Detroit Pistons

The Detroit Pistons have officially hired Oklahoma City Thunder vice president of basketball operations Troy Weaver to be their new general manager.  

Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Pistons signed Weaver to a four-year contract to run their front office. 

This comes after Marc Stein of the New York Times reported June 15 Weaver was the "top choice" for the position.

James L. Edwards III of The Athletic reported former Atlanta Hawks general manager Wes Wilcox, Los Angeles Clippers assistant general manager Mark Hughes and New Orleans Pelicans assistant general manager Bryson Graham were also candidates.

Wojnarowski tweeted Hughes, Weaver and Brooklyn Nets assistant general manager Jeff Peterson emerged as the "three serious candidates."

Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press noted the Pistons were looking for an experienced candidate who would report to senior adviser Ed Stefanski.

Sankofa's report also made it clear the Pistons saw former players Chauncey Billups and Tayshaun Prince as candidates for the assistant general manager position, which follows with the desire to hire someone with extensive experience.

OKC hired Weaver, who was previously the director of player personnel and head scout for the Utah Jazz, in May 2008. He worked his way up to vice president of basketball operations after spending seven seasons as the vice president/assistant general manager. He helped build a team that reached the 2012 NBA Finals and went to the Western Conference Finals four times in a six-season span from 2010-11 to 2015-16.

Weaver emerged from the group of candidates and now has plenty of work to do in the immediate future.

The Pistons have a favorable draft pick and plenty of cap space to work with approaching an offseason that would likely see it attempt to bring back emerging focal point Christian Wood and perhaps trade Derrick Rose and Tony Snell's expiring contracts, per Sankofa.

The Pistons finished the 2019-20 season with a 20-46 record, which was not good enough to earn an invite to Orlando, Florida, for the 22-team format to resume the season following a hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

They needed to be within six games of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and they were 10.5 games back of the Orlando Magic.

Detroit has not won a playoff series since the 2007-08 campaign, which is when Billups was a player and not someone who was connected to the front office. Weaver will look to restore some of the former glory to a franchise that has struggled of late.  

The Detroit Pistons are zeroing in on Oklahoma City Thunder vice president of basketball operations Troy Weaver as they continue their search for a general manager, according to the New York Times' Marc Stein on Sunday.

Stein reported the Pistons are "actively working to complete a deal to hire Weaver."

However, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, citing sources, reported on Monday: "Three serious candidates have emerged for the Detroit Pistons GM job: Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes, Nets assistant GM Jeff Peterson and [Weaver]. Those conversations are continuing this week." 

The Washington Wizards interviewed Weaver for their GM vacancy in May 2019. He turned down the opportunity to go through a second round of interviews earlier this spring with the Chicago Bulls, who were looking for a head of basketball operations.

In a 2017 interview with The Oklahoman's Brett Dawson, Weaver explained he wasn't going to leave Oklahoma City without feeling confident about the direction of his next franchise.

"More often than not, you're going [to a new job] because they haven't had success," he said. "You want to feel good that you're going into a situation where your vision matches up with the ownership and the city's vision for success."

Weaver's first comment applies to the Pistons for the most part. Detroit finished the 2019-20 season with the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference (20-46), and it's likely headed for a lengthy rebuild.

"We were always discussing that we're going to have to probably rebuild because we're in the middle of the pack and to me that's not the place we want to be and where fans want to be," Pistons senior adviser Ed Stefanski told reporters in February.

Stefanski said that after the Pistons traded Andre Drummond for pennies on the dollar. The return from that move (Brandon Knight, John Henson and a 2023 second-round pick) showed Detroit was effectively waving the white flag in terms of a playoff push for the next few years.

From that perspective, Weaver would be a great fit.

Because they don't play in a favorable market, the Thunder are largely left to build through the draft and trades, much like the Pistons.

Since May 2008, Weaver has worked alongside Sam Presti as Oklahoma City assembled a roster that included three future MVPs (Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden), reshuffled after Durant's departure with the acquisition of Paul George and then tore it all down while stockpiling draft picks.

Assuming he lands in the Motor City, Weaver would have a daunting task in front of him. Blake Griffin underwent knee surgery in January, and the Pistons appear to have little in the way of young foundational pieces around whom they can build.

Detroit Pistons fans may not have loved watching The Last Dance documentary that chronicled the dominance of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls during the 1990s, but their team's power forward certainly did.

