The Pistons defeated the Heat three times last season in hotly-contested contests and that made a strong impression on Duncan Robinson, who was acquired from Miami by Detroit in a sign-and-trade.
“Heat versus Pistons, it feels like every single one had some sort of crazy finish,” he told Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press. “The thing that sticks out about this group is the physicality, the toughness and how hard they play. And honestly how they share the ball. That’s the type of system you want to play in, those are the types of guys you want to be around.”
Robinson will be joining forces with Caris LeVert, who was signed to a two-year deal as a free agent. They were teammates at the University of Michigan.
“Caris and I were really good friends in college and we’ve kept up that way pretty much across our entire careers,” Robinson said. “He’s an incredible player obviously. One of the best people I’ve ever been around in terms of a teammate. I’m excited to be back with him. Outside of competing against him I didn’t really know any of these guys too well and they’ve been super welcoming. It is nice to have somebody joining me who also will be new who I do know really well. So that’ll be good.”
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Jase Richardson is making his presence felt in Summer League competition. The Magic rookie guard has averaged 16.5 points, 2.5 assists and 1.5 rebounds in two games. Richardson slipped to the No. 25 pick after some believed he might go in the lottery. “I can do a lot of things in that [position],” Richardson said about driving downhill, per Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel. “I can score for myself, I can get my teammates involved and a lot of different ways I can get a bucket for the team.”
- The Sixers’ roster is being built with the notion that the team will have to overcome inevitable absences of superstar center Joel Embiid, Tony Jones of The Athletic writes. That includes the drafting of VJ Edgecombe in the lottery, the addition of free agent power forward Trendon Watford and the injury return of Jared McCain. That will bring offensive versatility to complement star guard Tyrese Maxey.
- Knicks 2024 first-rounder Pacome Dadiet had an injury scare in Summer League. The 19-year-old wing departed a contest with left foot soreness. It turned out to be a big toe issue but there was no structural damage, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post tweets.