If the NBA Draft begins with the No. 4 pick -- with Victor Wembanyama, Scoot Henderson and Brandon Miller expected to be the first three players off the board Thursday night -- the Pistons are in an interesting spot at No. 5.
"When you’re not picking No. 1, you gotta know the board and play the board," GM Troy Weaver said Tuesday. "Draft night is a challenge in itself to maximize the team. There’s so many different ways (to do it). We’re working hard at it and we’ll be excited on Thursday when it’s our time."
The Pistons are already getting trade calls on the No. 5 pick. With the Rockets expected to stand pat and take Overtime Elite guard Amen Thompson at No. 4, according to Yahoo! Sports, the Jazz, who own picks Nos. 9 and 16, have "been in contact" with Detroit about moving up to take Arkansas guard Anthony Black. If the Pistons believe they can land a player later in the lottery who they would just as soon take at 5 -- someone like Central Florida forward Taylor Hendricks -- it might behoove them to move back.
"There’s been a lot of banter and talk back and forth on a lot of picks, and we feel good about the value of 5," said Weaver, who reiterated that the Pistons are "still looking at all our options to improve the team."
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Rather than moving down for extra picks, the Pistons might be more inclined to package No. 5 for a proven player. Despite the team finishing last in the NBA this season, Weaver believes Detroit can take a significant step forward next year with the right moves this summer. The first one was landing Monty Williams as head coach. The next one could be adding an impact vet around the young core of Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren.
Weaver acknowledged the Pistons are in a position as a team to explore a wider range of avenues on draft night than they have in the recent past. An aggressive move would suit an organization that has the most losses in the NBA over the last four (five, six, seven) seasons and hasn't won a playoff game since 2008.
"The scenarios and vetting these players has become a little different, just because of where we are as a team," Weaver said. "Even though we haven’t really won any games yet, we like our lot in life right now."
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That is, the Pistons are on the rise, with work to do yet. We'll see what that means come draft night, where Weaver hasn't been shy in the past. He swung two trades in his first draft as GM to land Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey, and another one last year to land Duren. Those were moves for the future. This could be the year the Pistons start playing for the present.
However it shakes out, Weaver is sure of one thing: he won't be caught off guard. He's ready to bend the draft in Detroit's favor, to help his team turn the corner.
"You're walking through the park at night, you gotta be ready for whatever’s gonna come, and draft night is that way. You gotta be prepared for different trade scenarios, players dropping, players rising," Weaver said. "The teams that are equipped can take advantage of draft night and feel good about the things that happen."
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