Trajan Langdon’s front office just got a lot more experienced.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Detroit Pistons President of Basketball Operations is hiring longtime NBA executive Dennis Lindsey. This hiring comes weeks after Marc Stein reported that Lindsey, a finalist who met with Tom Gores for Langdon’s job, was a candidate to join the front office.
Lindsey spent the last year as an advisor to Dallas Mavericks GM Nico Harrison. The Mavericks fell to the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals and improved dramatically through the draft (Dereck Lively) and the trade market (acquiring PJ Washington) en route to their surprising postseason run.
Prior to his year in Dallas, Lindsey served as the lead basketball decision maker in Utah with the Jazz for 2013-21. There, he built the Jazz into a Western Conference contender with savvy draft picks like Rudy Gobert and the infamous Pistons’ draft what-if, Donovan Mitchell.
Lindsey was forced to step down in 2021 after allegations of racist remarks from guard Elijah Millsap surfaced from 2015. The NBA was unable to confirm the incident, but it resulted in the end of Lindsey’s run.
Lindsey will be the Senior VP of Basketball Operations, joining Michael Blackstone, J.R. Holden and George David. Blackstone seems to be the cap strategist, while Holden is a longtime Langdon confident and scout. David has worked on and off for the Pistons since 2002 under Joe Dumars.
I’ve seen some people worried that there are too many cooks in the kitchen within this front office and to that I say: r-e-l-a-x. This is how a front office is built. You want voices that bring different perspectives, have different strengths. That’s a smart move.
It seems to me that Lindsey will fit in as something of Langdon’s consigliere — the Silvio Dante to Trajan’s Tony Soprano. His experience is valuable, and it feels like a rookie head coach adding a veteran assistant to his staff to help cover some of his blindspots.
The Pistons hold the No. 5 and No. 54 picks in the NBA Draft on Wednesday.