Tom Gores

Pistons Notes: Langdon, Offseason, Williams, Draft, Gores

June 23rd, 2024 at 8:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

New Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon said he’s willing to use a chunk of his cap space to take on unwanted contracts from teams looking to shed salary. He’ll look for sweeteners as he tries to build assets during the franchise’s latest rebuild.

“One thing we are looking for with the cap space we do have is bringing in contracts maybe from other teams and gathering assets as well,” Langdon said. “Hopefully, with the players that come in, they can bolster the growth (of the younger players). If we can interweave those two things, that would make our summer successful.”

The Pistons could have more than $60MM in cap space to utilize. However, Langdon isn’t looking for a quick fix, even if the team’s fan base is weary of losing. Detroit hasn’t won a playoff series since 2008.

“I don’t think there’s a timeframe for us to get to the playoffs,” he said.

We have more on the Pistons:

Team owner Tom Gores gave the green light to Langdon to dismiss head coach Monty Williams, even though Williams had five years and $65MM remaining on his contract. Gores had no qualms about eating that much money in order for a fresh start. “When you have to adjust, you adjust,” Gores said, per Omari Sankofa II of theDetroit Free Press. “This franchise means everything to me. It’s not like I didn’t think about it for a second, but the right thing has to survive. I think it was the right move for all of us, including for Monty, but it’s not like I didn’t think about it at all. It’s significant. We’ve just always got to do the best thing for the franchise.”
The Pistons will be picking fifth in this week’s draft, though Langdon is willing to move that selection if the right offer comes along, Sankofa writes in a separate story. “We like five a lot,” he said. “Obviously we’re going to look to be strategic. If someone comes along and blows us away for that fifth pick, I think we have to understand and analyze what’s the best decision. Do we pick at five, or do we move back? We’re not looking at moving out of the draft, but again, if decisions come and offers come that we think will make us better as an organization going forward, we’re going to have to look at everything. If we stay at five, we’ll find a good player.”
Langdon spoke about punctuality during Friday’s press conference, expecting players and employees to be on time and return phone calls and texts promptly. Those words rang hollow to the media, who waited for over an hour after the scheduled start of the press conference due to Gores being stuck in traffic, Shawn Windsor of the Free Press notes. It fed into the notion that Gores is disconnected from the franchise, something he denies. “I know some people think I’m not attached enough to the organization, that I’m detached. But I want to give this organization everything I can,” he said.

Gores: Pistons “Needed A Fresh Start” In Hiring Langdon

June 22nd, 2024 at 9:54am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Pistons hired new president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon and moved on from former head coach Monty Williams this month, wiping the slate clean after a franchise-worst season. A year ago, the Pistons made Williams the highest-paid coach in the NBA at the time, circling back to him after he turned down their initial overtures. What followed was a year mired by injuries, plateaued development from the team’s young players outside of Cade Cunningham, and a lack of either spacing or a veteran presence on the team.

“After assessing everything, I really felt the best choice for the organization was a fresh start,” owner Tom Gores said during Detroit’s official introduction of Langdon on Friday. “Our mistakes in the past has nothing to do with just one person. We needed a fresh start and we needed Trajan to lead with a fresh start.”

According to The Athletic’s James L. Edwards III, the Pistons were impressed by Langdon’s willingness to bring in people around him who could cover skills he wasn’t as well-versed in. With the organization reportedly seeking synergy, hiring Langdon was a good start, Edwards writes.

Both Gores and Langdon expressed the need for Detroit to be more aggressive in bringing in outside help during free agency this offseason.

“These young players, they need to play, but, yes, bringing in veterans who hopefully have a lot of know-how, some IQ and can shoot the ball, that’s going to be the target so that we can spread the floor and make it easier for the development of our young players,” Langdon said. “We’re going to look to do that, hopefully, through trade and free agency. That is how we’re going to attack this summer.”

Meanwhile, Gores expressed disappointment with how last offseason went and how it was one of the main mistakes the team made last year (Twitter link via Omari Sankofa II of Detroit Free Press).

“We have to have players who are active,” Gores said. “It’s not good enough to be a free agent, come over and not play.”

