We get the report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski:
Detroit’s 2027 second-round pick on way to OKC is via Houston, sources say. Diallo will be a restricted free agent this summer and Pistons see him a core player moving forward. Lu Dort’s emergence made Diallo expendable, and Thunder add to massive stockpile of picks. https://t.co/6JPHL8Y5VL
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 13, 2021
Hamidou Diallo is averaging 11.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists a game for the Oklahoma City Thunder this season, but hasn’t played a game since February 24th due to groin soreness. Svi Mykhailiuk averaged 6.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists a game for the Pistons, and was shooting a mere 33% from three this season.
Hey! We have our first case of Troy Weaver TRADING for one of “his guys.” Diallo was technically drafted by the Brooklyn Nets, but ultimately ended up in Oklahoma City after a couple post-draft trades. When we talked pre-season about Troy Weaver Guys, Diallo was a great example – a raw, explosive athlete with great physical tools (6’5 with a 6’11 wingspan) who also had major concerns about his shooting ability. Three years into his career, the shooting questions persist – Diallo has never shot better than 30% from three for an entire season – but he has carved out a role for himself in the NBA nonetheless.
Svi Mykhailiuk, for his part, never had the shooting season I, personally, expected him to have coming into this year. Svi’s bankable NBA skill was his shooting, that appears to have deserted him (for now), and so he’s out in Detroit. Svi was a low-cost gamble for the Pistons (the Pistons GOT a second round pick in addition to Svi in the Reggie Bullock deal) who has been flipped into another low-cost gamble.
Other quick thoughts about the trade:
- In throwing in another second round pick (granted, a very, VERY far-flung future second), Troy continues to show his disdain for red paper clipping his way through a roster
- Sekou Doumbouya is now the longest-tenured Detroit Piston, and you could forgive him for looking around nervously and tugging at his collar
- This is probably just the first (non-Derrick Rose) trade domino to fall in Detroit – I still expect to see Wayne Ellington, at the absolute least, on a flight out of Detroit prior to the trade deadline on March 25
- As Woj points out, Diallo will be a restricted free agent this offseason. This perhaps answers the question of what, exactly, Troy Weaver was going to do with the cap space he might’ve had this offseason.
That’s pretty much it. I’m a little sad to see Svi go – I liked the player he was last year a lot, but he wasn’t that guy this year under a new front office, and that’s all it takes.
What do you all think of the trade? Sound off in the comments!