Pistons Rumors

And-Ones: Monroe, Rondo, Draft

April 23rd, 2015 at 10:27pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pistons haven’t given up hope that they can re-sign unrestricted free agent Greg Monroe this summer, Terry Foster of The Detroit News writes. In a letter sent to the team’s season ticket holders, coach/executive Stan Van Gundy indicated that Monroe was one of the players whom the franchise hoped to build around, Foster relays. “We have a nice young nucleus forming with Andre Drummond [22 years old], Reggie Jackson [24 years old], Kentavious Caldwell-Pope [22 years old], Greg Monroe [24 years old] and Spencer Dinwiddie [21 years old],” Van Gundy wrote. “We will continue to build around this young group with quality veterans cut from the same mold as Caron Butler, Tayshaun Prince, Joel Anthony and Anthony Tolliver.”

Here’s more from around the league:

Brad Stevens, Rajon Rondo‘s coach while a member of the Celtics, said he was shocked with all the difficulties Rondo has had with the Mavs, Jimmy Toscano of CSNNE.com writes. “Yeah. I am,” Stevens said when asked if he was surprised by his former point guard’s issues in Dallas. “And I haven’t paid as much attention or read every article or even really watched anything on it. So yeah I was a little bit surprised.”
Coach Rick Carlisle says he was simply being truthful when he said that he didn’t expect to see Rondo in a Mavericks uniform again during an appearance on “The Afternoon Show with Cowlishaw and Mosley” (hat tip to the Dallas Morning News). “Well it’s highly unlikely, to be honest,” Carlisle said. “I think it’s important to be truthful in these situations. But here’s the other fact: this is a guy that’s going to have a lot of free-agent options in the summer. If we wanted to get him back, we were going to be bidding against multiple other teams with a lot of cap space, and there’s going to be a big market for him So that’s where all that stuff is at, but right now our attention and focus has got to be on Game 3.”
Greek power forward Dimitrios Agravanis intends to enter the 2015 NBA draft, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress tweets. The 20-year-old isn’t expected to hear his name called in June’s draft after averaging 4.4 points and 2.7 rebounds for Olympiakos this past season.
Serbian point guards Miroslav Pasajlic (20) and Nikola Radicevic (20) will enter the 2015 NBA draft, Givony reports (Twitter link). Neither player is projected to be drafted come June.

Greg Monroe: Pistons Have ‘Upper Hand’

April 21st, 2015 at 3:52pm CST by Chuck Myron

Greg Monroe gave his strongest indication yet that the Pistons are in the mix to re-sign him when he becomes an unrestricted free agent in July, telling Terry Foster of The Detroit News that the Pistons have the “upper hand.” Monroe said before the season and after that he wouldn’t rule out re-signing with Detroit, and agent David Falk said shortly after the All-Star break that Monroe would “absolutely” consider staying in the Motor City.

“I have ties here; I have been here my whole [adult] life,” Monroe said to Foster. “[The Pistons] drafted me, so of course I am going to listen to them with the same ear as I listen to everybody else. They have the upper hand.”

It’s not at all uncommon for soon-to-be free agents to profess their desire to remain with their incumbent teams, but Monroe went out of his way to avoid a commitment to the Pistons in restricted free agency last summer, signing a qualifying offer that gave him slightly less than $5.48MM. That’s a sharply discounted rate for the productive 24-year-old big man, but Monroe and Falk reportedly discouraged teams from presenting more lucrative offer sheets that would have given the Pistons the chance to match and tie him up long-term.

Falk denied a recent report from Frank Isola of the New York Daily News that Monroe’s departure for the Knicks this summer was “about as close to a done deal as you can get.” Monroe later expressed praise for Knicks president Phil Jackson while cautioning that he could see himself re-signing with the Pistons. The Lakers reportedly asked the Pistons about trading for Monroe before the deadline, and they and the Knicks figure to be among the many teams in pursuit. The Hawks were also reportedly planning to go after him as of early this season.

