Detroit Pistons Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pistons Sign Cheick Diallo To 10-Day Deal

December 23rd, 2021 at 10:55am CST by Luke Adams

DECEMBER 23: Diallo’s 10-day contract with the Pistons is now official, per NBA.com’s transactions log. It’ll run through January 1.

DECEMBER 22: The Pistons are signing big man Cheick Diallo to a 10-day contract, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Diallo had been playing for the Motor City Cruise, Detroit’s G League affiliate.

The fact that it’s a 10-day agreement means the Pistons will use a hardship exception to complete the signing. Entering the day, Detroit had been one of nine teams without a player in the health and safety protocols — this deal suggests that’s about to change, since the club doesn’t have enough injured players to qualify for a hardship signing.

The 33rd overall pick in the 2016 draft, Diallo has appeared in a total of 180 regular season NBA games for the Pelicans and Suns. He averaged 4.7 PPG and 2.8 RPG in 47 games (10.2 MPG) for Phoenix in 2019/20, then spent last season in Russia and Spain.

The 25-year-old returned stateside this season and has averaged 14.2 PPG and 8.5 RPG on 71.4% shooting in 13 games (21.7 MPG) at the G League level.

Diallo will earn $102,831 on his 10-day contract, but it won’t count toward the Pistons’ team salary for cap or tax purposes.

Pacific Notes: Westbrook, Thompson, R. Jackson, Hield

December 22nd, 2021 at 10:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

With three straight losses, an injured star, and COVID-19 affecting both the roster and the coaching staff, acting Lakers head coach David Fizdale feels like Russell Westbrook may be trying too hard to fix the situation by himself, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Westbrook has posted impressive numbers in the two games since Anthony Davis suffered an MCL sprain, averaging 21.0 points, 9.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.0 steals, but he’s also committed a combined 13 turnovers, which Fizdale said disrupts the offense.

“I think the circumstances over the last few games, with so many people being in and out, triggered in him that he had to save us,” Fizdale said.

Already dealing with a disappointing season at 16-16, the Lakers are now facing the uncertainty that many teams have felt since the latest COVID-19 outbreak began sweeping through the league two weeks ago. They’re scheduled to host the Nets on Christmas Day, but Brooklyn’s last three games have been postponed.

“You’re just taking it and living day to day, you just don’t know what’s going to happen,” Carmelo Anthony said. “We could wake up tomorrow morning and they could say our game tomorrow is canceled. … Again, we don’t know what’s gonna happen, so we’re taking it day to day and we’re just trying to stay on top of what we need to stay on top of. But as we can see, it’s affecting everybody. It’s affecting a lot of different people, people who are vaccinated, people who do have boosters, so you just don’t know what’s going to happen.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Warriors players are raving about Klay Thompson after watching him in workouts, according to Shayna Rubin of The San Jose Mercury News. Thompson is expected to return sometime in January, and his teammates say he’s looking like the player he was before the injuries. “He’s always going to shoot the ball well, but he seems really confident in his body,” Kevon Looney said. “He’s going up for dunks. He’s playing physical and when you see that much confidence in him, it means he’s getting close to ready. It’s a joy to have in practice to have his energy back.”
Clippers guard Reggie Jackson entered the league’s health and safety protocols today, but he’s not experiencing any effects from the virus, tweets Mirjam Swanson of The Orange County Register. “Reggie says he feels fine, no symptoms, so that’s a good sign,” coach Tyronn Lue said. “Happy for him about that.”
With trade rumors heating up again for Buddy Hield, Mark Schindler of Basketball News examines three potential destinations for the Kings guard. Schindler suggests deals that would send Hield to the Magic, Grizzlies or Pistons.

Pistons Notes: Rotation Changes, Cunningham, Grant, Garza

December 22nd, 2021 at 5:23pm CST by Arthur Hill

Fill-in Pistons coach Rex Kalamian had to get creative when Killian Hayes was a late scratch for Tuesday’s game, writes Omar Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press. Replacing head coach Dwane Casey, who was away from the team on a personal matter, Kalamian inserted veteran guard Cory Joseph into the starting lineup and tinkered with the rotation throughout the game. He found an effective combination in the third quarter with Saben Lee and Trey Lyles, who helped cut a deficit from 22 points to nine.

