The Detroit Pistons had fans waiting all day yesterday for big news that never came.
Detroit had to sign someone to get above the minimum salary floor and we took a few guesses at what they might do. The Pistons chose the least interesting and most underwhelming option of the bunch, promoting Javante McCoy from the G-League. Whoopee!
He’s a player most fans have never heard of but may give us some indication of the Pistons’ plans for the rest of the season.
Detroit Pistons: Who is Javante McCoy?
McCoy is a 26-year-old who went undrafted in 2022 before toiling for a few years in the G-League for the affiliates of the Lakers, Spurs and then Pistons.
He’s having a bit of a breakout in the G-League this season, averaging over 14 points on outstanding shooting splits of 57/51/92, so he has been knocking down shots at a high rate.
He doesn’t take many 3-pointers, and up until this season, shot poorly from long range, so his gaudy percentage doesn’t tell the whole story, as it’s from a fairly small sample size of 12 games.
It’s hard to imagine McCoy getting minutes outside of garbage time anyway, as Marcus Sasser has been playing well and will likely get the few guard minutes remaining after Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey and Malik Beasley have had their share.
The Pistons got over the salary floor in the most boring way possible, adding a deep bench guy who probably isn’t going to play.
What does the McCoy signing tell us about the Pistons plans?
Not much to be honest.
The Pistons are still the only team with cap space, they still have an open roster spot and they still have plenty of time before February’s trade deadline.
Trajan Langdon admitted that he didn’t have a real plan for Paul Reed’s roster spot (why exactly?) so this move allowed the Pistons to get above the salary floor while keeping most of their flexibility and buying them some time.
We can’t rule out that Langdon has other plans at the deadline, but this move doesn’t signify a team looking to maximize its roster and wins. It looks like a move to protect the 2025 draft pick, so it won’t be shocking if the Pistons just sell off a veteran or two at the deadline and take on a bad contract for future draft capital.
We won’t know until February, but given their precarious position in the standings it might be too late by then.
A lot can happen between now and then, but for now, the Pistons are content with the roster they have, embracing the tedious status quo.