Monroe, No. 7 in our latest Free Agent Power Rankings, produced at a high rate once the Pistons waived Josh Smith in late December, as I examined when I looked in depth at Monroe’s free agent stock. The Pistons have a financial advantage, since they can offer five years and 7.5% raises instead of the four-year deal with 4.5% raises that other teams are limited to, but Monroe has already shown a willingness to make a financial sacrifice.

Pistons Rumors: Drummond, Green, Dinwiddie

April 20th, 2015 at 9:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pistons’ most important offseason negotiations may not involve free agents Greg Monroe or Reggie Jackson, according to David Mayo of MLive. Andre Drummond is about to enter the final year of his rookie contract, which is open to extension through October 31st. Owner Tom Gores recently expressed his desire to keep Drummond in Detroit long-term, calling him “a maximum player.” The tough part may be convincing the young center that he can win if he remains a Piston. “It was a tough situation for us,” Drummond said of the just-completed 32-50 season that was marked by frequent roster changes. “We lost Brandon [Jennings], our chemistry was a little messed up. I’m just going to come back ready for next year and have a good summer.”

There’s more from the Motor City:

The first item on Drummond’s wish list is Golden State’s free-agent-to-be Draymond Green, writes Kirkland Crawford of The Detroit Free Press. Early Sunday morning, Drummond put up a post on his Twitter account saying, “I want @Money23Green on my team …….,” referencing Green’s Twitter handle. Drummond later deleted that tweet. Green, a former star at Michigan State, has expressed interest in playing for the Pistons, but it will likely take a maximum or near-max offer to acquire his services.
A knee injury limited him to 34 games, but Spencer Dinwiddie is satisfied with the progress he made in his rookie season, Mayo writes in a separate story. The Pistons used a second-round pick on Dinwiddie, even though he was rehabbing from a major knee injury at Colorado. They signed Dinwiddie to a three-year deal last summer, giving him $700K for the first season and the league minimum for the next two. Coach and president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy said Dinwiddie showed promise as a distributor, but needs to work on his shot. “I don’t think he’s mainly going to be a scorer, but he’s got to make the shots that he gets,” Van Gundy said.

Central Notes: Scola, Stuckey, Jackson, Prince

April 20th, 2015 at 10:58am CST by Chuck Myron

Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star looks at each of the soon-to-be free agents on the Pacers, pegging Rodney Stuckey and Lavoy Allen as the most likely among them to return, C.J. Watson and Chris Copeland as unlikely to be back, and Luis Scola and Donald Sloan somewhere in between. President of basketball operations Larry Bird said they’d all like to be back, but Scola, while praising the Pacers organization, doesn’t seem quite ready to commit, as Buckner relays.

“We’ll see what happens. We didn’t have our exit meeting yet. I’m hoping to get some type of feedback there and some type of impression of what they want to do in the future and move on from there,” Scola said last week.

Buckner suggests Stuckey, who drew praise from Bird, wants a multiyear deal with his wedding planned for mid-July. While we wait to see if the Pacers have something picked out for him on his registry, here’s more from around the Central:

Greg Monroe isn’t ruling out a return to the Pistons, but Reggie Jackson has spoken of communicating with other Pistons over the summer so everyone stays motivated for next season, notes MLive’s David Mayo, pointing to the dichotomy between Detroit’s two main soon-to-be free agents. As for other free agents on the team, the Pistons are unlikely to offer Tayshaun Prince a chance to return, and John Lucas III probably won’t be back with the team next year, Mayo writes.
Several NBA executives say that they expect Khris Middleton to wind up signing a deal with $8MM annual salaries this summer, reports Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times. That figure is somewhat lower than the $10MM estimate that Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops heard from several GMs and other executives recently. Woelfel points to numbers that don’t suggest much improvement from Middleton this season, though he grants that the Bucks combo forward’s value could escalate with a strong playoff performance.
Former Bucks center Larry Sanders still doesn’t have a desire to return to the game, Woelfel notes within the same piece.

