Detroit Pistons’ Trajan Langdon Explains Reason Behind New Additions

The Detroit Pistons welcomed a handful of experienced veterans this offseason.

Oct 28, 2021; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Tobias Harris (12) passes the ball past Detroit Pistons forward Jerami Grant (9) during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports / Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Changes were inevitable after a 14-68 season for the Detroit Pistons.

In the front office, Troy Weaver was shown the door after Trajan Langdon was issued the keys by becoming the President of Basketball Operations.

The coaching staff saw a major shakeup as Monty Williams was replaced by J.B. Bickerstaff.

As far as the roster goes, the Pistons didn’t create a major shakeup. As they’ve been headlined by Cade Cunningham for the previous few seasons, the Pistons not only kept the former first-overall pick, but they invested in him with a max extension.

While there wasn’t a major shakeup to the cornerstone group, Detroit did make some key additions. Recently, Trajan Langdon explained the reason behind some of the additions.

“We’re very excited about all of them,” Langdon said during the Summer League run regarding the new additions. “The vision coming in was that we have a lot of young players but should bolster them with some guys that can help them be better with their experience and also stretch the floor with their shooting capabilities. We’re happy we did that, and we’ll see what happens.”

Detroit’s first order of business this offseason was striking a trade with the Dallas Mavericks. They added a veteran shooter in Tim Hardaway Jr.

When free agency opened up earlier this month, the Pistons formed an expected reunion with Tobias Harris, who wrapped up a long run with the Philadelphia 76ers.

After the initial wave of free agency passed, the Pistons went ahead and signed the veteran Malik Beasley to a one-year deal. Then, they reached a new deal with their restricted free agent, Simone Fontecchio.

This offseason, the Pistons found a good balance in continuing to add developmental pieces while mixing in a handful of seasoned vets to bring experience to the table.

Between Harris, Beasley, and Hardaway, the Pistons’ three vets have over 2,100 regular season games played. They have combined for over 1,300 starts since 2011.

Detroit still has a long way to go before they enter the Eastern Conference’s contender conversation, but they seem to have taken the correct steps in the right direction of their rebuild. With changes all around, the Pistons hope to see a major improvement after back-to-back disappointing seasons.