Pistons general manger Troy Weaver has been wheeling and dealing since he arrived in Detroit. It has earned him the nicknames “The Grim Weaver” and “Troy Weaver and Dealer” from the Pistons faithful. On Friday night, he was back on the phones, this time with his old employer.
Detroit and Oklahoma City agreed on a trade that would send third-year swingman Svi Mykhailiuk and a 2027 second-round draft pick to the Thunder for 22-year-old Hamidou Diallo, sources tell The Athletic.
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The deal comes on the heels of Weaver’s first media availability in a few months, where he said that the team’s mindset would continue to be aggressive as the March 25 trade deadline nears, but he didn’t anticipate a ton of action. This trade isn’t a blockbuster by any means, but it does further the theme that Weaver is going to take no time building Detroit’s roster his way.
Back in November, Weaver traded Luke Kennard, Bruce Brown and Khyri Thomas — three of the team’s four most recent draft acquisitions. Mykhailiuk, who was drafted by the Lakers but acquired by the Pistons in a midseason trade in 2019, was a holdover from the previous regime. He has struggled this season shooting the 3-ball (33.3 percent on 4.8 attempts), which is what earned him an NBA paycheck, and has been in and out of the rotation. Mykhailiuk was in line for an extension, and while the two sides started negotiations early in the season, those talks halted as the season progressed, per sources.
As for Diallo, he fits the type of player Weaver gravitates toward — the latter was part of the OKC front office that drafted the third-year swingman. At 6-foot-5, Diallo is an athletic wing with trampoline bounce and a 6-foot-11 wingspan. Per sources, the Pistons have been eyeing Diallo since Weaver’s arrival in Detroit. He’ll add more perimeter versatility to a roster that has seen an uptick in that prototype of player since Weaver took over.
Diallo, like Mykhailiuk, is in line for a new deal this offseason. He has a qualifying offer of $2.1 million next season that will make him a restricted free agent. That would allow the Pistons to match any contract another team offered him. They currently can’t extend Diallo’s contract at a reasonable number under CBA rules for six months after acquiring him in a trade, but sources say he is seen as a real part of their future plans. Diallo is averaging a career-best 11.9 points in 32 games this season, with a near 70-percent conversion rate around the rim. He’s been sidelined since Feb. 26 with a right groin injury.
In Diallo, Detroit adds another project player who it can get an up-close-and-personal look at while it crafts the foundation of its roster amid Phase I of a rebuild.
(Photo: Ron Jenkins / Getty Images)
