7:23 PM: Detroit has officially waived Gbinije, according to a team press release.
12:35 PM: The Pistons will waive swingman Michael Gbinije on Saturday before his $1.3MM salary for next season becomes guaranteed, a source with firsthand knowledge told Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.
A second-round pick in 2016, Gbinije spent most of his time with the G League’s Grand Rapids Drive last season. The 6’7” Gbinije, who played college ball at Syracuse before he was selected with the 49th overall pick, appeared in just nine games with Detroit during his rookie season. He battled some injuries that affected his chances of seeing more time with the Pistons.
Gbinije started 16 games for the Drive, averaging 12.0 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.8 APG and 1.9 SPG.
The move was expected, given the recent roster decisions made by Pistons coach and president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy. He acquired Avery Bradley from the Celtics, signed Langston Galloway as a free agent and drafted Luke Kennard, giving the Pistons three shooting guards. Detroit also re-signed Reggie Bullock this week as the No. 3 option at small forward behind holdovers Tobias Harris and Stanley Johnson. The Bullock signing made Gbinije expendable.
Meet the next member of Boeheim’s Army in the Basketball Tournament.
The pistons just have too many of the same type of players and in another move I would’ve rather seen the pistons trade Stanley Johnson instead of Marcus Morris!! I thought Morris could’ve been a key players in this years team and in the future. Stanley just hasn’t been doing what I thought he would do , his scoring and rebounds are down from his rookie yr to this his 2nd yr !! I understand he’s really really young at only 20 with 2 seasons under his belt. If they can get Andre and Reggie J to get back to what there capable of then maybe we’ll have a chance this year for a decent record!!