As for who will take over for Williams in the head-coaching role, Langdon said the search won’t take a back seat to the preparations for the draft and free agency. As we wrote on Thursday, the Pistons plan to interview former Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff, Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney and Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori. James Borrego has also been listed as a potential frontrunner and is expected to get an interview.

Here are a few more notable quotes from Friday’s presser via Edwards, Keith Langlois from Pistons.com and Sankofa:

Langdon on the draft:

“I think we’re going to get a good player at five. We like five a lot. We’re looking for the guy we feel has the best upside out of this draft and if that guy’s not there at five and there’s a team that’s willing to give us an asset value to flip back, then maybe that’s an opportunity, as well. But as of right now, our vision is not to be out of this draft. We want to draft a player and if we do flip back, it’s not going to be that far.”

Langdon on bringing in front office executives Michael Blackstone and executive J.R. Holden:

“Michael Blackstone … the thing I needed the most, especially coming into this situation, is a strategist, someone who really understands the cap. He has a big-time negotiating background and is very systematic and thoughtful in regards to what we need to from a roster and staffing standpoint.

“… J.R. Holden and I have a longstanding relationship from playing overseas. He understands what winning looks like and the culture and environment that we’re trying to create here. He’s cut his teeth here before with Stan (Van Gundy), in Philadelphia and the last five years in Brooklyn with Sean Marks.”

Gores on Langdon’s ability to turn things around:

“I’m extremely confident this partnership with Trajan is going to work. That it is going to turn our franchise around. The mistake of the past is thinking a magic bullet will just handle things. As Trajan said, it’s about the details. It’s about everyday leadership. Greatness is built on the details and you can’t skip those. So I’m extremely confident. Trajan’s into details and he has an ability to be strategic and have vision and then an ability to speak with people and inspire them.”

Gores on the franchise’s pecking order for decisions:

“Trajan is the boss. He’s the president of basketball. He can come to me, he can get recommendations from [chairman Arn Tellem]. One of the things we needed was that single source of decision-making and have that person really pull together everything so that we can make decisions.“

Latest On Pistons’ Decision To Move On From Monty Williams

June 19th, 2024 at 5:33pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Pistons parted ways with Monty Williams on Wednesday morning following the franchise’s worst-ever season after signing him to a six-year, $78.5MM deal just one year ago.

The decision to move on from Williams came soon after hiring Trajan Langdon as president of basketball operations. According to reports, owner Tom Gores indicated Williams’ remaining money wouldn’t be an issue if Langdon ultimately decided to let him go, and the decision to move on from Williams came within the last 24 hours.

Pelicans assistant James Borrego, Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney, Knicks assistant Johnnie Bryant, Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori, former Pistons assistant Jerome Allen, Heat assistant Chris Quinn and former Nets assistant Will Weaver are among the candidates for the Pistons’ head coaching vacancy, James L. Edwards III of The Athletic writes. In a tweet, Edwards added that he believes Borrego, Sweeney and Bryant are the three primary names to watch for the position.

Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show (Twitter link), Shams Charania suggested Borrego remains the favorite for the Cavaliers‘ vacant head coaching position. Borrego has also drawn interest from the Lakers, though it’s worth noting that the Pistons hired Langdon from New Orleans, where Borrego coached last season.

Sweeney served as an assistant on Dwane Casey‘s staff for three years in Detroit and helped develop Giannis Antetokounmpo while with Milwaukee. Helping the Mavericks to an NBA Finals appearance aids Sweeney’s case. Meanwhile, Bryant has been an assistant under Tom Thibodeau in New York since 2020 following a stint with the Jazz.

