The Pistons are weighing the prospect of pursuing forward DeMar DeRozan in free agency, league sources tell Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Substack link).

The Pistons haven’t been actively pushing to sign DeRozan to this point, Stein cautions. The team may need to resolve Jalen Duren‘s restricted free agency in order to get a better sense of its remaining spending flexibility below the tax and first-apron thresholds. There’s also a bit of a roster crunch happening in Detroit, where the club has 15 players on standard contracts even before bringing back Duren.

Still, despite adding shooting this offseason by trading for Isaiah Joe and Taurean Prince and signing John Collins in free agency, the Pistons could still use more secondary scoring and shot creation to take some pressure off star point guard Cade Cunningham, as Stein points out. Few remaining free agents are better equipped than DeRozan – the NBA’s 16th all-time leading scorer – to help in that regard.

Stein also suggests the Raptors are a “confirmed bidder” for DeRozan, though local reporters in Toronto have repeatedly cast doubt on the possibility of a reunion between the 17-year veteran and his first NBA team.

Michael Grange of Sportsnet has expressed multiple times that he views an agreement between the Raptors and DeRozan as unlikely, while Doug Smith of The Toronto Star (subscription required) reiterated earlier this week that there are plenty of potential roadblocks, including Toronto’s cap/roster situation and the modest role the team could offer.

However, Smith did cite a source who said DeRozan would welcome a return to Toronto “if everything works out” and added that the two sides have been in contact. Smith also stated that the former USC star has been “linked” to the Lakers, Heat, Warriors, and Trail Blazers, though it’s unclear whether all of those teams have registered legitimate interest in the 36-year-old or whether they’re simply viewed by outsiders as logical landing spots.

According to Stein, a “more complete picture” of the teams in the mix for DeRozan will likely emerge after LeBron James decides on his next team, since a few of the same clubs pursuing James may shift their focus to DeRozan if they miss out on LeBron.