Detroit — Hours before the start of free agency, Pistons general manager Troy Weaver orchestrated a trade to add another sharpshooter to his young roster.
Detroit is acquiring Brooklyn Nets guard/forward Joe Harris and two future second-round picks, a team source confirmed to The Detroit News on Friday.
Along with Harris, the Nets are sending the Dallas Mavericks’ 2027 second-round pick and the Milwaukee Bucks’ 2029 second-round pick. The news was first reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Harris, 31, is a 6-foot-6 wing and has been one of the best 3-point shooters since he entered the NBA nine seasons ago. He’s a career 43% 3-point shooter and he averaged 7.6 points and 2.2 rebounds for Brooklyn last season after playing just 14 games during the 2021-22 season due to multiple foot injuries.
The addition of Harris could help the Pistons tremendously, as they struggled with 3-point shooting last season. Detroit ranked 22nd in the league in 3-point percentage, making just 35% of its attempts from beyond the arc.
The Nets benefit from offloading Harris’ salary by creating a $19.9 million traded player exception and the flexibility to explore more deals this summer, which includes the possibility to re-sign coveted restricted free agent Cameron Johnson.
The Pistons were projected to have nearly $30 million in cap space to start free agency, but are now projected to have $6.4 million because of Harris’ expiring $19.9 million salary, according to Keith Smith of Spotrac.
Detroit is in a position to enter next offseason with nearly $50 million in cap space due to the expiring contracts of Harris, Alec Burks, Killian Hayes, Isaiah Livers, Eugene Omoruyi, Isaiah Stewart and James Wiseman.
Weaver told reporters last week that he would approach the free-agency period with caution because he didn’t want to add a player that would deter from the development of his young roster, and Harris appears to fit that bill.
The Pistons also traded up the draft board last week to acquire Houston guard Marcus Sasser, another solid 3-point shooter, to join No. 5 overall pick Ausar Thompson. Detroit sent two future second-round picks to Boston in exchange for Sasser.
It remains to be seen if Weaver will execute any other trades, but the Pistons added another elite perimeter shooter to complement its young core.
mcurtis@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @MikeACurtis2