“Sometimes through injury or through foul trouble, we have to find new rotations and new combinations that’ll work,” Kalamian said. “For us tonight, it seemed like the Trey Lyles-Saben Lee combination really worked for a little while. And even the other three guys, they were feeding into it. They had great spacing, and they were helping out a lot. It’s just one of those things that you gotta keep searching sometimes, keep rotating guys in and out. That’s what I tried to do in the fourth quarter, get combinations to work.”

The Pistons’ plans have been upended by injuries to Kelly Olynyk, who has only played 10 games, and Jerami Grant, who was leading the team in scoring before undergoing thumb surgery last week. Sankofa notes that Friday will mark six weeks since Olynyk suffered a sprained left knee, so he may be close to returning soon.

There’s more from Detroit:

With Cade Cunningham entering health and safety protocols, James L. Edwards III of The Athletic looks at how the team will adjust until the rookie can return. Edwards expects Frank Jackson to move into the starting lineup, while Lee should see more minutes off the bench and Josh Jackson may find his way back into the rotation.
Trade rumors surrounding Grant stem at least in part from his upcoming eligibility for an extension worth up to $112MM over four years, Edwards writes in a mailbag column. Edwards believes the Pistons want to eventually build around Cunningham, so they’re likely to see what they can get in return for Grant, rather than spend that much to keep him. Edwards also states that general manager Troy Weaver would likely consult with Grant while working out a trade because they have a long relationship that pre-dates Detroit.
Second-round pick Luka Garza may see more minutes as the season wears on, Edwards adds in the same piece. Garza’s lack of quickness limits what he can do on defense, but he has already displayed his offensive talents in limited playing time.

Pistons’ Cunningham, Sixers’ Green Enter Protocols

December 22nd, 2021 at 3:49pm CST by Luke Adams

The list of players in the NBA’s health and safety protocols continues to grow. Pistons guard Cade Cunningham and Sixers wing Danny Green are the two latest players to enter the protocols, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links).

Word broke earlier this afternoon that Detroit had lined up a hardship deal with Cheick Diallo, which suggested that a Piston was about to enter the health and safety protocols. Unfortunately, it’s the No. 1 overall pick, who had been hitting his stride lately after a slow start to his rookie season.

Despite a couple clunkers this week vs. Miami and New York, Cunningham has averaged 18.7 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 5.7 APG on .447/.441/.826 shooting in his last 10 games (33.9 MPG). Now, he’ll be sidelined at least 10 days, unless he can register two consecutive negative COVID-19 tests at least 24 hours apart before then.

While Cunningham is the first Piston to enter the health and safety protocols this week, Green has some company in Philadelphia — Andre Drummond, Shake Milton, and Georges Niang are also in the protocols. The Sixers have already signed one replacement player – Tyler Johnson – and are eligible to add more if they so choose.

By our count, there are now 96 NBA players in the league’s health and safety protocols, though that number is constantly fluctuating.

Kalamian Replaced Casey On Sidelines Again On Tuesday

December 22nd, 2021 at 8:41am CST by Luke Adams

Rex Kalamian, who has been an NBA assistant coach for 28 years, got a chance to serve as the Pistons‘ acting head coach on two occasions in the past week – including on Tuesday – when Dwane Casey was away from the team for personal reasons. As James L. Edwards III of The Athletic details, Kalamian appreciates the opportunity, but remains happy in his role as an assistant. “As an assistant coach, you do a lot more development with the players than the head coach,” he said. “The head coaches are not nearly as involved with the day-to-day development of players. But as an assistant, that’s something that has always been fun for me and a challenge to step in and get on the court every day with players.”

Jerami Grant Undergoes Thumb Surgery

December 17th, 2021 at 1:57pm CST by Luke Adams

Pistons forward Jerami Grant underwent a successful surgical procedure on Thursday to repair the UCL ligament in his right thumb, the team announced today in a press release. According to the Pistons, Grant will be reevaluated in six weeks.

That six-week timeline was reported over the weekend when Grant was first diagnosed with a ligament tear in his thumb. There’s no guarantee the 27-year-old will be cleared to return to action at that time, but it sounds like the earliest we could see him back on the court would be at the end of January.

Grant’s return date is worth keeping an eye on, since he has been cited recently as a possible in-season trade candidate. Marc Stein was the latest to confirm the rumor, writing today on Substack that there’s a “rising belief” Detroit is open to moving Grant, who is increasingly viewed by rival teams as one of the NBA’s top trade candidates. The trade deadline lands on February 10 this season, so Grant’s potential suitors will have to feel comfortable about his health before offering up major assets for him.

