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NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/23/16

November 23rd, 2016 at 6:24pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Wednesday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

6:24pm:

Chris McCullough will have a chance to be the fourth player to appear in a D-League game and an NBA game in the same day. He was recalled by the Nets today after starting for the Long Island Nets in their home opener this afternoon, Brooklyn announced in a press release. The NBA Nets host the Celtics tonight.

3:16pm

The Kings have recalled a trio of 2016 first-rounders, Malachi Richardson, Georgios Papagiannis, and Skal Labissiere, from the D-League, the team announced today in a press release. The trio helped lead the Kings’ affiliate – the Reno Bighorns – to a narrow victory over the Texas Legends on Tuesday, combining for 57 points.
The Pistons have sent rookies Henry Ellenson and Michael Gbinije to the Grand Rapids Drive, according to a press release issued today by the club. Neither player has seen much action for Detroit this season, but they should both suit up and play major roles tonight for the Drive against the Iowa Energy.
The Bucks, who don’t have a D-League affiliate of their own, recalled Rashad Vaughn from the Westchester Knicks today, the team announced in a press release. Assigned to the Knicks’ D-League squad, Vaughn only saw 15.9 minutes per contest in a pair of games, but managed to score 11.5 PPG.

Reggie Jackson Feels "Real Good"

November 22nd, 2016 at 10:59pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Stan Van Gundy isn’t happy with the team’s performance lately, but he doesn’t want to mess with the rotation too much before Jackson returns, Hawkins passes along in the same piece. “I don’t really think we know who we are. I was talking to [owner] Tom [Gores] last night and it’s a lot farther into the season you would like,” Van Gundy said. “We’ll be 30, 35 games into the year before we really can make any real estimations of the team, because you figure it will have to get to that before Reggie has a dozen, 15 games back. It’s going to be a long time in where we’re going to have to do it with our defense and continue to try and get better. But to really firm up rotations and all of that is going to take some time.” The Pistons are 6-9 on the season.

Pistons Notes: New Arena Details, All-Star Game Chances

November 22nd, 2016 at 5:31pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Pistons‘ new arena deal will involve asking for up to $34.5MM in taxpayer-backed bonds, Louis Aguilar and Ian Thibodeau of The Detroit News report in a piece that includes the team’s 45 page agreement with the City Of Detroit. The franchise has also agreed to back up to $55MM in bonds as long as a “community center/practice facility” is built as well. The site of the proposed facility isn’t determined yet. According to an analysis conducted by the University of Michigan, the economic impact of the move is $596.2MM. That figure includes renovations to the new arena, the building of the practice facility and the cost of relocation for Pistons’ employees.

The Pistons have played at The Palace, which will remain open for concerts, since 1988. With the move, Detroit will have all four major sports playing within blocks of each other in its downtown.

Here’s more from Detroit

Owner Tom Gores hired sports agent/power broker Arn Tellem back in 2015 to start coordinating the effort to move the Pistons back downtown, Tony Paul of The Detroit News writes. Tellem is excited to be part of the movement. “We want to be all in on Detroit,” Tellem said. “We want to do right by the city and community here.” Tellem added that he believes as many as 2,000 jobs could be created by the move.
Commissioner Adam Silver said the team’s move to downtown has increased the city’s chances of getting an All-Star Game in the not-so distant future, Paul relays in the same piece. The Palace at Auburn Hills never hosted an All-Star Game.
The Pistons will also move their corporate office to downtown, Paul reports in the same piece.
Not all fans are thrilled about the relocation, Paul and James Hawkins of The Detroit News write in a collaborative piece. Proponents of the move cite the additional pregame and postgame opportunities, while those opposed to it say the traffic is going to be a major problem.

Pistons To Move To Downtown Detroit

November 22nd, 2016 at 2:16pm CST by Luke Adams

NOVEMBER 22: The Pistons have made it official, announcing (via Twitter) that they’re moving downtown to play in Little Caesars Arena next season.

“This is a historic day for our franchise, and for the City of Detroit,” Pistons owner Tom Gores said in a press release from the team. “We’re moving to a beautiful new arena that will provide a state-of-the-art fan experience, and we’re investing in the future of Detroit.

