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Former Syracuse assistant coach Troy Weaver has agreed to a deal with the Detroit Pistons to become the franchise’s next general manager, Yahoo Sports’ Vincent Goodwill reported.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski originally reported the deal was being finalized, noting that Weaver will be the ninth current general manager in the NBA who is Black.

Weaver was the primary recruiter for Carmelo Anthony, who led the Orange to the national championship in 2003. He coached at SU from 2000 to 2004 before jumping to the NBA by becoming the Utah Jazz’s head scout.

Had Weaver not left for the NBA, he would’ve brought Kevin Durant to Syracuse in 2006, Weaver said this spring on a Facebook Live event reliving the 2003 title run. Durant chose Texas instead and became the No. 2 overall pick, a league MVP and a two-time NBA champion.

The Jazz eventually promoted Weaver to director of player personnel, a position he held for a year before joining the Oklahoma City Thunder. He’s spent the last 10 years with the Thunder and was its vice president of basketball operations last season.

Detroit hasn’t advanced past the first round of the playoffs since the 2007-08 season. The Pistons finished 20-46 this year and weren’t invited to the league’s 22-team Orlando restart plan. Detroit traded center Andre Drummond to the Cavaliers before this year’s trade deadline.

Weaver will be tasked with helping Detroit rebuild as star Blake Griffin’s contract expires after the 2021-22 season.

Published on June 18, 2020 at 11:09 am

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