2018 NBA Draft: 3 prospects with close ties to the Detroit Pistons
By Amaar Burton
Shake Milton, PG/SG — SMU
More than a few mock drafts have had Milton going to the Pistons with the team’s second round pick. An all-conference combo guard, he averaged 18.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game as a junior last season.
During his freshman season of 2015-16, Milton played under head coach Larry Brown, the same coach who guided the Pistons to their last NBA championship in 2004.
Milton was a four-star recruit coming out of Owasso High School, where he was named Gatorade State Player of the Year. He chose SMU over big-name programs like Indiana, Oklahoma and Illinois in large part because he wanted to play for Brown.
SMU finished 25-5 in Milton’s freshman year, but the team was ineligible for any postseason play as punishment for several NCAA violations committed under Brown’s watch. Milton averaged 10.5 points per game as a regular starter.
Brown resigned after that season, and assistant Tim Jankovich took over as head coach for the rest of Milton’s collegiate career. Brown was recently hired as head coach of the Fiat Torino pro team in Italy’s Serie A league, while his former pupil is on the verge of beginning his NBA career.