The Detroit Pistons have claimed power forward Christian Wood from the New Orleans Pelicans. The big man adds some necessary depth to the team’s frontcourt.
Breakout G-League star Christiand Wood is heading to the Motor City.
The Detroit Pistons claimed the former New Orleans Pelicans power forward off the free agency waiver wire Wednesday, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported. Since going undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft, Wood has played 51 NBA games across his four seasons.
Wood was in the second year of a two-year, $3.1 million contract, according to Sportrac. The Pistons will be on the books for the final $1.6 million of that deal unless he is waived before the first regular season game.
Wood, 23, was named to the second-team All-NBA G-League team for the 2018-19 season, in which he averaged 29.3 points, 14 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Playing for the Wisconson Herd, the Milwaukee Bucks affiliate, he also blocked two shots per game with shooting splits of .55/.26/.75 in 28 games. His numbers were good enough to warrant a spot on the Pelicans main roster for the last eight games of the 2019 regular season.
As the Pelicans played roster musical chairs while Anthony Davis continued to sit out, Wood took the time to shine in his 23 minutes-per-game. In those eight games, Wood scored 16.9 points-per-game and grabbed 7.9 boards.
What does this addition mean for the Pistons? Wood provides frontcourt depth. At 6-foot-10, he’ll be able to transition between power forward and being asked to play spot minutes at center. He’ll at least get to play through training camp before a final roster decision is made.
Despite putting up monstrous numbers in the G-League is, Wood has yet to find any continuous presence on a main roster. Though he played quite well during his short stint with the Pelicans, they also were one of the worst teams in the league, they could afford to give the promising big man a chance.
I wouldn’t hold my breath that Wood becomes anything more than the third-string power forward behind Blake Griffin and Markieff Morris, but he could still find value in the frontcourt group backing up Andre Drummond. He could fill the small hole that Zaza Pachulia left behind.
The Pistons took a chance on a player who’s still just 23-years-old. Without finding an actual groove in the NBA because of the constant bouncing back and forth between the G-League and main rosters, Wood could potentially find some consistency with the Pistons if he makes the final roster. For that price and the potential he’s shown in both the developmental league and his short stint with the Pelicans, this deal for Wood is pretty solid.
The Pistons had a positional need and filled it. What happens next is entirely in the hands of newest Piston Christian Wood.