Pistons news: Detroit's president search raises questions

The Detroit Pistons finished their season on April 14th, and we’ve not heard much from them since. 

It was way back on April 3rd that James Edwards III of The Athletic (subscription) speculated that the Pistons would hire a president of basketball operations and about two weeks ago the team made it official, announcing their intent to do just that. 

But there has been silence since, and we are nearly into May, with the NBA Draft Lottery just around the corner and plenty for the new hire to do before next season, including potentially replacing the front office, coaching staff and half the roster. 

We’ve heard nothing from the team in terms of names or interviews being conducted, so the Pistons are either playing things close to the chest or haven’t gotten to that stage of the process. Either one is concerning and raises some questions about the internal operation of the franchise. 

Why wasn’t this done months ago? 

It’s possible the Detroit Pistons are waiting to interview candidates who are still involved in the playoffs but have a pretty good idea of who those candidates will be. 

And they should, as this season was over before Thanksgiving, so when exactly was the decision made to hire a new POBO? During the epic 28-game losing streak? The day the season ended? 

It seems like the Pistons should have had candidates lined up and ready to interview the second the season ended so that person could immediately get to work on the Herculean task that lies in front of them. 

Instead, we are now nearly into May and the Pistons still don’t have a decision-maker and have the Sword of Damocles hanging over their entire coaching staff and front office until they do, so what exactly is happening right now? Are Troy Weaver and the rest of the front office in a holding pattern until they have a new boss? Have they been given some assurance that they won’t be fired? 

Again, why wasn’t this part of the process finished months ago when it was clear the Detroit Pistons were horrible and needed new leadership? Tick tock, Tom Gores. 

Will the Detroit Pistons new president of basketball operations have enough time?

Considering the team is now into the most important offseason in recent memory, you’d think they would want a decision-maker in place to already be at work. The Draft Lottery is two weeks away, and then focus will turn immediately to the draft and free agency at the end of June, which will be here before you know it. 

So are we really asking this person to prepare to fix the biggest mess in the NBA in a matter of weeks? They will barely know where the bathrooms are before they have to make decisions that could affect the franchise for the next decade. 

No one knows what the Detroit Pistons are up to right now, but whatever it is, they need to speed it up. Under these circumstances, is there any chance they get the right person? I hope so, or we may be doing this all again next offseason.