Adrian Wojnarowski is the premier NBA news-breaker, but his revelation of the Detroit Pistons’ interest in John Beilein actually led the coach to stay at Michigan.
In a fascinating piece by Brendan Quinn of The Athletic, Beilein acknowledged he seriously considered making the leap to NBA until the drama that followed Wojnarowski’s report — a Woj Bomb.
“I didn’t want this be one of these things: ‘Hey, the NBA called me.’ I didn’t want it to be that way. I wanted it to be, ‘Hey, let’s talk, let’s listen. If it’s a good match, great. If it’s not, it’s not.’ But then I hated the drama. I hated the attention on myself.”
Beilein said that in the five days that followed, players, recruits, parents, media, family and friends were blowing up his phone. He then realized Michigan was the place to be and officially withdrew his name from consideration.
The Pistons might not have eventually hired Beilein anyway, since they’ve been targeting former Toronto Raptors coach Dwane Casey. Still, Beilein was a finalist along with San Antonio Spurs assistant Ime Udoka.
For good reason, the NBA world loves Woj Bombs. But we don’t always think about the impact those can have on the party mentioned.