Kwame Brown Will Leave Pistons, Sign With Bobcats

Free-agent center Kwame Brown, who signed a two-year deal with the Detroit Pistons in 2008, is moving on. ESPN’s Marc Stein reports Brown will sign a minimum deal with the Charlotte Bobcats.

In 106 games as a Piston, Brown averaged 3.8 points and 4.4 rebounds on 51.9 percent shooting. But he didn’t figure into their future plans, with the Pistons drafting Greg Monroe and re-signing Ben Wallace earlier this summer. Additionally, the Pistons still have veteran big men Jason Maxiell and Chis Wilcox under contract, further minimizing their need for Brown.

Keith Langolis, the official beat writer for the Pistons’ website, didn’t comment on the possibility of Brown’s return when a reader asked him about it last month, instead offering that “one of the Western contenders” could bid for his services.

Pistons Retain Will Bynum With Three-Year Deal Worth $10.5 Million

ESPN.com’s Marc Stein reports, via Twitter, that the agent for Detroit Pistons free-agent point guard Will Bynum confirmed that his client is staying with the Pistons. Detroit will retain Bynum’s explosive offense—he still holds the Pistons record for points in a quarter, with 26 in the fourth against the Charlotte Bobcats in 2009—on a modest, three-year deal that will pay Bynum $10.5 million.

Bynum, 27, has spent most of his NBA career in Detroit, with 150 of his 165 appearances coming in a Pistons uniform. He has career averages of 8.1 points and 3.4 assists in 19.5 minutes. Last season, he established career-highs in all three categories, scoring 10.0 points and dishing 4.5 assists in 26.5 minutes per game.

Pistons Still Negotiating With Will Bynum's Agent

The Pistons appear to be making baby steps with Will Bynum. Negotiations are ongoing, and although things are moving slowly, they appear to be going in the right direction.

"Joe and I are working at it," Bartlestein said. "We're putting a lot of time and energy into it."

Bartlestein, the agent for recently signed David Lee (Golden State), Brad Miller (Houston) as well as All-Star Danny Granger (Indiana), didn't express any trepidation about getting a deal done.

"Obviously, it's a matter of coming to an agreement both sides are happy with," he said.

As has been maintained throughout all of this, Bynum is expected to re-sign at some point. Just when remains to be seen, but patience is key in this type of situation.

Pistons Made An Offer For Bobcats' Center Tyson Chandler

With the previously mentioned Brendan Haywood talks falling through, the Pistons were left without the much needed help up front. According to Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press, the Pistons made an offer for Charlotte Bobcats' center, Tyson Chandler: 

Yes, the Pistons were interested in Chandler and actually made an offer to the Bobcats. I admit I don’t know the actual offer, but it’s safe to assume Rip Hamilton or Tayshaun Prince were a part of it, as both of their salaries are close to Chandler’s $13-million expiring deal.

Instead, the Bobcats decided to send Chandler to the Mavs for much less, which is a shame. I don't know if Chandler would have been the right answer for the Pistons, but he would have certainly filled a hole in the middle of the Pistons' front court. In the meantime, Joe Dumars will continue trying to spin a deal for another big man.

Free Agent Point Guard Raymond Felton Signs With Knicks

The Pistons have been reportedly looking for a more traditional point guard to back up Rodney Stuckey, but one of those options fell off the table a week and a half ago when Raymond Felton agreed in principle to a deal with the New York Knicks: 

Felton's contract is believed to be a three-year deal worth approximately $25 million, which doesn't preclude the Knicks from pursuing Chris Paul or Tony Parker next summer. The Knicks were also considering Luke Ridnour, but felt that Felton was the better player to go along with Amar'e Stoudemire and Danilo Gallinari.

This may or may not help open the door wider for a Will Bynum re-signing.  While it leaves the Pistons with one less option to choose from, this may raise the price of signing Bynum. Bynum is two years older with less of a track record, but he and Felton had nearly identical Per 36 numbers last season. 

Will Bynum Still In Negotiations With Pistons

There's not much to add to what's going on with Will Bynum during free agency other than that he is negotiating with Joe Dumars and wants to remain with the Pistons, the team who gave him his first legitimate chance a couple years ago: 

"We've had a lot of conversations, but there's nothing new to report," Mark Bartelstein said.

It's been said the Pistons want to re-sign Bynum, but as we've said before, the Pistons aren't going to fall for the market and overpay Bynum. Add in that Terrico White had a strong summer league and there are mumblings that Joe Dumars might be trying to swing a deal for another guard. It's hard to tell if these enduring negotiations improve or hurt the chances of Bynum being in a Pistons jersey in 2010-2011 and beyond.

Ben Wallace To Re-Sign With Pistons, Finish Career With Detroit

Ben Wallace has agreed to a new deal that will keep him with the Pistons for at least two more seasons, the Associated Press reports.

"This is the place I want to retire," Wallace said in a telephone interview with the AP.

Wallace, who expects to take a physical soon, will make $1.9 million each season.

Wallace was priority No. 1 for the Pistons this offseason as far as signings went. With him now back in the fold, the next priority is to re-sign restricted free agent Will Bynum. It is expected that the Pistons will bring him back, just as it was expected that Wallace would be re-signed. Bynum may take a bit more time since he is a restricted free agent, but he should be re-signed at some point.

Ben Wallace 'Certain To Re-Sign'

Chris Iott reports that the Pistons have been talking to free agents Will Bynum and Ben Wallace. Bynum is a restricted free agent and Wallace is on the open market, and both of the two players are expected to be back with the Pistons next season.

