Count veteran guard Malcolm Brogdon among those who are enthusiastic about the Pacers‘ decision to hire former Raptors assistant Nate Bjorkgren as their new head coach. Appearing on ESPN’s The Jump on Thursday, Brogdon said he’d had lunch with Bjorkgren earlier in the day and is looking forward to getting to work with the first-time
Omari Sankofa II | Detroit Free Press In July, the Detroit Pistons purchased their own G League team that’ll begin playing on Wayne State’s campus during the 2021-22 season. On Friday, that team received a new name. The Pistons G League affiliate is named the Motor City Cruise — a shout to Detroit’s history as the
The Pistons‘ new G League affiliate will be known as the Motor City Cruise, the team announced today in a press release. The club, which will have its inaugural season in 2021/22, will play its games at Wayne State University. The Grand Rapids Drive are Detroit’s current NBAGL affiliate and will continue to hold that
Rod Beard | The Detroit News There was no Dream Cruise during the pandemic this year, but the Detroit area is getting a Cruise that will last longer. The Pistons announced Friday that the name for their new G League franchise will be the Motor City Cruise. The Cruise will begin play in 2021-22 at
October 29th 2020 at 8:59pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum Danny Manning may join the bench of new Pacers head coach Nate Bjorkgren, sources have informed Marc Stein of the New York Times (Twitter link). Manning, a former two-time All-Star power forward, most recently served as the head coach for the Wake Forest men’s team from 2014-2020. Bjorkgren,
Alabama’s Kira Lewis Jr. is generating some buzz among teams in the top half of the first round, according to Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report, who hears that Lewis has worked out in person for the Magic, Knicks, Pistons, and Bulls within the last week. A previous report indicated that Lewis has had multiple virtual
Omari Sankofa II | Detroit Free Press Will the Detroit Pistons move up, move down or stay put in the 2020 NBA draft? Several lottery teams, including the Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors, are reportedly willing to come off of their draft picks. It could open up an opportunity for Detroit, which has the seventh
Rod Beard | The Detroit News For the first time in a long time, the Pistons can be major players in free agency. With a projected $30 million in cap space, they can pursue a top-tier target in hopes of improving their roster for next season. Not that they should, but they could. The problem
J. Michael | Indianapolis Star Show Caption Hide Caption Indiana Pacers 2020-21 salary cap hits According to Spotrac, these are the salary cap hits for Indiana Pacers players for the 2020-21 season. Jason Buckner, who has served eight years as manager of scouting for the Indiana Pacers, has joined the Detroit Pistons as their director of
Brett Martel | Associated Press New Orleans — New Pelicans coach Stan Van Gundy sees a New Orleans roster brimming with young players who have obvious talent, but still have plenty to learn about the way basketball is played in the NBA. The former Detroit Pistons coach has a track record of bridging that gap
The Pistons can be reasonably certain about five prospects who won’t drop to them at the No. 7 overall pick, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. From the way the draft is shaping up, Anthony Edwards, James Wiseman, LaMelo Ball, Obi Toppin and Deni Avdija — in no particular order — will be off the
October 27th 2020 at 11:48am CST by Luke Adams Kevin O’Connor’s latest update to his 2020 NBA mock draft at the Ringer includes several intriguing tidbits about which way certain teams might be leaning and which players are generating interest at certain spots. We’ve already passed on a couple of those notes, relaying word that
Don Thompson | Associated Press The success of the Los Angeles Lakers and Dodgers are bringing fans together in the LA area and that may be helping drive an uptick in coronavirus cases, Los Angeles County’s top health official said Monday, The Lakers won the NBA championship two weeks ago and the Dodgers are one
Omari Sankofa II | Detroit Free Press Show Caption Hide Caption ‘Everything’s up in the air’ for 2020-21 NBA season What I’m Hearing: USA TODAY Sports’ Mark Medina breaks down the future of the NBA heading into the 2020-21 season. For the fourth time in eight years, Michigan State basketball will likely have two players
Omari Sankofa II | Detroit Free Press Next season could be a deeply competitive season for the Eastern Conference. Last year’s top six teams — the Milwaukee Bucks, Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat and Philadelphia Sixers — are all expected to be competitive next season. The Brooklyn Nets, a seventh seed in
October 23rd 2020 at 7:44pm CST by Dana Gauruder Despite travel restriction and protocols due to the pandemic, the Raptors remain hopeful they’ll play in Toronto next season, Josh Lewenberg of TSN tweets. The organization has discussed several contingency options but it is not interested in moving games to Louisville, refuting a report earlier this
Jeff Zillgitt | USA TODAY The NBA is targeting a Dec. 22 start date for the 2020-21 season, two people with knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports on Friday. The people requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the discussions. The season would include 72 games and finish before
The Pistons may be rebuilding, but they don’t expect it to be a long process, writes Keith Langlois of NBA.com. There’s optimism throughout the organization that Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose will both be healthy when training camp opens, giving the team a veteran foundation to guide its young players. Griffin underwent knee surgery in
Arn Tellem | Special to Detroit Free Press Show Caption Hide Caption Dwane Casey’s takeaways from Detroit Pistons bubble workouts Coach Dwane Casey’s takeaways from Detroit Pistons bubble workouts, including being pleased with the development of some youngsters, Oct. 2, 2020. Back in a time before COVID-19, before the current recession, and before the advent
Omari Sankofa II | Detroit Free Press As the 2020 NBA draft draws closer, consistency is beginning to emerge among draft analysts on who the best prospects within the lottery (top 14) are. With the seventh overall pick, the Detroit Pistons are outside of what many analysts would consider the first tier of talent in the