Detroit Pistons: How Would Roddy Gayle’s Potential Return To Michigan Impact The Squad?

· Yahoo Sports

Over the offseason, the Detroit Pistons committed themselves to adding quality players through the draft while also keeping the rest of their squad open to change in case an opportunistic deal popped up. Through that strategy, Pistons President of Basketball Operations Trajan Langdon has stayed active in the summer to land Isaiah Joe, John Collins, Taurean Prince and Gary Harris on the trade market, and that’s not even taking into account the crop of players he landed in the draft just weeks prior. 

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From that bunch, Langdon selected former Stanford point guard Ebuka Okorie in the first-round and former Virginia center Ugonna Onyenso in round two, then the front office exec struck an agreement with Roddy Gayle Jr. to join the club as an undrafted free agent, but that may have been a short-lived transaction after all. 

According to reports, a recent court ruling gives players such as Gayle, who was initially part of the 2022 recruiting class, an opportunity to return to college for another year if they went undrafted back in late June. So, after playing two seasons at Michigan, one of which brought a National Championship back to Ann Arbor, Gayle has a pathway back to another season of collegiate hoops if he chooses to follow that route. 

Now, Gayle was an impactful player for the Pistons during the Summer League out in Las Vegas during the early stages of July with multiple 100% shooting nights from the floor (minimum of four attempts), but the national champ would have had an upward climb as it pertained to the Detroit depth chart. Since the Pistons restocked their wings with strong three-point shooters such as Joe, Harris and Prince, the undrafted rookie would likely have had to excel in the G-League with the Motor City Cruise for a while before making a dent in the Pistons’ rotation. 

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However, Gayle was a crucial player in Michigan’s run to the title last spring, so he has proven the ability to raise his level of play when expectations are at their highest. The Cruise is also a team with recent upward ascension given their 22-14 record in the regular season, which was good enough for a No. 5 position in the Eastern Conference last year, and the organization has a positive track record of player development with Daniss Jenkins’ transition from a G-Leaguer to a regular NBA contributor on a standard contract after dominating on his initial two-way deal. 

In terms of players who could earn a role at the edge of the Pistons’ rotation, Chaz Lanier is the player most likely to have stood in Gayle’s way considering his particularly sharp three-point shooting performance during the Summer League. Lanier, and to a lesser extent Brice Williams, showed off a smooth, dialed in shot from beyond the arc, and the Tennessee product’s impressive showing from the perimeter likely earned a quicker look with the Pistons than Gayle would have experienced. 

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