The Detroit Pistons opened up their free agent activity by locking down veteran wing Kevin Huerter for the next three seasons
With free agency opening up today across the NBA, the Detroit Pistons have wasted little time in making moves to help solidify their roster for the 2026-27 campaign. That should be expected, however, since the Pistons had three players from last year’s roster enter unrestricted free agency in Tobias Harris, Kevin Huerter and Javonte Green.
On top of those decisions, All-Star center Jalen Duren signed his qualifying offer already, so he’s a restricted free agent who’s currently testing the market and meeting with other teams throughout the league in an effort to influence the Pistons into a sign-and-trade. In fact, Duren met with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings today, which should underscore the fact that Duren apparently has very real interest in continuing his hoops career with another squad.
But as for the rest of Detroit’s free agent class is concerned, Kevin Huerter has already reached a three-year agreement with the Pistons, so that provides a little bit of clarity for the rest of the offseason.
According to Shams Charania, Huerter’s new deal is worth $27 million in totality, so the eight-year NBA vet is slated to make around $9 million per season, which is a very team-friendly deal for a Pistons group that still sets well below the second apron in terms of cap space.
Last season, the Pistons worked out a three-team trade with the Chicago Bulls and the Minnesota Timberwolves that ended up benefiting Detroit quite a bit. In the deal, the Pistons sent Jaden Ivey to their Central Division rivals in the Windy City, but the former top five pick ended up battling a knee injury before he was released from the Bulls towards the end of the regular season.
Apart from shedding Ivey, the Pistons received Huerter in return, and he comfortably contributed to Detroit’s second unit and provided an element of experience, quality decision-making and offered an outside presence to a squad that was desperate for help along the three-point line. In fact, towards the end of the regular season, Huerter was the first man off the bench for head coach J.B. Bickerstaff in a number of games, which shows what the Pistons thought of their new acquisition.
But once the playoffs rolled around, Huerter was sidelined with a left adductor strain in the middle of the Pistons’ first round series against the Orlando Magic. Detroit ended up coming back to win in seven games before facing the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round, but Huerter was unable to suit up against the Cavs as the Pistons were eliminated from the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
From a numbers perspective, Huerter averaged 8.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game last season in the Motor City, so he was never a focal point of the team’s offense but instead operated as a savvy wing with defensive chops with 1.1 steals per game to his credit. Huerter struggled from three-point range to the tune of 29.4% on long-range shots for the Pistons, but that rate is well below his career average of 36.8% from downtown. Now, it’s possible that those struggles from beyond the arc could be attributed to the difficulty of fitting into a new squad that’s already well in rhythm, so there’s a chance that the Pistons could utilize Huerter in a more productive fashion now that he’s been in the organization for a bit longer.
Either way, the Pistons clearly saw enough from Huerter to bring him back for another go-around, so Red Velvet will have another chance to re-establish himself as a perimeter threat moving forward.
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