As Brad Galli of WXYZ Detroit shared, Blake Griffin said he looked forward to every episode and called it "basketball porn."

The Jordan Brand athlete joked that he needs a new Jordan story now since the one he frequently shared described how His Airness told him about Dennis Rodman leaving the Bulls in the middle of the 1997-98 season to go to Las Vegas. 

That story is now common knowledge after it was featured in the documentary.

Griffin's love of Jordan may not sit well with Pistons fans considering Detroit was pitted as an obvious foil to Chicago in The Last Dance. After all, the Pistons defeated Jordan's Bulls in the 1988, 1989 and 1990 playoffs with a physical brand of basketball that became their trademark.

Jordan had the last laugh in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals with a clean sweep of Detroit, and the series lives on in basketball lore because the Pistons famously walked off the court before the final buzzer sounded.

As The Last Dance showed, there is still plenty of bad blood between members of those teams.

That bad blood didn't trickle down to current Pistons star Griffin, though, as he clearly enjoyed the documentary starring the six-time champion Bulls.

The Detroit Pistons reportedly have some interest in hiring Chauncey Billups as assistant general manager once they hire a GM. 

According to Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press, the Pistons would "welcome" a reunion with Billups, but they would prefer not to hire him as the general manager since he has no front office experience.

Sankofa noted that a source indicated that Billups only has interest in taking a GM job. Another former Pistons player, Tayshaun Prince, is reportedly being considered for the assistant GM role as well.

Billups was a candidate to become the Cleveland Cavaliers' president of basketball operations three years ago, but he removed himself from consideration.

The 43-year-old Billups is one of the most revered players in Pistons history. Known as Mr. Big Shot due to his penchant for coming through in the clutch, Billups spent parts of eight seasons with the Pistons from 2002-03 through 2008-09 and again to close out his career during the 2013-14 season.

In his 482 regular-season games with Detroit, Billups averaged 16.5 points, 6.2 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.8 three-pointers made per contest.

The five-time All-Star helped lead the Pistons to the playoffs on six occasions, and he came up big on the playoff stage with 17.6 points, 5.9 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game in 111 playoff outings as a member of the Pistons.

Most notably, Billups was named 2004 NBA Finals MVP, as he spearheaded the Pistons' championship win over the Los Angeles Lakers. Billups also led the Pistons to the Finals the following year.

The Pistons fired Jeff Bower from his GM position in June 2018, which led to senior adviser Ed Stefanski becoming the primary decision-maker in the front office. The new general manager is expected to work closely with Stefanski.

Whoever takes over as Pistons GM will have a tough job on their hands, as the Pistons have reached the playoffs only twice in the past 11 years and have finished with a winning record once during that time frame.

Detroit was 20-46 this season before the coronavirus pandemic halted play, and its season is officially over, as it wasn't one of the 22 teams invited to continue playing in Orlando under the NBA's resumption plan.

Detroit Pistons head coach Dwane Casey said he wants to help lead by example in addressing racial injustice in the United States. 

"I've been through segregation, forced integration, and I think as an NBA coach we have a small platform to be able to help and get someone to listen," Casey said Wednesday, per the Detroit Free Press' Omari Sankofa II:

Casey was part of a Pistons contingent marching in protests around Detroit.

In a statement on the Pistons' site, Casey recounted how he was eight years old when schools in Kentucky desegregated in 1966. He said when he began attending a formerly all-white school he "felt helpless" and "felt as if I was neither seen, nor heard, nor understood."

Casey added that in light of recent events he pondered whether enough progress has been made since then:

"Fifty-four years later, my son is now eight years old and I look at the world he is growing up in and wonder, how much has really changed? How often is he judged on sight?  Is he growing up in a world where he is seen, and heard, and understood?  Does he feel helpless?  Will he be treated like George Floyd or Ahmaud Abrey?  What have we really done in the last 54 years to make his eight-year-old world better than mine was?  We all have to be and do better."

Protests have been ongoing around the country, with the killing of George Floyd leading many people to demonstrate publicly.

On May 25, Minneapolis police officers approached Floyd in his car while investigating an alleged forgery in progress. After Floyd was removed from the car, officer Derek Chauvin was shown on video kneeling on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes. Floyd died at a local hospital.

