Derrick Rose is set to start for Team USA in tonight’s match-up with Brazil, and a good performance will be a nice Saturday night treat for fans in Chicago and basketball lovers in general. Here’s a rundown of Eastern notes:
- John Zitzler of Basketball Insiders recaps the Pistons‘ offseason and comes to the conclusion that Stan Van Gundy is attempting to set up Detroit for a playoff push in the coming year, but the team will need some serious reconstruction in order to achieve long-term success.
- In a mailbag response, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel suggests that the allure of “Heat culture” being a draw for free agents took a blow when LeBron James left.
- In a separate subscription-only piece, Winderman looks back at Greg Oden‘s time with the Heat, which went from a hopeful story of redemption to disappointment on the court and turbulence off it.
Charlie Adams contributed to this post.