The Detroit Pistons selected sharpshooter Chaz Lanier with the 37th pick of the 2025 NBA Draft, but they weren’t finished wheeling and dealing.
Detroit had a quiet draft, simply taking Lanier with their pick while a ton of action swirled around them, including several teams moving up to select ahead of the Pistons in the second round.
Detroit had identified their man in Lanier, who reportedly impressed during his pre-draft workouts and interviews.
Lanier may have a shot to make the rotation next season depending on how things shake out in free agency and trades.
With only one draft pick at their disposal, the Pistons will look to find a gem outside of the draft and signed some interesting names in the undrafted free agent market who could end up on two-way deals.
Detroit Pistons free agency: Flurry of signings, but will any of them stick?
The Pistons were unable to find any talent outside of the draft under Troy Weaver, something Trajan Langdon hopes to change. And he has experience doing it, as he landed both Naji Marshall and Jose Alvarado as undrafted free agents.
Here is a list of players the Pistons have recently signed:
-Zakai Zeigler: PG, Tennessee
-Brice Williams: Wing, Nebraska
-Dawson Garcia: Stretch big, Minnesota
-TJ Madlock: Alabama St.
These players will join Ron Holland II and Bobi Klintman on the Pistons’ Summer League roster. Games tip off on July 11th.
Of the four, Williams and Garcia are the most likely to land two-way deals, as both Zeigler and Madlock are undersized point guards who are probably headed to the G-League.
Teams always sign multiple point guards to run the offense and try to keep things organized in the chaotic Summer League.
Brice Williams is a 6-foot-7 wing who can get buckets from all over the floor. He’s no high flyer but he’s a smart player and an efficient scorer who averaged 20 per game this season for Nebraska on 47/37/88 shooting splits.
Dawson Garcia is a 6-foot-11 forward, which is a type of player we know the Pistons are looking to add this summer. He was also an efficient 20 ppg scorer in the Big Ten who shot 37 percent from 3-point range on over four attempts per game this season.
Garcia can handle the rock for a guy his size but will need to show that he can stay on the floor defensively, where his lack of athleticism will show up.
It’s always a long shot to land a player outside of the draft, but it definitely happens, and these two are older players with strong offensive skill sets who may be able to carve out a role for themselves on a two-way deal.