We have more from the Pistons’ decision to move on from Williams:

According to Edwards (Twitter link), the firing of Williams has no impact the team’s decision to bring in Fred Vinson as an assistant for next year’s staff. Vinson will be on the Pistons next season.
In order to fight to keep his job, Williams essentially went through an interview process with Langdon, Edwards writes in a separate story. The team was searching for complete synergy from its front office to its coaching staff, and wanted to know for certain if Williams was committed to coaching a rebuilding team. Ultimately, Langdon was given free rein, via Gores, to make whatever decision he saw fit, and the pair opted to clean house in tandem.
Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press echoes Edwards’ reporting in that Langdon and Gores were on the same page in regard to firing Williams (Twitter link).
Williams and Weaver aren’t solely to blame for Detroit’s woeful season, Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports writes. There were “four factions” in the Pistons organization, with chairman Arn Tellem also serving as a prominent voice, according to Goodwill, who says that objective No. 1 this offseason should be getting everyone on the same page.
J.J. Redick could be a name to watch, Goodwill writes, but it’s unclear how much traction Detroit could gain with him since he’s widely viewed as the favorite for the Lakers’ position. Redick and Langdon have a Duke connection and crossed over briefly in New Orleans, though Redick’s time with the Pelicans didn’t end well. Tellem is also reportedly a fan of Redick’s.

Pistons Part Ways With Monty Williams

June 19th, 2024 at 10:41am CST by Luke Adams

10:41am: The Pistons have officially confirmed that Williams won’t return as the team’s head coach in 2024/25, announcing the decision in a press release (Twitter link).

“Decisions like these are difficult to make, and I want to thank Monty for his hard work and dedication,” Gores said in a statement. “Coaching has many dynamic challenges that emerge during a season and Monty always handled those with grace. However, after reviewing our performance carefully and assessing our current position as an organization, we will chart a new course moving forward.

“I have great respect for Monty as a coach and as a person and I am certain he will be successful in his future endeavors. I sincerely wish him and his family the very best.”

8:33am: The Pistons are making a head coaching change, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that the team has decided to dismiss Monty Williams just one season into his six-year, $78.5MM contract with the franchise.

Williams, who coached the Suns for four seasons from 2019-23, was let go by Phoenix last spring and appeared to be leaning toward taking a year off. After resisting Detroit’s initial overtures, Williams agreed to meet with Pistons owner Tom Gores and then-GM Troy Weaver and ultimately accepted a massive contract that was largest for a coach in NBA history at the time.

However, Williams’ first year in Detroit was a disaster from start to finish. The Pistons opened the season with 36 losses in their first 39 games, including 28 in a row, which set a new single-season record. The team – which entered the fall with aspirations of taking a step forward and vying for a spot in the postseason – had an overall record of 14-68, making it the worst season by winning percentage in the organization’s 76-year history.

The Pistons parted ways with Weaver earlier this offseason, replacing him with new head of basketball operations Trajan Langdon. Multiple reports since Langdon’s hiring indicated that the new president would be given free rein to make a head coaching change, despite the $65MM+ in guaranteed money left on Williams’ deal.

According to both Vince Goodwill of Yahoo Sports and James L. Edwards of The Athletic (Twitter links), Gores made the final call on Williams within the past 24 hours, with Langdon informing the veteran coach of the decision on Wednesday. Those reports don’t explicitly state whether or not Langdon recommended a change to Gores, but either way, the new top front office executive in Detroit now has the opportunity to bring in his own head coach for 2024/25 and beyond.

The Pistons will join the Lakers and Cavaliers as teams seeking new head coaches. While those other two clubs have been conducting searches for several weeks, Detroit is getting a late start, so we’ll see what sort of timeline the team has in mind for making a hire — the NBA draft is just one week away, while the Las Vegas Summer League schedule will get underway on July 12.

Some of the candidates under consideration for the jobs in Los Angeles and Cleveland figure to be on the Pistons’ radar. One notable name to watch, according to Goodwill (Twitter link), is Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego, who is viewed as a legitimate contender for both the Lakers and Cavs as well. Detroit will strongly consider Borrego if he’s available, says Goodwill. The Pistons have already poached one assistant from Langdon’s former team in New Orleans this offseason, reaching a deal to hire Fred Vinson.

It’s unclear whether Williams will become a contender for either of the NBA’s other head coaching vacancies or if he’ll take that year off that he didn’t get in 2023/24. Certainly, with $65MM+ in pay checks still coming his way, he’ll be feeling no financial pressure to get back to work anytime soon.

