James Wiseman, born on March 31, 2001, is a professional basketball player who currently plays for the Detroit Pistons of the NBA. Standing at 7 feet 0 inches tall, he competes at the center position.
Wiseman’s high school career began at The Ensworth School in Nashville, Tennessee, before he transferred to Memphis East High School and was coached by former NBA player Penny Hardaway for his first year there. As a senior, Wiseman was highly rated by recruiters and was ranked the number one player in the 2019 class by many recruiting services. He was honored with multiple national player of the year awards and was selected to play in the McDonald’s All-American Game after his final season.
Wiseman joined Memphis in college to play for Coach Hardaway, who had become the head coach of the Tigers. However, early in his freshman year, he was suspended by the NCAA as Hardaway was deemed a booster for facilitating Wiseman’s move to Memphis in 2017. Wiseman served part of the suspension before choosing to leave school and prepare for the 2020 NBA draft, where he was picked second overall by the Golden State Warriors. Despite being injured and not appearing in any games during the season, Wiseman won an NBA championship with the team in 2022.
In a multi-team trade, the Golden State Warriors parted ways with James Wiseman and sent him to the Detroit Pistons. The deal also involved the Atlanta Hawks and the Portland Trail Blazers. The Hawks acquired Saddiq Bey and the Trail Blazers received Kevin Knox II, who previously played for the Pistons.
Pistons receive:
- James Wiseman
Warriors receive:
- Gary Payton II
- 2 future seco
Hawks receive:
- Saddiq Bey
Trail Blazers receive:
- Kevin Knox
- 5 future second-round picks
In the current season, Saddiq Bey’s role has shifted from a starting player to a bench player. This has resulted in a decline in his stats, including 14.8 points per game (ppg), 4.7 rebounds per game (rpg) and 1.6 assists per game (apg), with an average of 28.8 minutes per game (mpg). These numbers are lower compared to his 2021-22 performance, where he recorded 16.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg and 2.8 apg. In his third year with the Pistons, the 6-foot-7 Bey has so far managed to average 14.8 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.
The addition of Bey raises the question of a surplus of small forwards in the Atlanta Hawks’ roster, where De’Andre Hunter is the starting player. On the other hand, James Wiseman’s time with the Golden State Warriors has been plagued by injuries, with him only playing 21 games this season, recording 6.9 ppg and 3.5 rpg. He has missed 17 of the team’s last 19 games.
According to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, the Pistons had expressed interest in acquiring John Collins from the Hawks as well and had been monitoring Bey’s performance since December.
This report includes information from The Associated Press.
