Recent No. 2 overall NBA draft pick to become unrestricted free agent

Detroit Pistons center James Wiseman.

Another team appears to be giving up on former No. 2 overall draft pick James Wiseman.

Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reported Saturday that the Detroit Pistons will not tender a qualifying offer to the 23-year-old center Wiseman. As a result, Wiseman will become an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

Wiseman was the No. 2 overall pick fairly recently in 2020 by the Golden State Warriors. Though he was a member of the Warriors’ 2022 NBA title team, Wiseman’s development ultimately flatlined in Golden State, partly due to a knee injury that cost him the entire 2021-22 season. The Warriors eventually traded Wiseman to the Pistons in 2023, and he unfortunately did not do much better in Detroit. He averaged 8.6 points and 6.1 rebounds over one-and-a-half seasons with the Pistons and eventually ceded some playing time off the bench to Marvin Bagley and Simone Fontecchio.

Formerly the No. 1-ranked high school prospect in the nation, Wiseman has failed to catch on in the NBA as a plodding center who is ineffective outside of the paint and has limited defensive upside. Meanwhile, the Pistons, who also just freed up big cap room by declining veteran guard Evan Fournier’s $19 million team option this weekend, are trying to do some house-cleaning (though their active head coaching search did recently hit a snag).

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