Pistons Notes: Monroe, Jackson, Butler

April 19th, 2015 at 5:44pm CST by Will Joseph

How active the Pistons were this season in trying to win under coach/president Stan Van Gundy and a restructured front office should play a big role in unrestricted free agent Greg Monroe’s decision on whether or not to return to Detroit, David Mayo of MLive.com writes in a Q&A mailbag feature. Mayo adds that Monroe is known for his introspection so the Pistons’ moves this season — especially trading for Reggie Jackson a month after Brandon Jennings suffered an injury — signal to the big man that they are willing to do what it takes to compete. Mayo adds, citing his own belief, that the Pistons also seem more interested in keeping Monroe than they did a year ago. Monroe has been heavily linked lately to the Knicks, however.

Here’s more from the Motor City:

In the same piece, Mayo writes that Jackson’s high number of turnovers won’t have much of an impact on the team signing the 25-year-old to a long-term contract. Jackson, a restricted free agent, averaged 3.5 turnovers in 32.2 minutes as a Piston, both highs among the 20 players to appear for the team this season. His passing ability and three-point prowess impressed the Pistons enough, Mayo adds. The Pistons have been adamant about inking Jackson to a longer deal. Mayo writes the Pistons should offer a deal just shy of the maximum.
Mayo, fielding a final question in the Q&A, is unsure if the Pistons will pick up Caron Butler‘s $4.5MM option for next season. “He has another season in him, as long as he isn’t stretched out like this season,” Mayo writes. “Is he worth it at the price? Perhaps.”

Central Notes: Love, James, Jackson, Bucks

April 19th, 2015 at 12:57pm CST by Arthur Hill

The playoffs will shed a lot of light on Kevin Love and his future in Cleveland, writes Ethan Skolnick of Bleacher Report. Love can become a free agent by opting out this summer, and although he has stated his intentions are to remain with the Cavaliers, some around the league wouldn’t be convinced of that unless Cleveland wins the title this year, as Skolnick details. He has become the third option in Cleveland and his usage rate has fallen to 21.7%, the lowest since his rookie season in Minnesota. “Obviously, he went there with LeBron to win a championship,” former Timberwolves assistant Bill Bayno said of the offseason deal that sent Love to Cleveland. “I think he had an idea his role would be a little different, I don’t think he knew it would be this different.”

There’s more from the Central Division:

LeBron James told Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com that he will take responsibility for giving Love a bigger role in the offense during the postseason. “I think Kevin has not had the season that he’s accustomed to having the past few years,” James said, “but in order for us to win, Kevin Love has to play at a high level, and it’s my job to help him get to that point as well.” Like Love, James can opt out and become a free agent this summer, but there seems to be little chance of him leaving Cleveland.
The Pistons finally started getting the production they expected from Reggie Jackson toward the end of the season, according to Vincent Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. Acquired from the Thunder in a deadline deal, Jackson averaged 20 points, 11 assists and 4.8 rebounds over his final 16 games in Detroit. “If you look at his numbers over the last third of the year, he’s going to be top seven or eight point guard in the league over that time,” said coach and president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy. Jackson will be a free agent this summer, but he is expected to stay in Detroit.
The Bucks are running short on time to start building their new arena, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. The franchise is under an NBA-imposed deadline to have a new facility completed or near completion by 2017. With government budgets due by the end of June, funding must be secured quickly. “The arena is a two-year process,” said Michael Fascitelli, a member of the Bucks’ ownership group who is leading the arena development. “Every day is critical.”

Central Notes: Watson, Van Gundy, Monroe

April 16th, 2015 at 5:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Unrestricted free agent C.J. Watson would like to return to the Pacers next season, Candace Buckner of The Indianapolis Star relays (Twitter link). “I don’t even know yet,” Watson answered when asked if he would return to Indiana.”Hopefully I’ll be back here. I like it in Indy. I love the team and the atmosphere of the city. We’ll see what happens. It’s not really in my hands. So we’ll see.” The 30-year-old appeared in 57 games for Indiana this season, averaging 10.0 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 3.6 assists in 24.9 minutes per night.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

