Building the Front Office, Coaching Carousel, and Nikola Topić | The Weekly Drive
More executives are coming to Detroit, the NBA coaching wheel is spinning wildly, and a key draft prospect has an injury.
Good morning all, and welcome to another edition of the Palace of Pistons Weekly Drive. The Pistons continued to add to their front office, the coaching carousel continued to spin wildly, and a lottery pick had a major injury. Let’s get into it.
Building the Front Office
New president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon already brought over Michael Blackstone from the New Orleans Pelicans front office, and now he is reportedly bringing another familiar face to Motown, too. J.R. Holden, the Director of Player Personnel with the Brooklyn Nets, will join the Pistons front office per Yahoo Sports.
Holden played with Langdon on CSKA Moscow and won two Euroleague championships in the process. Per his LinkedIn page, Holden was also acting as the General Manager of the Nets’ G League team. While Holden’s role with the Pistons has not been identified, he worked for Detroit in the scouting department from 2014-2018.
While the front office continues to be fleshed out, the one question continues to be the Pistons’ head coach. As in, who is going to be the head coach next season?
What’s Up with Monty Williams?
The Pistons have been quiet on head coach Monty Williams’ future, a sign that they may be considering his future. Detroit hasn’t scheduled an introductory press conference with Langdon yet either, an indication they are holding off until a decision is made on Williams.
Marc Stein, according to his Substack, floated the idea that the Los Angeles Lakers would consider Williams for their head coaching vacancy if he were to suddenly become available. From someone like Stein, those sorts of rumors don’t just pop up out of nothing - where there’s smoke, there’s a fire somewhere.
If Williams is let go, there will be a host of options for the Pistons. J.J. Redick, the presumed front-runner for the Lakers, has some competition now with UConn head coach Dan Hurley in a freak Thursday morning bomb from ESPN. James Borrego, in contention for the Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers head coaching role, may also be available. Kenny Atkinson, the former Nets head coach and current Golden State Warriors assistant, is considered the favorite in Cleveland per sources.
The point is, that the Pistons will have some options should they move on from Williams and his mammoth contract. All signs point to that happening.
NBA Draft News
Projected lottery pick Nikola Topić, who was under consideration by the Pistons with the fifth pick, has a partially torn ACL according to his agent. That’s a tough blow for the young point guard and his draft stock. You can find out more about Topic and two other prospects that the Pistons should avoid, in this article from Aaron Johnson.
Zach Edey, the NCAA National Player of the Year, is viewed as a player likely to be drafted between picks 9-19 according to ESPN. That likely won’t matter to the Pistons, unless they trade down. Edey showed improved foot speed and and mobility during the NBA Combine, which were considered his main question marks coming into the draft.
The Chicago Bulls are a team interested in trading up, potentially for Donovan Clingan or Matas Buzelis per ESPN. That could potentially align directly with a Pistons trade with the fifth pick. Anyone interested in Zach LaVine?
Other News and Notes
Cade Cunningham is eligible for the rookie scale max extension, and the expectation is that he would be offered it per The Athletic. The contract would be for five years and $225 million.
While it has been reported that NBC will acquire a piece of the NBA’s media, TNT is trying to make a last-ditch effort to retain part of its share per Front Office Sports.
The Lakers are widely expected to draft Bronny James with either of their draft picks to keep LeBron James per Bleacher Report. The idea that they could pair the younger James with Hurley, one of the top college coaches, could also benefit his growth.
Another week has passed, and that means we are getting ever closer to the NBA offseason. Thanks for reading this edition of the Weekly Drive, and see you next Monday for more.
Mike