While the opportunity to play a more significant role on offense played a major part in his decision to leave Denver for Detroit in November, Jerami Grant was drawn to the Pistons for another reason, writes James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. The opportunity to play for a Black head coach (Dwane Casey) and for a franchise with a Black general manager (Troy Weaver) appealed to the veteran forward.
“Whether it’s on the court or off, there’s a sense of understanding that you get from — and I’m not going to say all, but a majority — Black people who have gone through and are going through some of the struggles that we do,” Grant said. “I think that gives you a better connection, makes it a little easier and makes you feel better about yourself when you have people that look like you around.”
Here’s more from around the Central:
- One silver lining of the Bucks‘ failed offseason attempt to sign-and-trade for Bogdan Bogdanovic – which cost them a future draft pick – is that the deal falling apart allowed the team to keep Donte DiVincenzo, writes Sam Amick of The Athletic. As Amick notes, DiVincenzo is off to a nice start this season, averaging 12.3 PPG and 1.7 APG with a .556 3PT% so far.
- The Cavaliers‘ injury woes are threatening to derail their surprising and promising start to the season, says Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The Cavs confirmed today in a press release that Dante Exum is expected to miss 6-8 weeks of basketball activity due to a right calf strain and said that Darius Garland (right shoulder sprain) might be sidelined for up to a week. The team has also been missing Kevin Love (calf), Dylan Windler (wrist), Matthew Dellavedova (concussion), Isaac Okoro (foot), and Kevin Porter Jr. (personal).
- The Bulls pulled to 4-4 with an impressive comeback win over Portland on Tuesday night, and their bench has been impressive in the early part of this season, says Sam Smith of Bulls.com. Smith enthusiastically refers to Chicago’s second unit – which includes Otto Porter Jr., Garrett Temple, Thaddeus Young, and Tomas Satoransky – as “perhaps the most veteran and experienced group in the NBA.”