Detroit — Pre-draft media sessions are typically the time for final questions regarding a team’s direction heading into the NBA Draft.
The Pistons are going into Thursday’s draft with two picks — Nos. 5 and 31 — and while the franchise’s first decision is choosing whether to keep or trade the fifth overall pick, general manager Troy Weaver holds the final say. He didn’t reveal anything earth-shattering in Tuesday’s press conference, but he used several analogies that suggested the Pistons could be in store for another active draft night.
“We just want to be ready for whatever comes at us,” Weaver said. “You walk through the park at night, you have to be ready for whatever comes. Draft night is that way. You have to be prepared for different scenarios — trade scenarios, different players dropping, players rising. That’s why that work is so important now so on draft night we’re equipped to handle what happens. The teams that are equipped usually can take advantage of draft night and feel good about things that happen that night.”
Weaver worked some magic on draft night last year to leave with two lottery picks in Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren, who both earned All-Rookie honors last season. Weaver created the opportunity by trading Jerami Grant to the Portland Trail Blazers days before the draft and in turn orchestrated a trade with the New York Knicks on draft night to acquire Duren at No. 13, along with Kemba Walker, who was released before the start of the season.
The common adage of turning every stone and reassuring the Pistons are doing their due diligence was present throughout the presser. But when asked how he felt about possibly trading the fifth pick, Weaver reiterated that all options are on the table.
“We’re still open to improving the team,” Weaver said. “Do we like the players that we’ve been vetting out at five? Absolutely, but we’re still open to different opportunities as well. Definitely still looking at all of our options to improve the team.
“When you’re not picking (first), you know the board and play the board. Draft night is a challenge in itself to maximize the team in so many different ways. We’re working hard at it and we’ll be excited when it’s our time.”
Weaver knows what it’s like to be on the clock with the first pick, after choosing Cade Cunningham with the No. 1 pick in 2021. But he also has experience of drafting at No. 5 after he selected Ivey at the same spot last year.
Surely, Victor Wembanyama should be the first name off the board when San Antonio makes its choice, but the rest of the lottery is fair game, according to Weaver.
“I thought last year, people thought they had it pegged and it didn’t go in that order,” Weaver said. “There could be some shake-up and maybe 2-10 doesn’t go according to plan, but that’s why you really have to know the players and the board and be ready for all scenarios. I think it can get a little dicey after (No. 1).”
Like most executives around the league, Weaver said on lottery night that he viewed the lottery in three different tiers. The first was no one other than the 7-foot-5 Wembanyama. The second was G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson and Alabama forward Brandon Miller. The third is made up of the handful of forwards including Overtime Elite brothers Amen and Ausar Thompson, Houston’s Jarace Walker, Villanova’s Cam Whitmore and UCF’s Taylor Hendricks.
The bulk of those players have worked out for the Pistons and while Weaver said his outlook on the group hasn’t changed, it’s possibly expanded now that he has more knowledge.
The Pistons’ core group, featuring Cunningham, Ivey, Duren and Isaiah Stewart, will get an opportunity to play under a new coach in Monty Williams, who signed the largest coaching contract in NBA history earlier this month. Williams has been involved since he’s been hired, from player interviews, on-court workouts and film.
“He’s jumped in with two feet,” Weaver said. “He’s ready. He has a lot of keen insight on players that we really value. It’s been great to get his thoughts and vision on players. He’s been extremely helpful thus far.”
Weaver’s common use of “best possible scenario” instead of “best possible player” in his first response regarding the Pistons’ process was also telling, given recent reports that suggest the Pistons could trade the fifth pick to a team looking to move up in the draft. ESPN draft expert Jonathan Givony reports that Whitmore’s underwhelming pre-draft workouts with several teams could be the reason he falls in the draft, which means the Pistons could be a player to trade down and maneuver around the lottery.
The top three projected players in Wembanyama, Henderson and Miller are all prospects likely to have long careers in the NBA, but there’s ambiguity across the board. Weaver used baseball to explain his thought process on drafting players who’ll find success quickly as opposed to selecting talent that could come with risks.
“You weigh all that into it. But for me, I like the long ball,” Weaver said. “I’m not bunting or trying to slap it into short center. I’m going to take a big swing, especially if I only have one chance at it. If I have three chances at it, I might bunt one. But one chance at it, I’m going for the big fly.”
If the Pistons keep their coveted top-five pick, Weaver is also confident it will benefit the team’s young core.
“There’s been a lot of banter and talk, back and forth, on a lot of picks,” Weaver said. “We feel good about being at five and the value there.”
Regardless of what Weaver and the Pistons decide, fans should grab their popcorn and brace themselves for what could be another memorable draft night.
2023 NBA Draft
▶ When: 8 p.m. Thursday
▶ TV: ESPN
▶ Pistons’ draft choices: After compiling the worst record in the NBA, the Pistons received the fifth pick in the draft for the second consecutive season. The last time the Pistons selected Jaden Ivey with the No. 5 pick last year. Detroit also owns the No. 31 pick.
mcurtis@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @MikeACurtis2