As a result of the Pistons’ dismal showing this past season, Williams now has a sub-.500 career record as a head coach, having posted a 381-404 (.485) mark across 10 years in New Orleans, Phoenix, and Detroit. He won five playoff series with the Suns and made the NBA Finals in 2021.

Central Notes: Bird, Pacers, Pistons, Portis

June 12th, 2024 at 9:42pm CST by Arthur Hill

Six players who participated in a pre-draft workout for the Pacers on Wednesday were surprised when a Hall of Famer showed up to watch them, writes Zion Brown of The Indianapolis Star. Larry Bird, who was hired as a consultant last June, walked into the gym to observe the prospects, who noticed his presence immediately.

“It’s exciting,” Oakland’s Jack Gohlke said. “Obviously (he’s) an NBA legend, and a guy who has been with the Pacers organization for forever and a legend with the Celtics, too. So I think it’s just really cool. … I would say it’s almost easier to play in front of a sold-out arena than to have these guys sitting courtside, but it’s still a really cool experience.”

Bird has worked for the Pacers in several capacities over the years, starting as head coach in 1997. Tyrese Haliburton and Isaiah Jackson also made an appearance on Wednesday, but the focus was on Bird, even though the players at the workout were all born well after his playing career ended.

“Once he walked in I was like, ‘I recognize him,’” UC-Santa Barbara’s Ajay Mitchell said. “It’s amazing to see him here. Working in front of him, it’s a great opportunity and it’s a blessing to have him around.”

Also participating in the workout were Yongxi Cui of China, Thijs de Ridder of Belgium, TCU’s Emanuel Miller and Michigan State’s Tyson Walker. Indiana owns picks 36, 49 and 50 in this month’s draft.

There’s more from the Central Division:

The Pacers have another workout set for Thursday featuring Baylor’s Jalen Bridges, North Carolina State’s D.J. Burns Jr., West Virginia’s Jesse Edwards, Kentucky’s Antonio Reeves and Morehead State’s Kalil Thomas, the team announced (via Twitter). Indiana’s Xavier Johnson was a late replacement for USC’s Boogie Ellis (Twitter link).
New Pistons head of basketball operations Trajan Langdon has a challenge to try to fix an organization that has been sputtering for years, observes Bob Wojnowski of The Detroit News. Wojnowski blames owner Tom Gores, whom he accuses of meddling too often, as well as the people he has entrusted to run the franchise. He criticizes former general manager Troy Weaver for his roster construction, particularly his willingness to take on big men who failed elsewhere, and coach Monty Williams for his insistence on playing Killian Hayes and his misuse of Jaden Ivey early in the season.
Bobby Portis should be thrilled by the return of Darvin Ham to the Bucks‘ coaching staff, notes Christopher Kuhagen of The Journal-Sentinel. Kuhagen recalls that after Milwaukee was eliminated from the playoffs in 2023, Portis sent out a social media message that read, “Only thing hurt us was D ham leaving. That ain’t talked about enough.”

Pistons Owner Expresses Support For GM Troy Weaver

February 10th, 2024 at 6:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

Pistons owner Tom Gores expressed confidence in general manager Troy Weaver during a session with reporters Saturday afternoon in Los Angeles, writes Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press. There has been speculation that Weaver may be replaced amid a historically bad start to the season, but Gores didn’t provide any indication that he’s considering such a move.

“I think we just came together and the first thing we did is take accountability for the mistakes we made,” Gores responded when asked about Weaver. “As an organization, you really can’t go forward until you acknowledge what didn’t work. That was the first thing. And being honest about that provides you the future. If you don’t look in your past for a little bit and what was right and what was wrong, it’s very hard to go to the future. We did that along the process. I have confidence in Troy. I have confidence. We leaned on each other through this process, but we also didn’t avoid the idea of what were we accountable for? It gave us a pathway to go forward.”

The Pistons still have the league’s worst record at 8-44 after losing to the Clippers today, but Sankofa points out that they have been more competitive recently, going 5-8 since acquiring Mike Muscala and the recently waived Danilo Gallinari from Washington last month. The roster shakeup continued at Thursday’s deadline as Detroit added six new players — Simone Fontecchio, Troy Brown Jr., Shake Milton, Quentin Grimes, Evan Fournier and Malachi Flynn — while parting with veteran shooters Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks, among others.

