NBA Rumors: Detroit Pistons Signing Ray McCallum From Sacramento Kings


In the NBA, you sometimes need to bounce around before you can find a place to call home. According to Fox Sports, the Detroit Pistons are signing Ray McCallum. It is reportedly a one-year contract worth approximately $1 million. McCallum will try to prove that he is a long-term solution in the back court.

Back court depth was something that Stan Van Gundy had very high on the priority list for the Detroit Pistons. The team went out and signed Ish Smith to provide backup minutes behind Reggie Jackson. Ray McCallum provides even more depth behind the two of them.

Ray McCallum has a very good chance of becoming a crowd favorite. The 6-foot-3 combination guard played college basketball at the University of Detroit Mercy. McCallum was a standout player on the squad, so he built up a bit of a following in the Motor City. A lot of those fans are also fans of the Detroit Pistons.

There are only so many chances that one has at being a star in the NBA. Last summer, the San Antonio Spurs traded a draft pick to the Sacramento Kings to acquire the rights to Ray McCallum. They wanted to see if he can be a part of their future, but McCallum was stuck behind Tony Parker, Patrick Mills, and Andre Miller.

Since they went through a rash of injuries, the Memphis Grizzlies brought in a record number of players. Ray McCallum was one of them, but he was not able to gain much momentum because of all the roster changes.

One of the things that led Ray McCallum to the Detroit Pistons might be the fact that head coach Stan Van Gundy and his father, Ray McCallum Sr., are close friends. The elder McCallum is the head coach at Detroit Mercy.

Reggie Jackson [Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images]
The signing of Ray McCallum has led many to believe that Steve Blake will no longer be with the Detroit Pistons. Management renounced his rights so that they could sign San Antonio Spurs backup center Boban Marjanovic. The Pistons wanted Blake to return if he was willing to accept a third-string point guard role.

Even though he is 36-years-old, Steve Blake should still be able to generate some interest from NBA teams. For example, the Cleveland Cavaliers could use someone reliable on the bench now that backup point guard Matthew Dellavedova has signed a four-year contract with the Milwaukee Bucks worth approximately $38 million.

Since he is just 25-years-old, Ray McCallum would be a great situation if he could stick with the Detroit Pistons. They are a very young team that should start contending soon. The starting lineup is filled with players who are younger than 27 years of age.

Ish Smith [Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images]
With Reggie Jackson and Andre Drummond, the Detroit Pistons feel that they have a point guard and center combination that is one of the best in the NBA. Getting past LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers is going to be hard, but having a dominant center gives the Pistons a fighting chance.

The Detroit Pistons have a good supporting cast in place with Kentavious Caldwell Pope, Tobias Harris, and Marcus Morris. The team also has a 20-year-old Stanley Johnson on the bench who has the potential to become a candidate for Sixth Man of the Year some day.

Ray McCallum is looking to find his place in the NBA. Being a hometown hero and being surrounded by a younger roster that is still growing together, the Detroit Pistons have offered him a very good opportunity. McCallum needs to be the one that grabs the brass ring.

[Photo by Sean M Haffey/Getty Images]

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