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Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are without a G League team this season.
The Grand Rapids Drive opted out of the NBA’s G League bubble near Orlando and officially ended their affiliation with the Pistons. Their new affiliate, the Motor City Cruise, won’t play its inaugural season until this fall.
From a player development standpoint, the lack of a G League team impacts their strategy. Typically, two-way players such as rookie Saben Lee and Frank Jackson, along with the rookies and other young players on the roster, would split time between the G League squad and main roster. It allows them to practice multiple times a day and play live games in a low-stakes setting.
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This season, the Pistons and the other 11 teams without an affiliate will be allowed to assign players to the G League bubble, using the league’s flexible assignment and Two-Way rules, after it begins play in February. It’s an option worth considering, coach Dwane Casey said after practice Tuesday.
Casey mentioned Lee and fellow rookie sharpshooter Deividas Sirvydis as players who could be assigned, but acknowledged every young player could use the time.
The Pistons would have to figure out how long it would take for each player to clear health and safety protocols to join and leave the bubble. Depending on the number of games an assignment would last, Casey would face the possibility of not having a player for a week, or longer.
Both two-way players, Lee and Jackson, have briefly entered the rotation when the Pistons lacked depth at point guard. With Killian Hayes out for an extended period of time with a torn labrum in his hip, any extended absences from Delon Wright or Derrick Rose would leave the Pistons thin.
“It’s a tricky situation,” Casey said. “Our guys need it.”
In the meantime, the organization can’t wait for the Cruise to arrive later this year. The Pistons believe having a G League team roughly a mile away from Little Caesars Arena and Henry Ford Pistons Performance Center will greatly enhance their player development program. Casey said he intends to use the G League team liberally.
“It’s going to be great for our young guys, we’ve got so many,” Casey said. “Right now they’re playing games when they should be learning the G League, making mistakes and learning from them in the G League instead of our games. It is what it is and we’re having fun coaching them. Our G League next year is going to be off the charts as far as utilizing it. We’re going to be very generous as far as who we send down there and how we use it.”
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Pistons help launch teen mentoring program
On Tuesday, the Pistons announced a partnership with the Detroit Police Department to launch the Advancing African American Teens Mentoring Program, which will consist of monthly mentorship virtual meetings intended to empower and assist Detroit-area teenagers.
Both members of the Pistons and the police department will serve as mentors, and the program will run through May. Each month will focus on a different topic; February’s topic will be Goal Setting and Resilience. The mentees consist of teenagers from Detroit PAL and other local area non-profit organizations.
“We need more programming in Detroit where kids can express themselves and feel supported,” Pistons guard and native Detroiter Josh Jackson said in a release. “Sports provide a platform to inspire, connect and build bridges and initiatives like this will help young people learn, grow and develop relationships that will benefit their futures.”
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa. The Free Press has started a new digital subscription model. Here’s how you can gain access to our most exclusive Pistons content. Read more on the Detroit Pistons and sign up for our Pistons newsletter.