Since they floated that center Andre Drummond was available via trade last season, the Detroit Pistons have found no takers for the inconsistent big man. According to Zach Lowe of ESPN, teams shied away from Drummond after his defense suffered a dip last season. Sources told Lowe that the Pistons did everything they can to find a suitable trade partner for Drummond, but they found little interest in the 6-foot-11 big man.
Drummond emerged as one of the best centers in the NBA after averaging a career-best 16.2 points and 14.8 boards during the 2015-16 season.
After that, the Pistons rewarded him with a five-year, $127 million deal. However, Drummond’s performance dropped the following year, averaging just 13.6 points and 13.8 caroms in 81 games. Drummond also became a liability for the Pistons in close games due to his poor free throw shooting.
With no possible takers, the Pistons will be stuck with Drummond for the coming season where he will be hard-pressed to show his wares anew and prove his worth as the franchise’s future cornerstone. In an earlier interview with the Detroit Free Press, Drummond admitted that he and his family are bothered by persistent trade rumors hounding him. Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy, for his part, believes that Drummond can get his playback on track in the coming season if he patterns his game after DeAndre Jordan.
Wizards big man out 6 to 8 weeks
Washington Wizards power forward Markieff Morris will be sidelined for six to eight weeks after undergoing sports hernia surgery. Based on the timeline released by the Wizards, Morris will return on Nov. 3 or seven games into the season. On that day, the Wizards are scheduled to host the Cleveland Cavaliers.
If Morris’ recovery lasts eight weeks, he will miss the first month of the regular season. In 76 games last season, Morris averaged 14.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in 31.2 minutes of play as the Wizards finished with a 49-33 mark. The Wizards said Morris’ surgery went as expected. Dr. Michael Brunt performed it at the Barnes-Jewish Hospital Center for Advanced Medicine located in St.
Louis.
76ers to sign Kris Humphries
The Vertical reported that free-agent forward Kris Humphries would sign a non-guaranteed deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. The signing came after Humphries had strong workouts for the 76ers recently. A 13-year NBA veteran, the 32-year-old Humphries averaged 4.6 points and 3.7 rebounds in 56 games for the Atlanta Hawks last season.