In 78 games (33.7 MPG) across two seasons with the Pistons, Grant has averaged 21.6 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 2.7 APG, and 1.1 BPG on .425/.344/.847 shooting. His averages this season are 20.1 PPG and 4.8 RPG with a .414/.331/.849 shooting line in 24 contests (33.2 MPG).

Casey Misses Pacers Game For Personal Reasons

December 16th, 2021 at 5:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pistons coach Dwane Casey will miss tonight’s game against Indiana due to personal reasons, Keith Langlois of the team’s website tweets. It’s not due to a COVID-19 issue. Assistant Rex Kalamian will run the show in Casey’s absence. It’s unknown whether Casey will return to coach the team in two home games this weekend.

Central Notes: Bulls, Boucek, Pistons, Lee

December 14th, 2021 at 5:39pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Bulls have announced (Twitter link) that their next contest, scheduled to be a Sunday matinee matchup against the Lakers, has been pushed back to a later start time. The game will now tip off at 7 p.m. CT, after originally being scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. CT.

It was announced yesterday that the NBA would postpone Chicago’s two other scheduled games this week – tonight against the Pistons and Thursday night against the Raptors – after it was revealed that as many as 10 Bulls are currently in the league’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago tweets that Coby White, Javonte Green, Derrick Jones Jr., and star wing DeMar DeRozan all have a chance to be cleared by the new tip-off time Sunday. It was reported over the weekend that White had returned to the Bulls’ Advocate Center practice facility for the first time since his diagnosis.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

After missing the Pacers‘ Monday loss to the Warriors, Indiana assistant coach Jenny Boucek is now in the league’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols, per Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. The first-season assistant will be replaced by Calbert Cheaney on the front of the bench, Agness adds.
Pistons head coach Dwane Casey has revealed that the NBA will examine game tape to determine which Nets players came into “close contact” with Detroit players, per James Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). Brooklyn players Paul Millsap, LaMarcus Aldridge, DeAndre’ Bembry, Jevon Carter, and James Johnson are currently in the league’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
The Pistons are optimistic that the G League play of second-year point guard Saben Lee will translate at the NBA level, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Langlois notes that the early returns have been positive, and could lead to more minutes with Detroit for Lee. “I’m just doing whatever the coaches ask me to do,” Lee said. “Up here, I know there’s a lot of scorers, a lot of shooters. Whatever coach [Casey] asks me to do, I’m going to do that. That’s how I navigate that.” Saben played with Detroit’s NBAGL club, the Motor City Cruise, for his first seven contests this season.

Practice "Very Important" For Floundering Club

December 13th, 2021 at 7:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons have lost 12 straight and their game at Chicago, scheduled for Tuesday, has been postponed due to COVID-19 issues among the Bulls. Detroit won’t play again until Thursday against Indiana and that’s just fine with coach Dwane Casey, Rod Beard of the Detroit News tweets. “It gives us a couple of days of practice, which is very, very important,” Casey said.

NBA Postpones Bulls’ Next Two Games

December 13th, 2021 at 12:38pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has postponed the Bulls‘ game in Chicago on Tuesday vs. the Pistons, reports Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link). The league is also postponing the Bulls’ game in Toronto against the Raptors on Thursday, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

The Bulls have 10 players in the league’s health and safety protocols related to COVID-19. With Patrick Williams also sidelined due to a long-term wrist injury, Chicago has just eight active players. The club also has staff members and commentators in the protocols.

Typically, the NBA won’t postpone a game unless a team has fewer than eight players available, but the league is playing it safe in this instance to allow the Bulls to get a little healthier and to avoid risking further spread of COVID-19, tweets Wojnarowski.

Woj adds (via Twitter) that Chicago’s Department of Public Health was concerned about the Bulls continuing to play this week, which was a factor in the league’s decision.

Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Ayo Dosunmu, Derrick Jones Jr., Troy Brown Jr., Matt Thomas, Stanley Johnson, Alize Johnson, Coby White, and Javonte Green are the Bulls players in the protocols. White and Green are reportedly the closest to returning to action, but haven’t yet been fully cleared.

Last season, dozens of games were postponed due to COVID-19 outbreaks and/or contact tracing. While a number of players have entered the league’s health and safety protocols after testing positive this season, the schedule hadn’t been affected at all until now — these are the first two postponements of the 2021/22 campaign.