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NBA Free Agency 2017: 20 best players available

By John Buhler

Mar 25, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) in the second half of the game against the Utah Jazz at Staples Center. Clippers won 108-95. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 25, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) in the second half of the game against the Utah Jazz at Staples Center. Clippers won 108-95. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 4, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (5) controls the ball against the Philadelphia 76ers during the third quarter at Wells Fargo Center. The Detroit Pistons won 136-106. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 4, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (5) controls the ball against the Philadelphia 76ers during the third quarter at Wells Fargo Center. The Detroit Pistons won 136-106. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
10

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

Shooting Guard, Detroit Pistons

There will not be a bigger name to be hitting restricted free agency this summer than Detroit Pistons shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. The former star in the SEC for the Georgia Bulldogs has already put together four decent seasons playing predominantly for Stan Van Gundy in the Pistons starting lineup.

Caldwell-Pope averaged 13.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 76 games for Detroit last year. He continues to evolve as a shooter. While Caldwell-Pope only shot 39.9 percent from the field, he did sink a career-best 35.0 percent of his shots from beyond the arc.

Given that young shooting guards are at a premium, Caldwell-Pope is primed to receive major contract offer sheets from a wide array of teams. The biggest question is if Pistons general manager Jeff Bower will match an offer Caldwell-Pope would surely garner from a team worse than the Pistons?

Caldwell-Pope never gets hurt and plays with a Bulldog mentality on the hardwood (pun intended) that would be a huge boost to several teams looking for help out on the wing. His free agency is a bigger move for the Pistons than when center Andre Drummond hit his restricted free agency last summer. Re-signing Drummond was obvious, but forecasting Caldwell-Pope’s NBA ceiling is much murkier.

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