Markieff Morris set out on his free agent journey over the summer with a list of teams he was interested in. The Pistons, the team he ended up inking a two-year, $6.56 million deal with, weren’t initially on that list but his brother, Marcus, helped lead him to the decision to sign with the club.
“My brother told me it was a great place,” Markieff said (via Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press). “Honestly, Detroit really wasn’t on my list. I really didn’t look into it much until I sat down with my brother and looked at the roster…It was kind of a perfect fit.”
The Pistons had a major need for frontcourt depth behind Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond. Morris dealt with a neck injury last season, though the combo forward doesn’t believe it will impact his ability to help Detroit win games.
“People say I wasn’t healthy, but I played 60-plus games last year (including the playoffs),” Morris said. “Whatever injury I had, that’s more than 85% of the NBA. I wouldn’t say I wasn’t that healthy, I just wasn’t 100%.”
Morris’ brother, Marcus, played with Detroit during the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons and was a fan favorite.
“My brother loved it here,” Markieff said. “He was one of those players that says he loved playing in Detroit. He embraced it, the fans embraced him. He was actually mad when he got traded…He’s happy for me to be here now.”
