Interest surrounding Greg Monroe continues to go from very hot to very cold as NBA free agency continues. Numerous reports have come out regarding Monroe's relationship with the Detroit Pistons. The team claims he turned down a lucrative offer. Monroe says he does not want to play with Josh Smith. All of this is resulting in no offers coming in for the center. However, a few teams are emerging as contenders to finally help Monroe sort out his future.
While the Indiana Pacers are a possible option for the center, the Atlanta Hawks are reportedly still interested in making a deal. The Pistons have offered Monroe a five-year, $60 million contract that Monroe reportedly turned down. Currently a restricted free agent, most teams are under the impression that Detroit will match any offer on Monroe and with contract offers like that, they are right to assume.
However, according to Chuck Myron of the Hoops Rumors, the Pistons might be ready to give up on retaining Monroe and might let him walk. So why the Hawks? Atlanta already has one of the best big duos in Al Horford and Paul Millsap. Horford is coming off of injury and Millsap is approaching free agency. Adding Monroe would give the team another All-Star type of big man. Myron reports that if the Hawks are going to get Monroe, they may look to add a third team into the trade mix to offload some of the salary.
The question becomes who the Hawks give up considering most of their assets have turned out to be extremely valuable. The obvious choice for a trade would be Millsap considering he is an unrestricted free agent. The Hawks ideally do not want to let go of him and they would not want to trade Horford either. If the Pistons are going to let Monroe go, they are going to want something good in return and Atlanta might not be willing to give that up.
The other option for Monroe remains with the Indiana Pacers. According to ESPN.com, the team is discussing a sign-and-trade with Roy Hibbert. Giving up Hibbert for Monroe is a bit odd considering they are almost the same player. The Pacers need a scoring threat more than they need another big man to replace Paul George. Monroe is versatile, but not exactly at that level.
For now, all signs point to Monroe signing the one-year qualifying offer from the Pistons. The two sides are miles apart on negotiating a long-term contract and Monroe would have the option at becoming an unrestricted free agent the following year.
