The Detroit Pistons recently welcomed Ish Smith back to their lineup, but it couldn’t help them from dropping their third of a four game road swing Monday night against the Utah Jazz. Now, ahead of their Wednesday night home matchup against the Orlando Magic, they currently occupy the 10th spot in the Eastern Conference standings, just over a month after once being as high as 4th place.
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According to ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Dallas Mavericks are looking to trade point guard Dennis Smith Jr., while meanwhile, Mitch Lawrence of Sirius XM NBA and the Sporting News has said that the Pistons are one of the teams in contact with Dallas.
The Dallas Mavericks are escalating discussions to find a trade for point guard Dennis Smith Jr., league sources tell ESPN. Phoenix and Orlando have engaged in ongoing talks with Mavs. Smith Jr., has sat out three straight games with what team has termed a sore back.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 15, 2019
Pistons have talked to the Mavs about Dennis Smith Jr., per sources.
— Mitch Lawrence (@Mitch_Lawrence) January 15, 2019
Smith is averaging 12.6 points and 3.9 assists this season in 28 games so far for Dallas, while also shooting 37.5% from downtown. With just 33% three-point shooting, the Pistons rank second last in the NBA in that regard.
BONUS CONTENT:
BREAKING: Pistons sign point guard
According to reports, the Detroit Pistons and point guard Isaiah Whitehead have agreed to a two-way contract.
Sources @TheAthleticNBA @WatchStadium: Guard Isaiah Whitehead has agreed to a two-way NBA contract with the Detroit Pistons. Whitehead was Brooklyn’s second-round pick in 2016 and had played overseas this season.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 15, 2019
Whitehead was originally selected in the second round of the 2016 NBA Draft by the Brooklyn Nets. In 89 career NBA games, he has averaged 7.2 points and 2.4 assists in 20.5 in 20.5 minutes per game.
BONUS CONTENT:
Detroit Lions’ Fans: Chill out, the best OC candidate is still available
When news broke that Jim Bob Cooter would not be returning to the Detroit Lions in 2019, head coach Matt Patricia was immediately charged with what will be the most important move the team will need to make this offseason. Hiring a new offensive coordinator.
Within hours (maybe even sooner) of the news Cooter was not coming back, the speculation began as to who would be the best choice to replace him. There were reports Adam Gase was going to be fired by the Miami Dolphins (which he eventually was) and that he would be a top target for the Lions. Well, that may or may not have been the case, but Gase decided to take the head coaching job with the New York Jets.