Andre Drummond opted not to sign a new contract with the Detroit Pistons and will delay his decision about a deal until he becomes a restricted free agent next summer.

However, despite the fact that Drummond declined to sign a new deal, ESPN reported that the former Connecticut standout remains committed to the Pistons. Drummond and the Pistons mutually agreed to delay the deal until next summer in the hope of signing another top free agent in July next year.

Drummond will be playing in the final year of his rookie contract. With their decision, the Pistons will have around $13 million additional salary-cap space next offseason and could still sign Drummond to a maximum deal once they are done tweaking their roster via free agency.

With the expected increase in salary cap next summer, the Pistons could have as much as $30 million to use in signing big-name free agents next summer. Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Kevin Durant is expected to become the most coveted free agent next summer.

Drummond, who averaged 13.8 points and 13.5 rebounds on top of 1.9 blocks per game last season, was expected to sign a maximum five-year deal worth around $120 million this offseason.

"It shows a sign of maturity on my side to really just take that leap and just give my team a chance to build on what we have here," Drummond told MLive. "Would it be nice to have it? Absolutely. But that's not the point right now. I'm into winning and trying to make my team as good as possible."

When asked about the decision, Pistons coach and president Stan Van Gundy also insisted that Drummond remains committed to Detroit, who selected the 22-year-old center as the ninth overall pick in 2012.

"Andre wants to be here long-term," Van Gundy told reporters, when asked about Drummond's commitment "He wants us to have the flexibility to continue to add people to this team."

The ESPN report also pointed out that it was similar to the decision made by the San Antonio Spurs and Kawhi Leonard, who agreed to delay a deal until this offseason to give the team enough cap room to sign free agents.

In turn, the Spurs managed to sign former Portland Trail Blazers superstar LaMarcus Aldridge. After signing Aldridge, Leonard then inked a five-year contract worth $90 million.

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