“I’ve always believed that a sports franchise is a community asset with the power to unite and inspire people,” Gores continued. “There’s a big responsibility that goes with that, but there’s also a big payoff. Not just for the city of Detroit, but for the whole region. Detroit is rising, reinventing itself. The Pistons are doing the same. We’re in this together, and we couldn’t be more excited about that.”

NOVEMBER 21: The Pistons will hold a news conference on Tuesday afternoon to announce their plan to move to downtown Detroit for the 2017/18 season, a source tells Ian Thibodeau of The Detroit News. Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press first reported earlier today that an announcement on the move could happen as early as Tuesday.

Currently, the Pistons play their home games at The Palace of Auburn Hills, in a suburb of Detroit. However, with the NHL’s Red Wings set to move into a new downtown home called Little Caesars Arena next year, the Pistons have long been rumored to be negotiating with Red Wings owner Mike Ilitch to join them in that move.

Pistons owner Tom Gores indicated earlier this month that he would have an update within “the next few weeks” on a possible move downtown.

According to Ellis (Twitter links), an agreement between the Pistons and Red Wings isn’t officially finalized, but there’s a “comprehensive memorandum of understanding” in place. It may still be a few weeks before the deal is formally completed, but most of the work is done and the team apparently feels confident enough about the final steps to make an announcement tomorrow, per Ellis, who adds that the Pistons’ move downtown will take place, “barring something totally crazy happening” (Twitter link).

The Pistons have played their home games in Auburn Hills since 1988, and haven’t played in downtown Detroit since 1978.

Jackson Cleared For Contact Drills

November 21st, 2016 at 6:58pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson, who has been sidelined for over a month because of tendinitis in his left knee and right thumb, has been cleared for limited contact drills, Keith Langlois of NBA.com reports (via Twitter).

Pistons Notes: Drummond, Johnson, Van Gundy

November 20th, 2016 at 3:35pm CST by Will Joseph

Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy was left second-guessing himself after making the questionable decision to leave Andre Drummond, whom Detroit signed to a five-year, $125MM contract extension over the summer, on the bench during the final seconds of a loss against the Celtics, Aaron McMann of MLive.com writes.

“I could see it in his face. He felt like he made a mistake,” Drummond said. “I believe in Aron Baynes, and it just didn’t fall. You can’t fault him for that. (It’s) a game of basketball — anything can happen.”

Here is more news out of Detroit:

Van Gundy did not play Stanley Johnson for the first time this season Saturday night in an effort to jumpstart the offense, Tony Paul of the Detroit News writes. Last month, the Pistons picked up Johnson’s 2017/18 option. Johnson, the eighth overall pick in last year’s draft, averaged 23.1 minutes per contest in 73 games for the Pistons during his rookie season, contributing 8.1 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 1.6 APG.
There is an urgency for the Pistons to halt their losing skid before Reggie Jackson returns, but they also need time to implement any lineup changes, McMann relays in a separate piece. “If you’re going to make changes, you want to be able to talk to (your team),” Van Gundy said. “You need at least a morning walkthrough.”

Categories:
Detroit Pistons

Central Notes: Jackson, Baynes, Seraphin

November 16th, 2016 at 8:02pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Reggie Jackson has started to participate in 5-on-5 non-contact drills, Rod Beard of The Detroit News reports. Jackson has been sidelined for over a month because of tendinitis in his left knee and right thumb and there remains no definite timeline for his return. “Nobody’s given me [a timeline]. He was at five weeks yesterday and it was a 6- to 8-week thing,” coach Stan Van Gundy said. “Next week would be the absolute earliest and I’d say that would be really, really optimistic at this point, to think he’d be back Monday of next week. I don’t see it now.”