Chauvin was first charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has since upgraded his charge to second-degree murder, while the other three officers involved in the arrest were charged with aiding and abetting. All four officers were also fired.

The killings of Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor have also helped fuel the sense of urgency and demands for change among protesters.

In February, Arbery was jogging around a residential neighborhood in Georgia when a father and son began following him in their truck. A third man used his truck to help pen Arbery in. Travis McMichael exited one truck with a shotgun and got into a confrontation with Arbery. McMichael fired three shots and Arbery was killed.

Travis McMichael, Gregory McMichael and William Bryan Jr. were all charged in Arbery's murder in May.

The FBI opened an investigation into Taylor's death last month. Louisville police officers forcibly entered Taylor's home in March to serve a search warrant and shot her at least eight times. Her family filed a wrongful death suit, alleging the officers unlawfully entered her home and failed to announce themselves as the police.

The Detroit Pistons reportedly haven't requested an interview with Tayshaun Prince, a member of the franchise's 2004 NBA championship team, for its vacant general manager position.

ESPN's Eric Woodyard reported the update Wednesday and noted Prince, who's the Memphis Grizzlies' vice president of basketball affairs, "wasn't on Detroit's initial interview list."

Prince joined the Grizzlies' front office in 2017 as an adviser and has quickly worked through the ranks.

Last June, Memphis executive vice president Zach Kleiman said the University of Kentucky product has established himself as a "core member" of the front office, per David Cobb of the Commercial Appeal.

"That's evaluating players, that's NBA, G League, international," Kleiman said. "But it's also evaluating coaching talent. Tayshaun obviously has an incredible wealth of experience, hands-on experience over the course of his playing career."

The 40-year-old California native's rapid rise in Memphis raised speculation about whether he could return to the Pistons to lead a front office. So far, it appears the team is looking in a different direction.

Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reported Detroit has three early contenders in its search, which will be "extensive:"

• Former Phoenix Suns GM Ryan McDonough
• Former Atlanta Hawks GM Wes Wilcox
• Los Angeles Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes

The team's choice will work alongside senior adviser Ed Stefanski.

Prince spent the first 11 years of his NBA career with the Pistons and returned for a second half-season stint in 2015. He also played for the Grizzlies, Boston Celtics and Minnesota Timberwolves before his playing days ended in 2016.

His name will likely pop up in general manager rumors consistently once the 2019-20 season resumes and the offseason comes more into focus amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Detroit Pistons are casting a wide net in their search for a new general manager. 

The New York Daily News' Stefan Bondy reported the Pistons have begun to look at former Phoenix Suns GM Ryan McDonough, former Atlanta Hawks GM Wes Wilcox and Los Angeles Clippers assistant GM Mark Hughes.

Bondy reported earlier that Pistons assistant GM Malik Rose was leaving the team.

Bondy noted the new general manager would work alongside Ed Stefanski, who's a senior advisor to team owner Tom Gores.

Hughes interviewed for the Chicago Bulls' GM vacancy in April. The Bulls settled on Marc Eversley after hiring Arturas Karnisovas as their executive vice president of basketball operations.

Few remember McDonough's tenure in Phoenix fondly as the team whiffed on a number of first-round picks, most notably Dragan Bender and Marquese Chriss in 2016. The Suns' internal dysfunction may have made McDonough's job impossible, though.

Wilcox's brief tenure in Atlanta is most remembered for the circumstances behind his departure. He made a racially insensitive joke during an event for select fans in December 2016, and he was gone at the end of the 2016-17 season.

Given the scarcity of jobs available, teams never have trouble finding candidates for a top-level position in their front office. The Pistons are unlikely to be a marquee destination for proven executives or those looking for their first crack at a GM gig.

In January 2018, Detroit acquired Blake Griffin in a bid to gain relevancy and bolster its playoff chances. While the team reached the first round of the 2019 playoffs, it may be looking at a total teardown.

Rather than see him potentially trigger his $28.8 million player option for 2020-21, the Pistons traded Andre Drummond to the Cleveland Cavaliers for pennies on the dollar. They got back Brandon Knight, John Henson and a 2023 second-round pick in what amounted to a salary dump.

Griffin isn't going anywhere because he's owed $36.6 million next year and has a $39 million player option for 2021-22. Aside from him, the cupboard is pretty bare, especially in terms of younger players around whom the franchise can build.

