# Detroit Pistons have open roster spot: Should they use it to re-sign Malik Beasley?
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We’re officially a month away from Detroit Pistons basketball.
They tip off preseason on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday, Oct. 6. Two weeks later, they open the regular season against the Bulls in Chicago on Wednesday, Oct. 22. The vast majority of their offseason work is done, but they still have an open roster spot.
Here are three directions they could commit to for that roster spot before training camp opens at the end of September.
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Fortify the roster
If the Pistons proce
They could use more size, particularly against teams that favor two-big starting lineups such as the Cleveland Cavaliers (who have Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen) and Milwaukee Bucks (Giannis Antetokounmpo and Myles Turner). Simone Fontecchio anchored the Pistons’ forward rotation last season off the bench. With Fontecchio sent to the Miami Heat as part of the Duncan Robinson sign-and-trade, another big-bodied forward will have to fill that role.
But there aren’t many choices left in free agency
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Leave it open for a trade
Thanks to the Schröder sign-and-trade, the Pistons have a traded player exception worth $14.3 million. Think of it as a voucher they can use to absorb a contract worth up to that amount without needing cap space. It expires in July, a full calendar year after the Schröder deal.
The traded player exception will be a valuable tool for the team heading into February’s trade deadline, enabling them to add a player from a team looking to shed salary without giving up anything in return. The exception also can be divided across multiple players.
Leave it open for Malik Beasley
The ongoing Beasley saga has dominated headlines this offseason. The sharpshooter, coming off a record-setting season in which he hit more 3-pointers than any Piston ever, was lined up to re-sign for three years and $42 million before news of a federal gambling probe paused his free agency and left his NBA future dangling.
Beasley reportedly is no longer a target of the probe, cracking open the door for his return. Whether that will be to the Pistons or another team remains to be seen. Though they spent the $42 million they were initially going to offer him, the Pistons still have his “non-Bird rights,” which provides a path for them to re-sign him without using cap space.