Pistons owner Tom Gores says his belief in coach/executive Stan Van Gundy has only grown since he brought the veteran coach aboard, Keith Langlois of NBA.com writes. “I believe in Stan more today than the day I hired him,” said Gores. “Stan is his biggest critic. I’m very happy with him as a coach. I’m also very happy with him as president of basketball operations. We had the bad start. I think we’ve done what we need to accomplish this year.”
Gores also relayed that remaining in Detroit should be appealing to free agent Greg Monroe, Langlois adds. “He’ll have ownership and a coach that is behind him and a real base for his life going forward,” Gores said. “He has the ability to establish a foundation for us. But he’s a professional. Whatever Greg does, it’s going to be up to him. But he’s a real pro. He’s been with us a long time. I’ve never seen him do the wrong thing. He always does the right thing and I hope we can land Greg. And if we don’t, whoever lands him will be a very lucky franchise.“
While he’s excited at the prospect of free agency, Monroe would have preferred the scenario where he was settled in with the Pistons for the long haul, Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press writes. “You guys have been around here for the past couple of years,” Monroe told Ellis. “I much rather would have been settled in here. That didn’t happen, and I’m in this position.” Monroe is referring to Detroit failing to offer him an extension back in 2013, and not the contract he reportedly turned down last offseason.

And-Ones: Drummond, Price, Afflalo

April 15th, 2015 at 10:35pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Pistons owner Tom Gores gave Andre Drummond a vote of confidence during tonight’s contest against the Knicks, calling the big man a “max player,” David Mayo of MLive.com relays (Twitter link). Drummond, who is set to earn $3,272,091 next season, is eligible to ink an extension this summer, but this doesn’t necessarily mean the Pistons will offer him one, since the team would have the right to match any offer sheet the big man were to sign as a restricted free agent in 2016. Detroit could be wary of taking that chance given how the team is likely to lose Greg Monroe, who reportedly declined to ink an extension of his own with the club, as a free agent this summer, though that is merely my speculation.

Here’s more from around the league:

Arron Afflalo will let his playoff performance dictate whether he picks up his $7.75MM player option for next season with the Blazers, as a source close to the swingman tells Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops that he’ll opt out if he plays well.
One executive who spoke with Scotto for the same piece pegged Danny Green‘s value at $6MM a year. The Spurs swingman is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Ronnie Price indicated that his desire is to remain with the Lakers, even if it is as a third-string guard, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “I enjoyed being a voice in the locker room. I enjoyed being able to help younger guys. I helped great veterans that can help me. I’d be selfish not to extend that knowledge to players that are younger than me,” Price said. “Of course you want to play. That’s why we do what we do. You want to play. You never know what’s ahead. Whatever role is my role, I’ll embrace it whether it’s being here or the third guard.” Price will become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.
Suns forward Markieff Morris believes that the team needs to add players with more experience to its roster, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic tweets. “Veteran leadership for sure,” Morris responded when asked about Phoenix’s needs. “We have to have more older guys around so we can keep this thing intact.“

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Latest On Greg Monroe, Knicks

April 15th, 2015 at 12:19pm CST by Eddie Scarito

WEDNESDAY, 12:19pm: Monroe praised Knicks president Phil Jackson in comments to New York reporters today, but he reiterated that he can envision himself re-signing with the Pistons this summer, notes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (All Twitter links). “Anyone who has had as much success as [Jackson] has … it’s not hard to be comfortable with the decisions they make,” Monroe said. “[Jackson’s] been where everybody dreams about going when they play in this league. He knows and understands what it takes to win.”

TUESDAY, 9:38pm: Greg Monroe‘s agent David Falk said that his client has yet to make out a list of the teams he is interested in signing with this summer, but indicated strongly that the Knicks are expected to be one of Monroe’s top choices, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. New York’s fans will get a taste of Monroe on Wednesday night when the Pistons and Knicks square off in the final game of the 2014/15 season for both squads.

League executives told Berman that of all the free agents on the Knicks’ radar, Monroe has the best chance of coming to New York. An unnamed NBA executive added that the big man signing with the Knicks is “about as close to a done deal as you can get.” These notions displeased Falk since teams and players cannot officially negotiate with each other until July 1st, Berman adds. “It’s so silly,’’ Falk said. “It’s factually incorrect and completely unsubstantiated.’’ The agent also acknowledged that he intends to discuss his client with New York, the Post scribe notes. “We are well aware the Knicks have cap space and we will sit down with them at the appropriate time,’’ Falk told Berman. “Now is not the appropriate time.’’

