After falling out of the rotation partially because of some inconsistency on the offensive end, Stanley Johnson thrived Saturday night in a game for the Pistons’ D-League affiliate, Aaron McMann of MLive writes. Johnson, whom the Pistons picked up a 2017/18 option on, rediscovered his scoring ability with 26 points, as McMann relays. This was the first time Johnson was assigned to the D-League and it will be interesting to see when he can regain a spot in the rotation after McMann writes that he seemingly fell out of favor with the coaching staff.
Here’s more out of Detroit:
- Johnson’s stint in the D-League may act as a wake-up call as he was expected back with the Pistons on Sunday, Rod Beard of The Detroit News writes. Johnson, who appeared to be a solid piece of the Pistons’ long-term plans after averaging 8.1 points as a rookie last season, took a positive step forward and must use that as a building block, Beard adds.
- Unprompted, coach Stan Van Gundy squashed trade rumors involving the Pistons during a pregame presser and there has been no indication that the Pistons would be willing to surrender a talented haul in exchange for an all-star, Beard writes in a separate story.