Detroit Pistons Officially Announce Latest Roster Move

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After a busy start to the week, the Detroit Pistons made a roster change by agreeing to part ways with the veteran center, Mike Muscala.
On Wednesday, the Pistons put out an official statement, finalizing the move.
“The Detroit Pistons and Mike Muscala have reached an agreement to buy out the veteran center’s contract,” the release wrote. “The Pistons have requested waivers on Muscala.”
The decision to waive Muscala came as a bit of a surprise, considering the Pistons recently traded for the veteran. In a mid-January deal between the Pistons and the Washington Wizards, Detroit landed Muscala and Danilo Gallinari in exchange for Marvin Bagley, Isaiah Livers, and draft compensation.
Muscala wrapped up his run with the Wizards after appearing in 24 games. After the 2024 trade deadline, the Pistons parted ways with Gallinari by agreeing to a buyout with the veteran.
At first, it seemed the Pistons were willing to hold onto Muscala, as he played in 14 of his first 14 games with the Pistons, averaging 13 minutes on the floor.
However, the Pistons shifted their rotation, which left Muscala on the bench for the last four games, including Tuesday night’s victory over the Chicago Bulls.
Considering the Pistons are clearly in a rebuilding phase, their decision to move on from Muscala will do the 32-year-old veteran a favor, as he would benefit from playing for a contending squad.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Muscala is expected to garner interest from several playoff-contending teams.
Muscala leaves the Pistons after averaging four points and two rebounds while shooting 38 percent from deep. Throughout his career, he’s a 38 percent shooter, who averaged six points off the bench.
While the veteran’s next move is unknown at the moment, it will only be a matter of time before the former Piston finds his third destination this year.
Justin Grasso was a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s 76ers On SI Network. Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writers Association. Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoMedia
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