Pistons Hire Maurice Cheeks As Head Coach

6:09pm: Cheeks' contract with Detroit includes a fourth-year team option, according to Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News (Twitter link).

5:56pm: The Pistons have officially confirmed the hiring of Cheeks as head coach (Twitter link).

5:31pm: Cheeks' deal with the Pistons is a three-year pact, according to Matt Dery of 97.1 The Ticket in Detroit (Twitter link). There may also be a team option for a fourth year, says Dery.

5:14pm: Maurice Cheeks has reached an agreement with the Pistons to become the team's new head coach, reports ESPN.com's Marc Stein (via Twitter). Multiple reports last week had cited Cheeks as the frontrunner for the Pistons' coaching opening, noting that an agreement could happen over the weekend.

Prior to spending the last couple seasons as an assistant for the Thunder, Cheeks was the head coach of the Trail Blazers and the 76ers, coaching parts of four seasons in both Portland and Philadelphia.  For his coaching career, Cheeks' record is almost an even .500, at 284-286. He qualified for the postseason twice with the Blazers and once with the Sixers, but never made it out of the first round.

Nate McMillan had been considered the other finalist for the Pistons' coaching job, with both he and Cheeks viewed as favorites of GM Joe Dumars. Phil Jackson acted as an advisor during Detroit's search for a head coach, though Jackson reportedly preferred Brian Shaw, who I don't believe ultimately received an interview with the team.

Cheeks replaces Lawrence Frank, who was let go at the end of the season after compiling a 54-94 record in his two years with the Pistons.

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