Kevin Huerter has received a new three-year, $27 million deal from the Detroit Pistons, despite the team being unable to retain key players. Detroit is struggling to hang on to Jalen Duren, while Tobias Harris has already left for the San Antonio Spurs. These changes mean that Huerter is going to have to step up his game well beyond what it was last season. If not, the Pistons will need to ask themselves some hard questions about his future with the franchise.
The Pistons Re-Signed Kevin Huerter, Now Need to Put Him to Work
Over the past two seasons, Detroit has gone through an incredible resurgence in the NBA. In a relatively short period of time, the Pistons went from complete irrelevancy to being the number one Eastern Conference team in the regular season. It would be both easy and accurate to heap praise on head coach J.B. Bickerstaff. The work he has done with this franchise has been nothing short of epic. Bickerstaff led them into the second round of this year’s playoffs.
Credit also has to be given to the roster. While there are a lot of young, inexperienced stars on the team, they have matured quickly under great pressure. Cade Cunningham is turning into a real floor general and will continue to evolve his mental and physical game. Both Daniss Jenkins and Ausar Thompson have been key to the team’s success, with Thompson being the future of the franchise.
What makes the Pistons compelling is that they have a great squad who work well together. There’s definitely room for improvement, but that will come with time and experience. That also requires keeping their current core in one piece, something that isn’t happening this offseason. It’s starting to feel like a series of unforced errors might prevent this group from becoming real contenders.
Cracks are Forming in the Pistons Core
The first big issue is the loss of Harris. He recently finished up a two-year contract with the Pistons, making him a free agent the Spurs were happy to scoop up. Detroit is a relatively young team. As such, Harris’s veteran leadership was incredibly important to this roster. Without him, that leaves a big hole in the Pistons’ makeup. His departure was a bit of a surprise, as he was a player who was widely expected to remain with the franchise.
Then there’s Duren. The first-time All-Star and All-NBA Third Team member had a breakout season. That being said, his playoff performance left a lot to be desired. Unsatisfied with the Pistons’ first offer, Duren is now shopping his services around to other teams. He is a restricted free agent, meaning the Pistons have the opportunity to counter any offer made to him. Given how important he has become to the team, Detroit shouldn’t be in this position with him in the first place.
While all this is happening, the Pistons found the money to re-sign Huerter to a three-year deal. He had a solid regular season off the bench but barely appeared in the playoffs. He’s a reliable 3&D player who is also an efficient secondary playmaker. All in all, he’s the kind of guy any team would want on their bench. At the same time, retaining Huerter probably shouldn’t have been a priority over hanging onto a pair of starters.
Huerter Must Be More Productive Next Season
At this point, it doesn’t seem like the Pistons’ front office is working to improve the team so much as they are struggling to keep what they have together. The one thing they have achieved is locking Huerter down. That means he needs to deliver on that contract and become a more integral member of the Pistons.
Through 2025-2026, Huerter averaged 22.4 minutes per game and put up 10.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 0.9 steals. In the postseason, Huerter played in only five out of the Pistons’ 14 games, with his average minutes dropping to five. All of his stats followed suit, even points per game, which finished up at 1.2 in the playoffs.
This isn’t a suggestion that Huerter should be a starter. At the same time, the optics of this situation are that the Pistons have prioritized retaining him over Harris and Duren. That’s likely not what happened, but it definitely looks that way to anyone on the outside of the situation. Huerter now has to get on the court next season and put his minutes to better use, regardless of whether he’s coming off the bench or finds an incredibly unlikely spot as a starter.
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