RealGM Basketball Wiretap

31 May 2025

• Pistons Looking For Floor-Spacing Big Man; Interested In Naz Reid, Myles Turner

  The Detroit Pistons are looking to add a floor-spacing big man over the offseason, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line.

  The Pistons are among several teams interested in Naz Reid, and are also looking at Myles Turner.

  Reid has a player option worth $15 million that he must act upon by June 29.

  The Wolves plan to be aggressive in upgrading the team.

  Turner is expected to re-sign with the Pacers.

• Amen, Ausar Thompson Considering Playing For Jamaican National Team

  The Thompson twins, Amen and Ausar, have begun the process of acquiring Jamaican citizenship. The two can become citizens because their father is Jamaican. This would allow the Thompson twins to play for Jamaica on the national team level.

  Jamaica has reportedly secured a commitment from Norman Powell of the LA Clippers to play in upcoming FIBA events. The Jamaican national team is also recruiting Nick Richards of the Phoenix Suns, Isaiah Stewart of the Detroit Pistons and Josh Minott of the Minnesota Timberwolves to play for the team as well.

  Amen Thompson plays for the Houston Rockets in the NBA, while Ausar Thompson suits up for the Detroit Pistons. Both players are already considered top perimeter defenders and rising stars in the NBA.

• Jaden Ivey Looking Forward To Start Of Next Season

  Detroit Pistons guard Jaden Ivey is looking forward to next season starting already. There was some hope that Ivey could return for the Pistons playoff run, but the team chose to be careful with their young guard. That decision was a tough one for Ivey to go through.

  "This has been painful for him," Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon said of Ivey. "He is an incredible human being, teammate; he has been supportive. But it has been hard for him to watch our run."

  Ivey was injured in a game against the Orlando Magic on January 1. Cole Anthony dove for a loose ball and collided with Ivey, breaking the Pistons guard's left fibula. Ivey spent the remainder of the season recovering and rehabbing. He's expected to be fully cleared for the start of training camp this fall.

• Pistons Debated Stanley Johnson, Devin Booker At 2015 Draft

  At the 2015 NBA draft, the Detroit Pistons had a decision to make with the No. 8 pick and narrowed their options to Stanley Johnson and Devin Booker. The Pistons selected Kentavious Caldwell-Pope at No. 8 in the 2013 draft and was perceived as having more positional overlap with Booker than Johnson. Johnson's strength and profile projected him as being more of a small forward who could also play power forward in some lineup configurations.

  "This is one of the things I learned afterwards, but I actually believe is true," said Zach Lowe this week. "And is not just spin. Because it's actually more embarrassing for them. It was Stanley Johnson or Devin Booker. [That] was their draft room debate. And they chose Stanley Johnson."

  Booker grew up in the Detroit area and was a fan of the Pistons during his childhood. Booker was on record ahead of the draft saying he hoped to be selected by the Pistons.

  From Perry A. Farrell of the Detroit Free Press:

  "'Growing up watching the team and just loving the dynasty that they had here and being a part of it,' he said, 'I think I understand the meaning of having Detroit Pistons across my chest.' Booker's dream of becoming a Piston could be a problem, however, because the team already has Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Jodie Meeks at shooting guard. At 6-feet-6, would he be versatile enough to play small forward? 'I think I am,' he said. 'I'm still growing into my body. I'm working on it. I saw a statistic where the last five NBA champions led the NBA in three-point shooting, and that's what I do.' Booker hit 58 threes in his only season at Kentucky and, during one stretch, made 20 of 28. He averaged 10 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists in his short stay with the Wildcats. Scouts compare his game to Klay Thompson of the NBA champion Golden State Warriors. He admits that Thompson is a player he watches. Growing up, it was Richard Hamilton. 'I watched a lot of Rip; it's crazy now, because I really wasn't a shooter back then,' he said. 'I was just one of the bigger kids. I loved the way Rip played. Big Shot (Chauncey) Billups and Tayshaun's (Prince) block. I remember everything.'"

  Booker fell to the Phoenix Suns at No. 13 and he is a multiple All-NBA selection and helped lead the franchise to The Finals in 2021.

• Malik Beasley Wants To Stay With Pistons

  In the wake of his team's playoff loss to the New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons wing Malik Beasley reflected on being part of a 28-win turnaround this season. Beasley made it clear he's appreciative of the environment the team's leadership created.

  "In my whole 9 years in the NBA, I never had as much fun coming to the gym," Beasley said. "I've been through a lot of stuff just this year alone. Every day coming in was probably the best thing that happened to me."

