The unfortunate story of Chris Smith’s career with the Detroit Pistons

Chris Smith was a two-way player for the Detroit Pistons this season. Never heard of him? Unfortunately (you will see this phrase a lot), he never played a game for the Pistons, so really no reason you should.

It was a quiet transaction that got little publicity. On April 3, the Pistons public relations department put out a brief notice:

And this ended, at least for the near future, the nascent pro career of Chris Smith.

In the summer of 2021, Detroit general manager Troy Weaver went for low-risk, high-reward deals on a couple of prospects.  He drafted Isaiah Livers with the 43rd pick in the second round, and then inked Chris Smith of UCLA to a two-way contract after he went undrafted.

Each had been sidelined by an injury suffered in college, so neither could partake in any pre-draft workouts. If healthy, each might have snuck into the first round.

Smith was a 6-foot-9 guard for UCLA, and was on several Collège Player of the Year preseason watch lists. He was on his way to a great year for the Bruins, averaging 12.6 points (50-percent on three-pointers), 6.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists. But, eight games into the season, Smith tore the ACL in his left knee in January, 2021.

Smith was unable to participate in Detroit’s summer league or even training camp due to rehabbing of the knee. Of course, that was fine with Pistons management, they knew the deal when they signed him, and there was no reason to rush him along. Not like Detroit was making a playoff push.

Smith was finally cleared to play on January 6, and was assigned to the Motor City Cruise of the G-League. He scored six points and grabbed seven rebounds in his pro debut.

Unfortunately, Smith had not been ready to play in December, when the Pistons roster was decimated by injuries and health protocols. Many players from the Cruise were called up and Smith, as a two-way player, would have probably received a lot of NBA action.

Smith made 18 appearances for the Cruise, averaging 8.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 22.5 minutes per game. Not spectacular, but promising for a player who had not played in a year, coming off a serious injury.

Detroit coach Dwane Casey talked about how he was looking forward to seeing Smith play for the Pistons at the end of the season. However, it was not to be.

He last played for the Cruise on March 8. Unfortunately, it turned out he had torn the ACL in his left knee again.

Does Chris Smith still have a future with the Detroit Pistons?

The fact Smith was officially released does not mean he could not come back and play for the Pistons. Deividas Syrvidas was released last summer to free up a roster spot, and not only participated in summer league and training camp, but even played for Detroit for a few games in December.

Since the surgery was referred to as ‘reconstruction’ it will probably be a while before Smith can get back on the court, making it doubtful he can play in summer league, missing it for the second year in a row.

It would not be surprising, actually, it is the most likely outcome, that whenever Smith is ready to play, he will be back i nthe Pistons organization, most likely starting out with the Cruise again. His release was more of a procedural move so Detroit could keep the promising Braxton Key than a rejection of Smith as a prospect.

Smith is just 22-years-old, so he has plenty of time to recover from his injuries to have a pro career. For Pistons fans, looking at how well Weaver’s other gambles, Key, Livers, Marvin Bailey III have worked out, they will neve get to see if Smith could have joined them as a success story.