Here’s more from the Central Division:

Michael Gbinije is using his D-League assignment as an opportunity to master the role he is likely to play on the Pistons and Van Gundy is impressed with what he sees, Keith Langlois of NBA.com details. “[Some] felt he wasn’t aggressive enough offensively,” said Van Gundy. “I didn’t really see it that way. I thought Mike took his game as a complementary player to the D-League and played the same way there that he would play in the NBA and played well.”
If Aron Baynes opts out of his current deal at the end of the season and another team offers him more than $11.375MM, it won’t be easy for the Pistons to retain the big man, as Langlois outlines in his latest mailbag. The team only has his partial bird rights, meaning it can only offer him a 175% raise of his current salary in the first year of a new deal.
Kevin Seraphin is fitting in nicely with the Pacers, Mark Montieth of NBA.com writes. “He’s done some good things,” coach Nate McMillan said. “We certainly have to look at trying to get him some minutes. We’ve been looking for [energy]. So we’ll see.”

Aron Baynes Could Be Difficult To Retain

November 16th, 2016 at 11:57am CST by Dana Gauruder

Aron Baynes is a “starting-caliber center” and Pistons coach and president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy knows it will be difficult to retain him beyond this season, he acknowledged to the assembled media. Baynes, who can opt out of the final year of his three-year, $20MM contract after the season, racked up 20 points and eight rebounds against the Thunder on Monday with Andre Drummond sidelined by ankle injury. “As the president, I’m not supposed to say this because the guy can be a free agent,” Van Gundy said. “You’re not supposed to promote him but he’s a starting center in the NBA. He’s just playing behind an All-Star. You look around at all the starting centers and Aron’s a starting-caliber center in the league, so it’s not surprising he played as well as he did.” The Pistons signed restricted free agent Boban Marjanovic this summer to a three-year contract in part to protect themselves if they’re unable to re-sign Baynes.

Eastern Notes: Vogel, Pistons, Wizards

November 13th, 2016 at 4:47pm CST by Will Joseph

Magic coach Frank Vogel expects the atmosphere to be emotional when he returns to Indianapolis Monday night to coach against the Pacers for the first time, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel writes. The Pacers decided not to renew Vogel’s contract in May after a first round exit from the playoffs, and president of basketball operations Larry Bird said at the time that the team needed a new voice. Vogel amassed a 253-187 regular-season record and a 31-30 postseason record with the Pacers. His teams twice reached the Eastern Conference finals. Orlando is 3-6 so far under Vogel.

Here’s more out of the Eastern Conference:

The Pistons recalled Henry Ellenson and Michael Gbinije on Sunday from the Grand Rapids Drive, Detroit’s D-League affiliate, Aaron McMann of MLive.com relays. NBA Development League affiliate on Sunday. The two rookies will re-join the Pistons on Monday for their game against the Thunder.
After spending more a good chunk of money over the summer to beef up the bench, frustration is mounting in Washington because of a lack of production from the Wizards‘ second unit, Candace Buckner of the Washington Post writes. The Wizards bench has a minus-11.2 net rating so far this season, as Buckner points out. Summer acquisitions Ian Mahinmi, who is out rehabbing from knee surgery, and Andrew Nicholson, who has not played in three of the last four games, have not helped the cause.

Little Playing Time For Marjanovic

November 12th, 2016 at 10:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

Boban Marjanovic didn’t play at all in his return to San Antonio Friday, which has been a familiar story in his time with the Pistons, writes Rod Beard of The Detroit News. The 7’3″ Serbian came to Detroit this summer when the Spurs elected not to match a three-year, $21MM offer sheet. He has gotten off the bench in just four of the team’s first nine games and is averaging 4.5 minutes in those. Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy said the team wants to see Marjanovic become more aggressive offensively. “In the preseason, he fit well. He’s a very good offensive player and highly skilled,” Van Gundy said. “He’s unselfish, almost to a fault. There’s times he could use his size and be dominant down there offensively, but he really likes to pass the ball — which promotes good team play — but at the same time, we want him to use his offensive skills.”

Van Gundy is closely monitoring the progress of rookies Henry Ellenson and Michael Gbinije, who were sent to the D-League during the Pistons’ western road trip, Beard notes in the same story. The organization wanted them both to get expanded playing time, at least 30 minutes per night, during their time in Grand Rapids. Ellenson was told to focus on his defensive development. “He knows [defense] is his ticket to getting on the floor [with the Pistons],” Van Gundy said. “He’s very confident, as we are, in his offensive skills.”