‘We Needed a Fresh Start’ Gores Says at Formal Introduction of Trajan Langdon as President of Basketball

It took more than three weeks, but the Detroit Pistons have finally formally introduced Trajan Langdon to the public as the team’s new President of Basketball Operations after announcing his hiring on May 31, 2024. With the hire, Langdon becomes one of only a handful of Black executives in the role of team president across the association. In the three weeks that Langdon has been in his role, he’s already made significant front-office changes. The day after hiring Langdon, June 1, the organization fired General Manager Troy Weaver who served in his role for just under four years. Under Weaver, the team drafted all its current core players, including Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, and Jalen Duren, all players who are considered building blocks as the team looks to retool. Last week, the Pistons announced that Monty Williams would not return for a second season as the team’s head coach.& The decision comes after a “thorough review and analysis of the team’s performance during the 2023-24 campaign,” the team said in a statement. Just last summer, Gores gave Williams the most lucrative coaching contract in NBA history up to that point, signing him to a six-year, $78.5 million contract. Williams had...