The Detroit Pistons have a big decision to make about an impending free agent.
Yes, there’s the potential deal coming for All-Star center Jalen Duren, who will enter the offseason as a restricted free agent. Their next most important decision will come on forward Tobias Harris, who will be an unrestricted free agent on June 30.
Harris, who averaged 13.3 points and 5.1 rebounds per game in the 2025-26 season, started all 63 games at power forward that he appeared in during the regular season, where the Pistons finished 60-22 as the top seed in the Eastern Conference.
Then, with Duren struggling to make an impact in both playoff series’, Harris became the Pistons’ secondary scorer, averaging 18.1 points and 7.2 rebounds over 14 playoff games.
At his end-of-season press conference on Tuesday, May 19, Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon praised Harris and said the Pistons hope they can re-sign him.
“His professionalism has been huge in terms of us establishing the environment that we have in the past two years,” Langdon said. “There’s not a day he doesn’t come to work. There’s not a day that he doesn’t do extra work pre-practice, post-practice, everything. He comes and he leads in a variety of ways that nobody will ever see or ever feel, but our guys do, and we do as an organization every day.”
After the Pistons’ Game 7 blowout loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Harris said the past two years have meant “the world” to him.
“Being with these guys each and every day, the spirit of the team, the charisma of the team, the spirit of the city – these last two years have been some of the best two years of basketball of my entire career,” he said.
When asked if he wanted to return this fall, he didn’t hesitate with his answer: “Most definitely, yeah.”
Tobias Harris contract in NBA free agency
There is clear mutual interest in a reunion between Harris and the Pistons. Question is, can Detroit afford to bring back the veteran forward?
ESPN’s NBA front office insider Bobby Marks published an article on Friday outlining the contract offers he would make to the league’s top unrestricted free agents. For Harris, who turns 34 in July, Marks – a former Brooklyn Nets executive – would offer a two-year, $38 million deal, adding that the Pistons should make re-signing Harris “a top priority.”
That might have been too rich a deal for the Pistons if presented in the middle of this past season. But with Duren’s playoff performance sinking his future salary, and with Harris’ leadership and scoring abilities valued by the team, that’s an offer the Pistons could comfortably make once negotiations are allowed, one day after the NBA Finals end.
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Despite Harris being an unrestricted free agent, the Pistons have an advantage to sign him over most other teams in the league since teams over the salary cap (but under the luxury tax) can only offer Harris a $15 million mid-level exception at best. That leaves only three teams that project to have cap space that could offer more than the Pistons: the Nets, Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers.
There are a few over-the-cap teams that could be interesting fits for Harris, such as the Los Angeles Clippers and San Antonio Spurs. But if the Pistons make a better offer, they seem like an obvious fit, especially if he can get a few more million from Detroit than he can from virtually anyone else.
But the Pistons will also look at upgrading Harris’ position. They need a second advantage creator and more 3-point shooting to pair with All-NBA point guard Cade Cunningham. Though Harris did an admirable job as the second scoring option during the playoffs, the Pistons need to find someone younger and more talented to boost their championship odds for next season and beyond.
And if that’s the case, having Harris on the roster might be a luxury the Pistons can’t afford.
But with mutual interest and Harris’ relatively affordable services, Pistons fans shouldn’t be surprised if they see Harris back in red, white and blue next season.
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You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tobias Harris free agency looms over Detroit Pistons 2026 offseason
Reporting by Christian Romo, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
