Jerami Grant has been a Detroit Piston for 10 months, but he hasn’t had much time to explore the city itself. He signed as a free agent in November, at a time when COVID-19 protocols from both the NBA and the state prevented him from venturing out.
Couple that with his summer stint playing for Team USA in the Tokyo Olympics — which resulted in a gold medal earlier this month — and he’s just now getting a chance to see his new home.
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Thursday was his first time in Eastern Market, where he made an appearance at Bea’s Detroit to promote SHOP313, a small-business platform the Pistons launched in partnership with Shopify last week. The platform will provide resources for local entrepreneurs, including complimentary website access, grant opportunities, networking events next season and more. Several small local businesses set up shop at the event, attended by local entrepreneurs and passerbys.
It has been an important offseason for Grant, following a breakout season with the Pistons. He averaged career highs in points (22.3), assists (2.8), shot attempts (17.3, seven more than his previous high of 10.3, set in 2018-19 with Oklahoma City) and minutes (33.9) per game. He finished second in Most Improved Player voting (with two first-place votes) and 10th among Eastern Conference forwards in All-Star voting.
That momentum extended into his Olympic stint, the third ever by a Piston (after Grant Hill in 1996 and Tayshaun Prince in 2008).
“It was great,” Grant said Thursday. “I got to learn, observe, just grow my own game from watching them. Picking up key points from them as well. Just being a part of something like that is amazing for my career, but also amazing for my personal growth.”
The Pistons believe there’s an additional tier that Grant can reach as a player, and getting there has been Grant’s offseason focus. He said he’s working on “everything,” including improving from midrange in a quest to boost his scoring at all three levels.
Likewise, the Pistons’ offseason has encouraged him, including the drafting of Cade Cunningham at No. 1 overall.
“I think it’s a perfect piece for us to move forward,” he said. “We’ve been moving in the right direction already, but to have somebody as talented as he is definitely helps us moving forward.”
While training with Team USA in Las Vegas, Grant spent time with Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart, who were picked for U.S.’s Men’s Basketball Select Team. It all gives him more confidence that the Pistons are on the right path.
“Everybody, they’re working extremely hard,” he said. “That’s the reason in the way that Troy (Weaver) put the team together. Character-wise, talent-wise. I’m excited. Everyone got a year under their belt, so they’re more experienced. Should be a good season.”
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.