Detroit Pistons president Trajan Langdon preached patience following a turnaround season that including a trip to the postseason, hinting that his team likely wouldn’t make significant changes to the roster.
And, while the Pistons haven’t been part of any blockbuster wheeling and dealing, they have made some moves — some, perhaps, out of necessity — and they’ve been enough to slightly improve their outlook for 2025-26, at least in the eyes of CBS Sports.
The outlet released updated “way-too-early” NBA power rankings Thursday, to factor in an offseason that now has seen the NBA Draft and an initial wave of free agency. The Pistons are No. 12, up two spots from CBS Sports’ initial early power rankings in April.
The Pistons agreed to deals to add guard and former Michigan star Caris LeVert and bring back reserve big man Paul Reed, and also put together a sign-and-trade with the Miami Heat, adding another former Michigan standout in sharpshooter Duncan Robinson for forward Simone Fontecchio.
LeVert, who averaged 12.1 points in 64 games between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Atlanta Hawks last season, is a scorer, averaging 13.9 points and 4.0 assists through 524 career games, while Robinson is a career 39.7% shooter from 3-point range.
Detroit did not bring back free-agent guard Dennis Schröder (who is heading to the Sacramento Kings), a key acquisition at last season’s trade deadline, and also lost Tim Hardaway Jr., who is headed to the Denver Nuggets. Perhaps the biggest potential loss is Malik Beasley, the runner-up as the NBA’s top sixth man whose future is clouded — to say the least — as the subject to a federal gambling investigation to go along with a host of financial issues.
“The federal investigation into Malik Beasley’s potential gambling violations threw a major wrench into the Pistons’ offseason plans,” Colin Ward-Henninger of CBS Sports writes, “and as a result they probably overpaid for Duncan Robinson in a desperate effort to get another floor-spacer.
“That being said, the biggest addition to next season’s roster will be a healthy Jaden Ivey, who was in the middle of a breakout season before fracturing his leg. While not as splashy as some other teams, the Pistons had a solid offseason and will bring back most of what was the league’s most surprising team last year.”
The Pistons also selected Tennessee shooting guard Chaz Lanier with the No. 37 pick in the NBA Draft.
CBS Sports’ ranking Thursday is in line with way-too-early rankings from the likes of ESPN and The Athletic, who had the Pistons at Nos. 11 and 12, respectively, the day after the Oklahoma City Thunder won the NBA championship last month — and before the NBA Draft and the start of free agency.
The Pistons were arguably the league’s biggest surprise last season, finishing the regular season with a 44-38 record — a 30-win improvement from 2023-24 — and earning a No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference, making the postseason for the first time since 2018-19. The Pistons took the No. 3 seed New York Knicks to six games before falling in the first round.
Want to comment on this story? Become a subscriber today. Click here.