Detroit — The Pistons desired to add another shooter to their roster, so they traded their only second-round pick to acquire one.
As the first round of Thursday’s NBA Draft neared its end, the Pistons executed a trade with the Boston Celtics to acquire the 25th overall pick, who turned out to become Houston guard Marcus Sasser in exchange for the 31st pick in the second round, a league source confirmed to The Detroit News.
In addition to the No. 31 pick, the Pistons are also sending two future second-round picks in the deal.
With the Pistons finishing with the worst record in the league at 17-65, they secured the first pick of the second round of the NBA Draft.
The 31st overall pick is essentially perceived as a late first-rounder, so the value of the position is high and general manager Troy Weaver flipped it into another first-round pick. He had a similar outcome in last year’s draft when he came away with two lottery picks in Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren, who was acquired in a draft night trade with the New York Knicks.
The Pistons’ front office was high on Sasser’s perimeter shooting, which will help the team spread the floor. The 6-foot-2 guard averaged 16.8 points and 3.1 assists, and shot 43.8% from the field as a senior last season at Houston. He nailed 38.4% of his 3-pointers as well.
“He fits well in the Motor City because Marcus Sasser is a three-level scorer that is a fighter,” said ESPN’s Jay Bilas. “He plays hard. He’s got an attack mentality.”
Sasser wasn’t in attendance for Thursday’s draft, but his teammate Jarace Walker, — who was picked eighth by the Washington Wizards and sent to the Indiana Pacers — appeared elated next to their coach, Kelvin Sampson.
Sampson said he spoke to multiple teams, including the Celtics and Denver Nuggets about Sasser’s potential: “Wherever he gets picked tonight, that team is going to be (the) winner,” Sampson said on the Sports Radio 610 radio show.
It’s a significant accomplishment for Sasser to become the 25th pick in the draft considering the fact that he was ranked 399th in his high school class of 2019. He was a three-star prospect out of Red Oak High School in Texas.
He was a consensus All-American first-team honoree, the first Houston Cougar to accomplish the feat since Hakeem Olajuwon in 1984.
Sasser joins a crowded group of guards that includes Cade Cunningham, Ivey, Killian Hayes, RJ Hampton and Cory Joseph, who will become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Detroit bolstered its depth at the guard position and walked away with Sasser and Overtime Elite forward Ausar Thompson, who was drafted by the Pistons with the fifth overall pick on Thursday night.
mcurtis@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @MikeACurtis2