Although Luke Kennard has made a nice jump in his third season, he was the subject of trade rumors this summer. According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Detroit was working on a deal with the Suns but couldn't agree to terms on the protections Phoenix would place on an outgoing first-round pick.

Perhaps a new voice in the front office would value Kennard, who's due to hit restricted free agency in 2021, differently.

Either way, the Pistons could be looking at a barren period for a few years before they assemble the kind of roster that can provide some optimism for the future.

Richard Hamilton believes the Detroit Pistons would have won more than one championship if the team had selected Carmelo Anthony instead of Darko Milicic in the 2003 NBA draft.

Appearing on the All the Smoke podcast with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Hamilton called Anthony a "once in a generation-type talent" and said adding him to the roster the Pistons already had in place would have helped them win three championships. 

Coming off a 50-win season and an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals during the 2002-03 season, the Pistons received the No. 2 overall pick in the draft thanks to a 1997 trade with the Vancouver Grizzlies for Otis Thorpe.

LeBron James was the unanimous choice as the best player in the 2003 draft with Milicic widely thought of as the No. 2 player. Anthony entered the draft after a freshman season at Syracuse in which he led the Orange to a national championship and was named Final Four Most Outstanding Player.

Milicic was an unknown commodity to American fans, but the Serbian star was highly regarded in the scouting community leading up to the draft.

Writing for ESPN, Chad Ford called Milicic a "one of a kind" talent who "runs the floor, handles the ball, shoots the NBA three-pointer, plays with his back to the basket, so you can slot him in at the 3, 4 or 5."

Tony Ronzone, the Pistons' director of international scouting in 2003, called Milicic "a freak athlete at 17" in Brian Windhorst's oral history of the 2003 draft for ESPN in 2013.

The Pistons took Milicic at No. 2 overall. He had occasional flourishes during his 10-year NBA career but never became more than a role player and averaged just six points per game in 468 games with six different teams.

Detroit did win a championship during Milicic's rookie season and reached the Finals again the following year, but that turned into the peak of that era with the nucleus of Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace, Ben Wallace and Chauncey Billups.

Anthony will likely be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame when his career comes to an end. He is one of the premier scorers of his generation with an average of 23.6 points per game in 17 NBA seasons.

The Detroit Pistons are reportedly looking to hire a full-time general manager who will work alongside Ed Stefanski in the front office.

Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Pistons will start contacting potential candidates to set up interviews this week.

Stefanski, whose official title is senior adviser, has been running Detroit's basketball operations department since Stan Van Gundy was fired in May 2018.

According to Wojnarowski, the Pistons general manager will work next to Stefanski and head coach Dwane Casey on roster personnel matters.

The Pistons were in the midst of one of their worst years ever when play was suspended in March. Their .303 winning percentage is the sixth-lowest in franchise history. Their 20-46 overall record is the fifth-worst in the NBA this season.

Detroit took steps toward beginning a rebuild in February when it traded Andre Drummond to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The franchise has only made the postseason twice since the 2009-10 season and hasn't advanced past the first round since reaching the Eastern Conference Finals in 2008.

Michael Jordan showcased a lot of emotion discussing his intense and competitive personality during Sunday's episode of The Last Dance," a moment Blake Griffin appreciated. 

The Detroit Pistons star discussed the documentary on The Encore with Sage Steele (13:30):

"It is interesting seeing his true, unfiltered, sort of, relationship with the game and how much it means to him," Griffin said of Jordan.

The most notable example came after Jordan discussed himself being viewed as a "tyrant" against his teammates.

"If you don't want to play that way, don't play that way," Jordan said while tearing up.

While the documentary showed the Hall of Famer being hard on his teammates, Griffin said this isn't out of the ordinary from what he's seen in his 11 seasons in the NBA. 

"So far I haven't really seen anything that I thought was that crazy," he said. "... Everybody talks trash during practice. Everybody's competitive. Obviously, he's very, very competitive. I haven't really seen anything that would make me think, he's a bad guy or a bad teammate or anything like that." 

Though Jordan's vulnerability was somewhat surprising, it makes sense considering his love for the game.

"If your emotions aren't involved in it, then you kind of question where your motives are and where your head's at," Griffin added.

The latest episode of the documentary showed Jordan yelling at teammates, including Scott Burrell, while also describing a training camp fight with Steve Kerr. It's clearly hasn't caused some to change their opinions about the legendary player.