Last year, the Detroit Pistons didn’t hire head coach Monty Williams until early June, meaning he had little time to prepare and little input on the roster he was about to coach.
This last-minute strategy backfired horribly for the Pistons, as Williams spent the first part of the season feeling out his roster and didn’t seem to have much understanding of how to best use the players on it, evidenced by the fact he was starting Killian Hayes even though the team had recently tried to trade him.
The Pistons are up against the clock again this offseason, as we are already into late April and they still don’t have a decision-maker, which will become an issue if their search carries on too long.
The Detroit Pistons’ president of basketball operations
The Pistons didn’t waste any time after the season, immediately announcing they would hire a new president of basketball operations, who would have final say on basketball decisions, including whether to keep the current front office and coaching staff.
Since then, there’s been nothing but silence, as no names have emerged from the team and no official interviews have been announced.
The Pistons have always liked to play things close to the chest, so it’s not surprising that nothing has leaked, but the longer this drags on, the worse it is going to be for whoever is ultimately in charge.
This person will have to come in, evaluate the situation and make huge decisions on the GM and coach. If the new POBO decides to fire one or both of them, their immediate task will be to search for, interview and hire their replacements, a process that won’t be fast.
Did I mention the NBA Draft Lottery is right around the corner?
The new hire may be tasked with hiring a whole new front office and coaching staff while simultaneously preparing for the draft and the free agency that will follow soon after.
That’s a lot to deal with in the span of two months, so the Detroit Pistons can’t waste too much of the little time they have making this decision, which is also problematic because it’s one they have to get right.
Whoever gets the job had better be ready to hit the ground running, as they will have plenty to do right away and very little time in which to do it.