Langdon “sounds like a sharp guy with a sensible plan and the kind of humility he’ll need to see it through"Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images
Pistons owner Tom Gores introduced new President of Basketball Operations Trajan Langdon at the team's practice facility on Friday, which followed the
firing of coach Monty Williams on Wednesday, according to Omari Sankofa II of the DETROIT FREE PRESS. Williams walked away with $67.5M following “weeks of meetings to see if the two sides could forge a path forward.” But after a “disastrous season,” Gores and Langdon concluded that a "new direction was necessary.” Gores said that he does not “have any regrets” about the situation. Gores: "When you have to adjust, you adjust. This franchise means everything to me.” When asked what went wrong, Gores said, "I’m not sure, honestly. It’s one of those things that are puzzling, and at the end of the day instead of questioning it too much, maybe the fit wasn’t perfect there.” Sankofa noted two of Langdon's first moves as president were front office hires, with former Pelicans VP/Basketball Administration Michael Blackstone named EVP/Basketball Operations and former Nets Dir of Player Personnel J.R. Holden as a vice exec (
DETROIT FREE PRESS, 6/22). Langdon said of Blackstone, “The thing that I needed the most, especially coming into the situation, I think was just a strategist. Somebody who understands the cap. He has a big-time negotiation background and he's very systematic and thoughtful in his approach of what we need to do every day -- not only from a roster-build standpoint, but also from a staffing standpoint” (
DETROIT NEWS, 6/22).
TRAFFIC JAM: In Detroit, Shawn Windsor wrote Gores was “candid, humbled and willing to answer whatever question arose,” and did so for the “better part of an hour during a rambling and revealing news conference meant to introduce" Langdon. Gores made “dozens of media members, a couple hundred of his own employees and presumably Langdon himself wait,” and he "blamed it on traffic.” This is a "pattern with Gores," the "tardiness to his own news conferences." He made "everyone wait a year ago when he introduced Monty Williams as his new coach.” This time, Gores was late “by more than an hour.” This is "not a great look" because it "makes it look like Gores doesn’t care or, at the least, is dissociated with this part of his business holdings." That is an "image he bristles at, as he mentioned.” Gores sounded like he “had an epiphany the last couple of months.” He also "promised to be hands-on" in "making sure the different aspects of his franchise are connected” (
DETROIT FREE PRESS, 6/22).
NEED A LEADER: In Detroit, Bob Wojnowski wrote, “if you’re looking for hope this actually might work, I offer one slice: It’s a dramatic departure from all the other methods that failed, a worthy attempt to get it right.” Gores said, “One thing we’ve really missed, and I take some responsibility for that, is a leader who can lead everyone. I realized what I wanted is what I’ve had my whole life, a CEO, someone that can truly thread it together and align people.” Wojnowski wrote that Gores “made the broadest, boldest strokes of his tenure." Gores is "glib with business buzzwords yet has failed miserably in the basketball business.” Gores: “I’m extremely confident this partnership is going to work, that it’s going to turn our franchise around. I think the mistakes of the past were thinking a magic wand would just handle things. Our mistakes have nothing to do with one person” (
DETROIT NEWS, 6/21). In Detroit, John Niyo wrote that amid Gores’ “meandering answers,” Langdon “sounds like a sharp guy with a sensible plan and the kind of humility he’ll need to see it through." But "most of all, he sounds like a guy who knows this won’t be an easy task, or a quick turnaround” (
DETROIT NEWS, 6/21).
