DETROIT (WXYZ) — The Detroit Pistons have filled out the front office under new President of Basketball Operations Trajan Langdon, the team announced Wednesday morning.
The team announced a few senior front office positions, including Michael Blackstone as Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, Dennie Lindsey as Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations and Geoge David as Senior Vice President of basketball administration.
David is returning to the Pistons after previously serving as associate general manager the last two seasons, along with former head coach Dwane Casey, who will continue his role as Senior Advisor to Basketball Operations.
Blackstone comes to Detroit after five years in New Orleans, serving as Vice President of Basketball administration. Lindsey comes to Detroit with 28 years of front office and scouting experience, most recently serving as Senior Advisor for the 2023-24 Dallas Mavericks, who lost in the 2024 NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics.
Other hirings include:
- JR Holden, who returns to the Pistons after working in the front office for two seasons (2016-2018) as Vice President of Player Acquisition and Development
- Greg Smith, who has more than 20 years of athletic training experience in pro sports, has been named Vice President of Player Health & Care.
- Eric Tellem, the son of former sports agent and current Pistons vice chairman Arn Tellem, has been promoted to Vice President of Player Personnel.
- Former WNBA Champion Mistie Bass-Boyd joins as Execuytive Director of Player Engagement & Basketball Operations.
- Marshall Smith joins as Executive Director of Basketball Strategy & Operations, previously serving the Los Angeles Cloppers in the same role.
- Corey Schlesinger was hired as Executive Director of Sports Performance with more than 15 years of sports performance coaching experience
- Gianluca Pascucci joins the Pistons as Senior Director of Global Scouting, after 22-plus years of front office experience, most recently working as a scout with the Chicago Bills.
- Roderick "RJ" Hunter joins the team as Langdon's Executive Assistant, after previously working as Duke Men's Basketball's Director of Operations (2017-2024).
It's been a busy off-season for the Pistons, who hired anew head coach in J.B. Bickerstaff,signed point guard Cade Cunningham to an extension, and remade the roster through trades, the draft and free agency. The Pistons hope to recover from a dreadful 2023-24 season, where they posted a franchise-worst 14-68 record, the worst record in the NBA. They also set an NBA single-season record with 28 consecutive losses, a skid that started in October and didn't end until late December.