“We needed to mix up our formation,” Gores explained. “We had to let a few of our players go, all good men. Bojan and Burks contributed a lot to our Pistons. We just needed to change it up a bit and create some more pace-and-space for our young guys. As you know from Troy, we were at it working all last week, so we just needed to, for the sake of the team, let the young guys fly free.”

Today marked Gores’ first public comments on the team since late December when he promised fans that changes were going to be made. In today’s media session, Gores told reporters that he was involved in the process “almost every day.”

“The first month after that, I did a lot of it on a couple days of Zooms and calls and all that stuff,” Gores said. “Over the last 10 days, the team will tell you, Troy will tell you, we had a lot of all-nighters and up really late just making sure we make the right decision for this team. It’s a pivotal moment and you have to know when it’s pivotal. For us, it was important to get the right makeup and I thought we made pretty good moves. We also have a lot of cap space now in the summer, and we gained some good players.”

Gores added that he learned a lot about coach Monty Williams and people throughout the organization by watching how they responded in difficult times. He also indicated that several of Thursday’s additions could be in the Pistons’ long-term plans.

“This is just the beginning, and it’s our responsibility to do this,” Gores said. “We have to learn from what didn’t work, so we have to take that forward now. As I told the team and front office and everyone else that if we don’t win from our losses, then what are we doing? We have to be better because of our losses, and that’s our opportunity.”

Pistons Notes: Blame, Losing Streak, Williams, Improvement

December 30th, 2023 at 9:27am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Pistons are in the midst of the worst losing streak in NBA history and there’s plenty of blame to go around. However, The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie, writing with James L. Edwards III, says the brunt of the responsibility is on the front office. No one move is single-handedly causing this slide, but Detroit’s front office has made several moves that didn’t make sense, according to Vecenie.

One of the Pistons’ main issues on the court is spacing and, last trade deadline, they traded away Saddiq Bey, a career 35.9% three-point shooter, in a deal for James Wiseman. Vecenie also points out the Pistons hurt their future flexibility by trading a highly protected first-round pick (which features protections through 2027) for Isaiah Stewart.

Because of these moves, the Pistons simply don’t have the depth other teams do, Vecenie writes, which has been a factor in the losing streak. Vecenie doesn’t absolve coach Monty Williams, stating the rotations that put franchise centerpiece Cade Cunningham around non-shooters are confusing.

As for the team’s short-term future, the trade deadline is approaching, and Vecenie suggests the Pistons need to target a two-way, hybrid three/four wing like Torrey Craig to help their woes on the perimeter and should only sell Bojan Bogdanovic for a huge haul.

We have more on the Pistons:

The Pistons have bigger issues than their record-tying 28-game losing streak, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps writes. According to Bontemps’ sources, the Pistons are viewed as a team with “several stakeholders articulating different visions for the team.” Everyone from Williams to owner Tom Gores to general manager Troy Weaver to vice chairman Arn Tellem is said to have a different outlook for the organization, which hasn’t won a playoff game since 2008/09.
While all the Pistons’ power brokers hold some responsibility for the losing streak, The Athletic’s Sam Amick is less critical of Williams, to whom Detroit awarded a six-year, $72MM contract. Williams shouldn’t be in Detroit at all, according to Amick, who says the veteran coach instead deserved to remain in Phoenix, where he became a “fall guy.”
The Pistons almost defeated the Celtics on Thursday in a matchup between the teams with the NBA’s best and worst records. Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated writes Detroit showed fight in the overtime loss. “I think it shows we’re on the same level of all the teams we’re playing against,” Cunningham said. “There’s no team I’ve ever come across where I felt like I was going into a slaughterhouse. I’ve never felt like that in my life going into a basketball game…there’s a lot of growth in tonight, some things we can learn from and definitely take into the next game.“

Cade: Pistons’ Record-Setting Futility “Weighs On Us Every Day”

December 26th, 2023 at 10:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons established a new NBA record on Tuesday night, as the Nets defeated them 118-112. It was Detroit’s 27th loss in a row, the most consecutive losses by any team in a single season in league history.

