Pistons executive Ed Stefanski: Andre Drummond knew he was in trade talks, was told first of deal

Traded from the Pistons to the Cavaliers yesterday, Andre Drummond tweeted:

If there’s one thing I learned about the NBA, there’s no friends or loyalty. I’ve given my heart and soul to the Pistons , and to be have this happen with no heads up makes me realize even more that this is just a business! I love you Detroit...

— Andre Drummond (@AndreDrummond) February 6, 2020

Cont... you will always have a special place in my heart! But on to the next @cavs hope your ready! Let’s finish the year off the right way 🦋

— Andre Drummond (@AndreDrummond) February 6, 2020

Pistons lead executive Ed Stefanski:

Dre knew he was in trade talks, and I was talking to his representatives about everything. Cleveland came in late. I guess you’d have to talk to Dre what exactly he means. But, again, emotions are raw when this stuff happens. I understand that.

I’ve always felt that if – any player – I would try to give a heads up to the agent that where we’re going and keep them, if it was hot, tell them that it was progressing. I always feel that you should try to get to the player and agent first, which is almost impossible in today’s age. But we did that yesterday. We didn’t wait at all. Our first thought as, when we decided to make the move, was that we would get to Andre and his agent ASAP – and that’s what we did – so that no one could tweet it out or announce it without the two people knowing about it. And I thought we handled it well on our end.

We don’t know precisely what Stefanski told Drummond and when. Drummond obviously knew he was in trade talks. But negotiations with the Hawks and Knicks had cooled. By yesterday morning, it seemed Drummond was likely to remain in Detroit. Did the Pistons communicate that to him, perhaps in too certain of terms? If so, Drummond’s displeasure would be justified.

Regardless, it’s understandable.

As Stefanski said, emotions are raw in situations like this. Drummond spent several years as Detroit’s franchise player. He had been talking about declining his $28,751,774 player option. Then, he got sent to Cleveland for John Henson, Brandon Knight and what will likely be a late second-round pick?

That has to be jarring, however the Pistons told him.