For Bynum, Iott believes that it could take some time for him to be re-signed because of his restricted free agent status. He can entertain offers from other teams, but the Pistons will ultimately be able to choose to match any offer that comes in. Even so, the expectation is that he will simply re-sign with Detroit.

As for Wallace, it is pretty much a guarantee for him to be back with the Pistons. Not only is coach John Kuester already talking about how Wallace can mentor Greg Monroe, but Iott says that "Wallace is certain to re-sign with the Pistons." He also said this on Twitter the other day in response to a rumor that Wallace is going to retire:

That rumor is not worth much. Ben Wallace will be back next season. I promise.

There is no timetable for when these two players will actually re-sign, but it does appear that both will be back with the Pistons officially at some point this summer.

Report: Brendan Haywood To Re-Sign With Mavericks

The Pistons may have been interested in signing center Brendan Haywood, but that is no longer an option, as he is reportedly headed back to Dallas.

The Mavericks have agreed to terms on a six-year, $55 year million deal to re-sign center Brendan Haywood, a source told Yahoo! Sports.

Haywood was the biggest name on the free agent market linked to the Pistons. Since Detroit doesn't exactly have a ton of room to do anything, most of the names have been of the much lesser-profile variety, and chances are that won't change. The majority of the big name free agents have already signed somewhere or are out of the Pistons' price range, so it looks like it is definitely time to turn our focus to the secondary free agent market.

Pistons Hoping To Wait Out Will Bynum

The Detroit Pistons are playing a wait and see game with restricted free agent backup point guard Will Bynum. Basically, the Pistons are trying to avoid negotiating against themselves, as they plan to match any offer he receives:

If the Pistons had pounced and hit Bynum with a deal worth $3.5 million per year, they would be negotiating against themselves — kind of like the Grizzlies did this past week when they tossed five years and $80 million at restricted free agent Rudy Gay, a move criticized by many. Wait, and maybe they get him for $2.5 million

The Pistons don’t want to dole out a lavish contract for a guy that doesn’t deserve it, after Rudy Gay and Darko Milicic both received outlandish deals last week. All indications point to Bynum re-signing, it’s just a matter of getting on the same page.

Brendan Haywood's Agent In Talks With Pistons, But No Offer Made Yet

The agent of Brendan Haywood chatted with The Detroit News about where his client stands with the Pistons. The gist of the current situation is that the two parties are in discussions, but that's about it right now. Things could develop, but for right now it's more about each side gauging interest from the other.

"We've had numerous conversations," Miller said, denying reports of an offer being made. "We will continue to have dialogue. There are a lot of variables involved here."

Miller said it was hard to gauge Detroit's interest relative to Haywood's other suitors, such as Boston and Miami. The Heat have a weekend meeting with Haywood. Still, Miller believes the Pistons are in the mix. The Pistons can offer Haywood the midlevel exception, which is around $5.8 million.

"You'd have to ask them how interested they are," Miller said. "I have to assume they're significantly interested, though."

Miller went on to say that he and Haywood are "still in the preliminary stages," which is probably where the Pistons stand right now as well.

Free Agent Raymond Felton Interested In The Pistons?

The agent of guard Raymond Felton is going to reach out to the Pistons to see if they would have any interest in signing his client, reports Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.

Dutt confirmed an earlier Associated Press report that seven teams have contacted him on the first day of free agency about Felton, who was the No. 5 pick in the 2005 draft. Felton is coming off a season where he averaged 12.1 points and 5.6 assists for the Charlotte Bobcats.

The Pistons have thought about Felton and are in the market for a starter at the point with the plan of moving Rodney Stuckey into more of a combo guard roll.

Ellis mentions in a later part of the article that Felton may want more than the mid-level exception, which is all the Pistons can offer since they are over the salary cap. The same goes for Brendan Haywood, although he is apparently a candidate for a sign-and-trade.

Pistons Also Contact Matt Barnes

In confirming the earlier report regarding Brendan Haywood, 97.1’s Matt Dery also mentioned that the Detroit Pistons contacted another free agent player, but didn’t have a name. Dery has since updated that report with news that Matt Barnes is the fourth player Joe Dumars contacted when the free agency period began at midnight July 1.

The 6’ 7" Barnes is a guard-forward in his seventh year out of UCLA. Last season with the Orlando Magic, he averaged 8.8 points and 5.5 rebounds. Barnes, 30, has also played for the Clippers, Kings, Knicks, Sixers, Warriors and Suns in his NBA career.

Pistons Pursuing Brendan Haywood?

Yahoo! Sports is reporting that the Detroit Pistons were one of five teams that contacted center Brendan Haywood when the NBA free agency period began as of midnight. (This report has been confirmed by both Matt Dery of Detroit's 97.1 and Gregg Henson of Dallas 105.3.)

The Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers were expected to meet with Haywood, 30, on Thursday. Haywood's current team, the Dallas Mavericks, were also believed to have a meeting set up.

The Pistons also contacted their own free agents, Ben Wallace and Will Bynum, last night. And according to Dery, Joe Dumars is pursuing a fourth player, as well.

Last season with the Mavs, the 7'0" Haywood averaged 9.1 points and 9.3 rebounds in 77 games. He's in his ninth year out of North Carolina, averaging 7.7 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. Haywood spent the first eight years of his career with the Washington Wizards.