Key Pistons Offseason Dates To Know
This offseason is a big one for the Pistons. With a couple of key, young cornerstones in Cade Cunningham and Saddiq Bey in place, this is arguably the Pistons' most important offseason in a long time. It's a foundational summer because what they do now sets the tone for where this team wants to be moving forward, and that could be a pretty good spot as early as next year.
The Pistons have nowhere to go but up after a 23-59 campaign. Better basketball was played down the stretch, but that doesn't erase the losses that happened during the first three quarters of the season.
The late-season acquisition of Marvin Bagley III is definitely interesting for next year as he looked as good as he ever has during his four-year NBA career. During the month of March, Bagley averaged 16.4 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, which is more than double his scoring production with the Kings. He also had a 25-point and a 27-point performance in the month of April as the Pistons wrapped up their season. The point is, it looks like Troy Weaver stole the one No. 2 overall pick from the Kings. It's going to be really interesting to see how Bagley fits in with the rest of the young, talented Pistons next year and beyond.
The Pistons are guaranteed to have a top-7 pick in the upcoming draft and have the same odds as the Orlando Magic and Houston Rockets to land the No. 1 overall pick for the second year in a row. They also pick in the second round at No. 46 (via the Brooklyn Nets).
Whatever ends up happening with current guys on the roster and future Pistons who haven't arrived yet, there are some positives to build on in Detroit. Several key young players got better and better as the season went on, the teams seems to genuinely enjoy playing with and for one another and everyone in uniforms seems to be heading in the same direction set by head coach Dwane Casey. The future is just around the corner for this franchise and it all starts quite soon as the draft process really ramps up in about a month.
Below are the key offseason dates:
- May 16-22: Pre-Draft Combine in Chicago
- May 17: Draft Lottery in Chicago
- June 13: Draft Early Entry Withdrawal Deadline (5 p.m. ET)
- June 23: Draft in Brooklyn
- July 1: Start of free agency
- July 7-17: Summer League in Las Vegas
