Jaden Ivey, recovering from broken fibula, takes 3s at Pistons shootaround
Jaden Ivey at shootaround hours before Detroit Pistons played Oklahoma City Thunder, April 2, 2025 at Paycom Center. He broke his lower leg Jan. 1.
- One of Troy Weaver’s first moves as Pistons GM came at the 2020 NBA draft when he acquired the 16th overall pick.
- Weaver traded a heavily protected future first-round pick in a deal with the Houston Rockets and drafted Isaiah Stewart.
- Stewart has become a fan favorite, but the future pick the Pistons owed hamstrung the team’s flexibility on the trade market.
- The pick, now owned by the Minnesota Timberwolves, will finally convey at the 2025 draft in June, freeing the Pistons from the NBA’s Stepien Rule.
About an hour before the NBA draft in November 2020, first-year Detroit Pistons general manager Troy Weaver began to reshape the franchise in his vision.
Weaver traded a heavily protected first-round pick in a deal with the Houston Rockets for the No. 16 overall pick.
The player became fan favorite Isaiah Stewart.
More than four years later, that future pick the Pistons owe is finally set to convey, freeing up their flexibility on the trade market starting this summer.
The Pistons (43-34) have officially clinched a top-six seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs after their road win over the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.
That’s good news not only for them, but for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who acquired the Pistons’ 2025 first-round pick last September in the Karl-Anthony Towns trade with the New York Knicks. The Pistons’ pick is top-13 protected this season, so it will transfer to the Timberwolves. The pick is currently No. 18 in the 2025 draft.
The draft picks of the 14 teams that miss the playoffs enter the draft lottery May 12.
The pick has switched teams multiple times. The Rockets traded it to the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2021 for the draft rights to Alperen Sengun. The Thunder sent the pick to the Knicks in exchange for the draft rights to Ousmane Dieng, the No. 11 pick, at the 2022 draft.
Just before training camp this season, the Knicks traded the pick to the T’wolves in the Towns-Julius Randle blockbuster.
Once it conveys at the June 25-26 draft, the Pistons will finally be freed from the NBA’s Stepien Rule, which prevents teams from trading first-round picks in consecutive drafts. It’ll give the Pistons more assets and flexibility in the trade market to build the roster around franchise leader Cade Cunningham.
The Pistons’ pick was set to be protected in the top 11 in 2026, top nine in 2027 and would have converted to a second-round pick if not conveyed by then.
Stewart, in his fifth year with the Pistons after being the prize of that 2020 draft night agreement, carries averages of six points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks this season in 69 games (three starts). He has been one of the league’s best interior defenders after moving to backup center full time after a few years masquerading at power forward.
He is in Year 1 of a four-year, $60 million contract extension signed in July 2023 (the deal carries a club option for the final year).
This would be the Pistons’ first draft without a first-round pick since 2018, which was due to the Blake Griffin trade.
The Pistons own the Raptors’ second-round pick this year, currently slated to be 37th overall.
This is the Pistons’ fourth playoff berth since 2008, which was their last East finals appearance.
[ MUST WATCH: Make “The Pistons Pulse” your go-to Detroit Pistons podcast, listen available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) ]
Breaking down Malik Beasley’s “under the radar” season and looming free agency
NBA analyst Nate Duncan shares insights into Malik Beasley’s elevated level of play and his free agency market.
Follow the Detroit Free Press on Instagram (@detroitfreepress), TikTok (@detroitfreepress), YouTube (@DetroitFreePress), X (@freep), and LinkedIn, and like us on Facebook (@detroitfreepress).
