Another disappointing season in Detroit has led to another offseason shuffle in the Pistons organization.
After a disappointing 14-68 season, the Detroit Pistons have decided to hire a new head of basketball operations (President) and will begin their search process this week, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 15, 2024
The Pistons are reportedly looking for an executive who would rank above their general manager, Troy Weaver, who took over as GM in 2020. In Weaver's four-year tenure, the Pistons have gone 74-244.
This year, they lost a record 28 straight games before finishing with the NBA's worst record, 14-68.
It's only been 16 months since the Pistons announced they'd signed Weaver to a contract extension, and now he's getting a boss.
Sources: The Pistons have signed general manager Troy Weaver to a contract extension. Since Weaver’s arrival in 2020, Detroit has accumulated strong young talent in Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Jalen Duren, Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey, along with the trade of Bojan Bogdanovic.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 21, 2022
In general, a team wants their team president to be able to make his own hiring decisions. The Pistons extended Weaver, while head coach Monty Williams still has five years and $65M left on the record-setting deal he signed last summer.
Where will they find their new team president? NBA writer Marc Stein thinks they'll look in their own division.
The Pistons are believed to have interest in exploring the prospect of hiring Bucks GM Jon Horst as they search for a new head of basketball ops. Horst is a Mich. native, worked in Detroit and won Executive of the Year en route to Milwaukee's 2021 title.https://t.co/A6ycVmnrjq https://t.co/x0YhjLJtUG
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) April 15, 2024
Milwaukee Bucks GM Jon Horst signed his own long-term contract extension in 2021, after the Bucks won their first title in a half-century. He's a Michigan native, but the real draw for Horst would likely be a big fat raise.
Perhaps Horst is dubious about the long-term future of the Bucks, who have struggled under new head coach Doc Rivers, and have three players on the wrong side of 30 locked up in large long-term deals.
Regardless, it's bad news for Weaver, who probably hasn't earned any job security over the last four seasons. It's bad news for the young Pistons, who face another offseason of organizational instability.
No matter who takes over, it feels like owner Tom Gores is rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. Perhaps it's not the coach, the general manager or the lack of a team president.
Maybe Gores is the problem in Detroit.
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