this league.
The Pistons currently have Bojan Bogdanovic as their other starting wing. Bogdanovic is a very good wing but he does not really fit into the team's timeline. He is currently 34 years old and was mentioned to be moved at the trade deadline but was ultimately not moved as interested teams did not meet Detroit's price among other reasons.
Despite all of these things, the team could move Bogdanovic for some good assets this offseason. After trading Bogdanovic, they could throw an offer out there for Johnson.