Cade Cunningham scored 37 second-half points and 41 in all but it still wasn’t enough for the Pistons, who haven’t tasted victory since Oct. 28.

“It weighs on us every day,” he said during the postgame press conference relayed by Bally Sports Detroit (video link).

Coach Monty Williams said the burden of the losing streak has been tough to shoulder.

“It’s been heavy for a while,” he said (BSD video link).

The Pistons tied the record in a 126-115 loss at Brooklyn on Saturday. Their 27-game losing streak surpasses the futility of the 2010/11 Cleveland Cavaliers and 2013/14 Philadelphia 76ers, who each lost 26 straight.

Philadelphia dropped 28 straight across parts of two seasons, at the end of 2014/15 and the beginning of the ’15/16 campaign. The Pistons could tie that record when they visit Boston on Thursday.

The Pistons were outscored by 13 points in the second quarter on Tuesday.

“That’s something that’s plagued us all year long, just having that segment of the game or one quarter that kind of put us in the hole and we just haven’t been able to do enough to overcome,” said Williams, who was signed to a six-year contract by owner Tom Gores during the offseason to bring the franchise back to prominence.

Detroit actually had a five-point lead in the fourth but then gave up 13 unanswered points and couldn’t overcome the deficit.

“We need to continue to lean on each other, and continue to push each other and hold each other accountable more than ever now,” Cunningham said.

Cunningham, who is eligible for a rookie scale extension next offseason, exerted his leadership after the game.

“He showed me even more in the locker room just now,” Williams said. “He talked passionately about the things we need to do and how everybody has to be in the boat and be accountable for where we are. You have to be real about where we are. Nobody wants something like this attached to them. The bottom line is it’s my job, it’s my responsibility. Coaches are graded on their record. That’s the bottom line.”

Gores promised “changes” last week but it remains to be seen what alterations will be made.

Pistons Owner Tom Gores: “We Will Make Changes”

December 23rd, 2023 at 11:55am CST by Tristan Tucker

After the Pistons inched closer to making the wrong kind of history by losing to the depleted Jazz on Thursday night, Pistons owner Tom Gores spoke to select media to address Detroit’s current 25-game skid.

“I think [the fans] deserve an answer,” Gores said in a Q&A with The Athletic’s James L. Edwards III and others.

While the Pistons weren’t expected to be a contender this season, they were hoping to take steps toward being a more competitive team. Clubs such as the Magic and Thunder have catapulted themselves into playoff contention this year behind young cores, and while the Pistons were definitely a tier below those two, the goal was to at least vie for a play-in spot following four straight seasons with 23 or fewer wins.

Detroit hired Monty Williams, who oversaw Phoenix’s transformation into a contender from a rebuilding team, and got former No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham back from injury. The Pistons also have multiple promising young players, including Jalen Duren, Ausar Thompson and Jaden Ivey. Despite making what seemed like decent moves on paper, they never addressed their three-point shooting and are the worst team in the league in that regard. Now, rather than taking a leap forward, they’ve regressed and are at the lowest point of their rebuild.

However, Gores still believes in the future of the team and sees the Pistons as having the flexibility to improve moving forward.

“So, as much as this vision feels blurry, to me, it’s the same vision I had at the beginning of the season about a bright future,” Gores said. “… We have an incredible set of young players. We’ve built ourselves to be flexible and nimble, so we’re not stuck in this problem. We have a problem. We’ve lost way too many games. We’re not stuck in it, though. We’re nimble. We can bounce from this. We have a tremendous amount of cap space.”

Despite his optimistic outlook on the franchise’s overall health, Gores insisted that changes are imminent.

“We require change,” Gores said. “We’re not doing well. As far as where we were going in getting this set of players and flexibility, I think the work is still there. We have to assess what’s not working. I’m down to Monty and I talking about rotations. I don’t normally do that. Monty is so good and knows what’s he doing, he’s open to even talking about it. We do have to change something. I can’t tell you what it exactly is. … We’re on it already. We will make changes. We will make them. We don’t know exactly what they’ll be yet.”