Falk also indicated that Monroe has not made up his mind about where he would like to play next season, noting that his client didn’t risk playing for the Pistons’ qualifying offer this season to pass up a shot at exploring all of his options, Berman relays. “He didn’t do what he did so he could short-circuit the process,’’ Falk said. “It goes against the grain of everything we did. We haven’t even made a short list of teams he’s interested in yet. After the season, after he unwinds, we will sit down, have a few dinners, a few drinks, a few meetings and I’ll present him a number of different teams and I’ll find out what fits his priorities. Which team, which geographical area, which coach he wants to play for. The money will be the same everywhere. Does he want to be the best player on a younger team? Or a complementary player on a championship contender?’’

It won’t be necessary for Monroe to visit the cities of the teams that he is interested in, Falk says, since Monroe has already been to all of them during his time in the league, Berman relays. The big man is expected to make his decision within the first 24-48 hours from the free agent signing period commencing in July, the Post scribe notes. “There’ll be no tours, no parades, no balloons,’’ Falk said. “This is a business decision about where he wants to go to work. He’ll have a wide range of teams and options and he’ll start examining them after April 15th.’’

As for how well Falk believes that Monroe would fit with the Knicks’ triangle offense, the agent said, “Do I think he’d be a good fit for the Knicks? Absolutely. He’d be a good fit for 30 teams. Can he work in the triangle? Sure. He played the Princeton offense at Georgetown. He could play in the rhombus. He’d be a great fit for any system.’’

Monroe is set to complete his fifth season in the league tomorrow night after being selected No. 7 overall by Detroit back in the 2010 NBA draft. Through 377 career games the 24-year-old is averaging 14.3 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 0.6 blocks. His career slash line is .505/.000/.692.

Eastern Notes: Calderon, Farmar, Pistons

April 14th, 2015 at 9:06pm CST by Eddie Scarito

It’s been a difficult first season in New York for Jose Calderon, who has only appeared in 42 contests for the Knicks this season, averaging 9.1 points and 4.7 assists in 30.2 minutes per night. Though the team was reportedly shopping him prior to February’s trade deadline, the point guard still believes that he has a future with the team, Al Iannazzone of Newsday writes. “I really want to stay here,” Calderon said. “I think they want me here. That’s the feeling I got. I think I really can help this team next year.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Jordan Farmar said that the Cavaliers expressed interest in signing him after his release from the Clippers in a buyout arrangement, but playing time concerns led him to ink a deal with Darussafaka Dogus of Turkey, David Pick of Eurobasket.com relays (Twitter link). “I wanted to play,” Farmar told Pick. “Enough of being an NBA backup.”
Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy is already gearing up for what should be an active offseason for the franchise, Keith Langlois of NBA.com writes. Discussing Detroit’s free agent strategy this summer, Van Gundy said, “You’ve got to study those guys and know where you want to go. A lot of it depends on Greg Monroe and Reggie Jackson and all of that when you get to free agency and who you have in the draft and what you think their timetable might be. So there’s a lot of things you have to consider, but in the meantime you’ve got to evaluate [free agents] and have an idea.“
Van Gundy also indicated that the Pistons‘ planning extends beyond this summer, Langlois notes. “One of the things we do after the season – one of the first things – is look at our budget, salary wise, not only for the coming year but what that’s going to mean going out,” Van Gundy said. “You’ve got to have some planning. If we’re going to pay this guy X amount of money in year two, three four and five and then we’re going to pay this guy X amount of money, what are we going to have left to build our team? I know [GM] Jeff Bower has already done a lot of work on it, but I haven’t really looked at it. It’s easy to say you’re so much under the cap, but going out, if you’re giving people raises where is it going to put you the next year? There’s got to be a lot more careful planning than what we’ve done to this point.“

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