USC Basketball: Trojans Legend Taj Gibson Lands On Possibly Final NBA Team

It’s been quite a run!

After being cut by the New York Knicks and longtime head coach Tom Thibodeau, former USC Trojans power forward/center Taj Gibson has landed potentially his final NBA contract.

He’ll be joining the lowly Detroit Pistons on a 10-day deal, the club revealed on its PR team’s official Twitter/X account:

The @DetroitPistons announced today that the team has signed forward/center Taj Gibson to a 10-day contract. Per team policy, terms of the agreement were not disclosed. pic.twitter.com/yDWQEPUvMe

— Pistons PR (@Pistons_PR) March 6, 2024

The 38-year-old vet had been on Thibodeau’s Knicks for parts of the 2023-24 NBA season prior, first on a non-guaranteed minimum contract and then, when he was cut, on two 10-day agreements in January and February. Gibson has long been venerated as a terrific off-court leader, and as he has aged out of being a top defensive big man in the league, he has been able to extend his career as something of an unofficial player-coach.

Across 16 contests with New York this year, the 6’9” vet averaged 1.0 points and 1.8 rebounds across 10.3 minutes per bout.

The fact that Gibson has linked up with one of the worst clubs in the NBA, a team headed nowhere fast, is a bit ominous. If he's looking to string together a Udonis Haslem-like final few seasons on a roster, it would benefit Gibson to link up with a club that actually has real playoff expectations. The ailing Knicks really need healthy bodies that can contribute, so it makes sense that they're finally moving on. Could he sign a 10-day deal with, say, the Boston Celtics?

Gibson was a two-time All-Pac-10 honoree and the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year during his tenure at USC, from 2006-09. Across his three seasons and 105 games (104 starts) with the club, he boasts averages of 12.4 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.4 blocks, 1.4 assists and 0.7 steals. He was also a two-time Pac-12 All-Defense selection.