Trajan Langdon Gets Honest About State of Detroit Pistons

You would have a hard time convincing the Detroit Pistons’ former front office to accept their role as a rebuilding squad in the NBA, but the record season after season couldn’t convince anybody otherwise.

When the Pistons hired former New Orleans Pelicans executive Trajan Langdon to take over for Troy Weaver, the new President of Basketball Operations wasn’t coming in to fool anybody.

Langdon made it clear from the jump that the Pistons viewed themselves in a rebuilding light heading into the 2024-2025 NBA season. After winning just 14 games last season, the Pistons weren’t heading into the new hoops year with a playoffs-or-bust mindset.

The assumption was that Detroit would be more on the selling side heading into the 2025 trade deadline, even if they make slight strides toward improving. However, the Pistons have exceeded expectations early on. Before they faced the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night, the Pistons were above .500 with a 19-18 record. They’ve been in the Play-In picture and even the playoff hunt since November.

Has the early progress changed Trajan Langdon’s mindset?

Trajan Langdon on the Detroit Pistons this season

“You know we're definitely ahead of schedule I don't think any of us expected to be above five hundred at this point in the season”

Video Credit @FanDuelSN_DET pic.twitter.com/q4gpvrRqLu
— Pistons Talk (@Pistons__Talk) January 10, 2025

“It’s been a lot of fun watching our guys and the staff work with them every day,” Langdon told FanDuel Sports Network ahead of Thursday’s action against the Warriors.

“We’re definitely ahead of schedule. I don’t think any of us expected to be above five hundred at this point in the season, but we’re not getting overly excited. We’re very happy about the success we’ve had so far, but we got long ways to go.”

A loss against the Warriors knocked Detroit back down to 19-19. Despite taking on a loss against a Western Conference team that’s in the playoff hunt, the final results didn’t change the outlook of the Pistons.

It was a tight matchup that went down to the wire. The Pistons are still 8-2 in their last 10 games and rank eighth in the Eastern Conference ahead of their matchup against the Toronto Raptors on Saturday night.

What’s the Word on the Pistons’ Trade Plans?

Being that the Pistons are loaded with cap space ahead of the trade deadline, they were initially viewed as a team that could play the role of facilitator in a multi-team trade, acquiring draft assets for the future.

Additionally, the Pistons were potential sellers that could move some of their short-term veterans like Tim Hardaway Jr or Malik Beasley. Now, nobody can be so sure about their true trade plans.

ESPN’s Brian Windhorst recently reported the Pistons could be changing their stance ahead of the 2025 trade deadline. With their recent success, knocking on the door of the playoffs for the first time in years, maybe a win-now move for Cade Cunningham’s squad could be what they need to take another big step in the right direction.

“The Pistons may not be so loose with that space after all. After winning eight of their past nine games, team sources say the Pistons are adjusting their thinking and may be more judicious with their valuable cap space as they consider their own roster upgrades and flexibility for next season.”

If the Pistons don’t buy at this year’s deadline, they could be a team to watch in free agency next July.

This past summer, the Pistons had money to spend on some of the league’s top free agents, but it was clear they were not a desired destination for the Paul Georges and the Klay Thompsons of the market. A strong campaign in 2024-2025 might convince next year’s free agency class to change their thinking about the young team in Michigan.

In the era of the superteam, NBA All-Stars like to link up. With Cunningham potentially on pace to earn his first nod, he could give the Pistons a much better look when Langdon gets a second offseason to help build out the roster.

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