While he was unwilling to commit to specific changes, Gores said they’ll have to be made “in the near future.” He also went on to say that a successful season would be getting wins and keeping the health of the young core in tact. However, Gores was clear he wants changes to extend to the roster as well.

“I expect [general manager] Troy [Weaver] to find ways to change the makeup of our team and find ways to be more successful,” Gores said. “I do expect him to find ways, and he knows that. If we do nothing to improve ourselves, I’m going to be disappointed. That’s nothing new to Troy. He knows that.”

Gores ended the interview by shutting down outside perceptions that there are voices moving in different directions within the organization, as well as they idea that he’d sell the team, as fans chanted on Thursday.

“They can say what they want, but that’s ridiculous,” Gores said. “Other than winning — and we should win more games — we do a lot in the community. Players, the organization, we do a lot in the community. If you put aside winning, we’ve made a very big difference in the community. That means a lot to me. I understand that’s only going to mean a lot to people if we win, but the underworking of what’s happening and with our community, over all these years, is there. We’re doing multibillion-dollar things outside of (basketball). I understand the fans being upset, but it’s a ridiculous thought.“

Pistons Notes: Williams, Assistants, Gores, Youth

June 15th, 2023 at 5:47pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

After his wife Lisa was diagnosed with breast cancer during a playoff run with the Suns this spring and he was subsequently fired by the team, Monty Williams was reticent to latch on with a new club right away. Lisa’s health ultimately delayed Williams’ decision to agree to a deal with the Pistons, and that delay led to some additional contract perks, writes James L. Edwards III of The Athletic.

“I had a situation, personally, in my family that needed attention,” Williams said during his introductory press conference this week. “I talked to my wife about whether or not we should talk about that publicly, but that was a huge part of my decision-making. The patience that (team president Troy Weaver) and Mr. Gores (Pistons owner Tom Gores) had with me as we navigated that told me a lot.”

Edwards reveals that, beyond a record-setting salary, the added perks Detroit allocated to Williams included a “health and welfare fund” which would help the Williams family pay incurred healthcare costs that their insurance would not finance and access to a private jet to spend more time with Lisa, who will be receiving care in Phoenix.

As Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press writes, after being let go by the Suns, Williams was considering taking a year off from coaching to spend more time with his family.

There’s more out of the Motor City:

Williams will be bringing much of his former Phoenix bench with him to the Pistons, in addition to some new assistants. In another article for The Free Press, Sankofa unpacks what Detroit’s fresh batch of assistant coaches will bring to the table. Stephen Silas, the head coach of the Rockets from 2020-23, is set to serve as Williams’ lead assistant. Former Suns assistant coaches Brian Randle, Steve Scalzi and Mark Bryant will be joined by ex-Sixers assistant Dan Burke. Jamelle McMillan (son of Nate McMillan) and Spencer Rivers (son of Doc Rivers) will be player development coaches under Williams. Sankofa hints that some other recent assistant coaches under former Pistons head coach Dwane Casey could stick around in the Williams regime.
Gores emphasized the import of securing Williams’ services to help guide his rebuilding club back to NBA relevance, writes Mike Curtis of The Detroit News. “It was critical,” the Pistons’ owner said. “It’s a really important time. It was also about these players over here. They literally have trusted us and were holding their own practices and they have their own fortitude. They really were able to stay together and there was a moment when Troy and I, we were together and we said, ‘Those young men are relying on us.’ We had, I wouldn’t call it a yelling match at all, but we just talked about how important it was to deliver to our players.”
Sankofa notes in an additional piece that Williams is encouraged by the investment his new young players already appear to have in his abilities. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a press conference for a coach and all of the players show up,” Williams said. “That’s what I see. A hunger, a desire. They all want it. It really gets to you when you think about it. I could go on and on about what I’ve seen on film. I’ve also talked to them about what we need. We need to do some things a lot better. They’ve all been willing, they’ve all been receptive.”

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