  Beasley credited that Pistons coach J.B Bickerstaff and front office executive Trajan Langdon.

  "Coach JB and Trajan did an amazing job of making sure when you come in here, it's fun and it's energetic, it's a place you want to be. It's a place you want to be," Beasley said. "It's definitely a place I want to be."

  Beasley will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He's coming off one-year, $6 million contract. That leaves the Pistons with only non-Bird rights for the veteran shooting guard. Detroit could create cap space this summer to help re-sign Beasley, or they could offer him the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception, which projects to be worth $14.1 million for the 2025-26 season.

• Jaden Ivey Cleared For 1-On-1 Drills

  Jaden Ivey has been progressing in his recovery from a broken leg and has been cleared for 1-on-1 drills.

  Ivey suffered the injury on January 1.

  Ivey averaged 17.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 30 games (all starts) this season.

  Isaiah Stewart may also be out for the rest of the first round against the Knicks, according to J.B. Bickerstaff.

• Isaiah Stewart Might Be Out For First Round Due To Knee Injury

  Isaiah Stewart is out for Game 4 against the New York Knicks due to a knee injury.

  Stewart, who played in the series opener, will now miss his third straight game.

  J.B. Bickerstaff said that Stewart may not be able to return in the first round.

  "It would be really difficult to put him in the situation," Bickerstaff said.

  Game 5 takes place on Tuesday.

• Isaiah Stewart Misses Game 3 Loss With Right Knee Injury

  Isaiah Stewart missed the Detroit Pistons' 118-116 loss to the New York Knicks in Game 3 due to a right knee injury,

  Stewart has now missed two games in a row with the injury.

  Stewart finished with two points and five rebounds in 19 minutes in Game 1.

• Isaiah Stewart Underwent Imaging On His Leg After Game 1

  Detroit Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart was spotted hobbling with a leg injury during his team's Game 1 loss at the New York Knicks. Stewart reportedly underwent imaging following Game 1 to determine the extent of the injury.

  No injury update for Stewart has been provided by the Pistons as of yet. With Game 2 of the first-round series scheduled for Monday, Detroit will provide an injury report later in the day on Sunday.

  Stewart exited Game 1 at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The Knicks then went on a big run to take control of the game. Stewart didn't return after playing 18 minutes, which was below his regular season average of 20 minutes.

• 2025 NBA Playoffs: First-Round Matchups Set As Regular Season Concludes

  The Oklahoma City Thunder secured homecourt advantage for the duration of the playoffs with their 68-14 record and NBA-best +12.9 Net Rating. The Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics were bunched together in second and third in both record and Net Rating.

  The best matchups of the first round figure to be the Los Angeles Lakers against Minnesota Timberwolves less than a year after Luka Doncic faced them with his former team in the Western Conference Finals. The Houston Rockets against either the Golden State Warriors or Memphis Grizzlies will also be close and contentious, as should the New York Knicks against the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference.

  The opening games of the playoffs begin next weekend following the conclusion of the Play-In Tournament on Friday.

  Western Conference
  • (1) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (8) Play-In Winner between loser of Golden State Warriors/Memphis Grizzlies or Sacramento Kings/Dallas Mavericks
  • (2) Houston Rockets vs. (7) Play-In Winner of Golden State Warriors/Memphis Grizzlies
  • (3) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (6) Minnesota Timberwolves
  • (4) Denver Nuggets vs. (5) LA Clippers

  Eastern Conference
  • (1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (8) Play-In Winner between loser of Orlando Magic/Atlanta Hawks or Chicago Bulls/Miami Heat
  • (2) Boston Celtics vs. (7) Play-In Winner of Orlando Magic/Atlanta Hawks
  • (3) New York Knicks vs. (6) Detroit Pistons
  • (4) Indiana Pacers vs. (5) Milwaukee Bucks
  
  NBA Play-In Tournament
  Western Conference
  • (8) Memphis Grizzlies vs. (7) Golden State Warriors (Tues., Apr. 15 - 10 p.m. ET on TNT)
  • (10) Dallas Mavericks vs. (9) Sacramento Kings (Wed., Apr. 16 - 10 p.m. ET on ESPN)
  
  Eastern Conference
  • (8) Atlanta Hawks vs. (7) Orlando Magic (Tues., Apr. 15 - 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT)
  • (10) Miami Heat vs. (9) Chicago Bulls (Wed., Apr. 16 - 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN)