Detroit Pistons take Luka Garza, national player of the year, at No. 52 in 2021 NBA draft
The Detroit Pistons selected Luka Garza out of Iowa with the No. 52 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft Thursday.
Earlier in the night, the Pistons followed the consensus and picked Oklahoma State guard Cade Cunningham with the No. 1 overall pick. With their second pick, at No. 42 overall, the Pistons stayed local and took Michigan star Isaiah Livers in the middle of the second round.
Ten picks later, they remained in the Big Ten, taking the conference's two-time Player of the Year, as well as the Wooden Award winner, given to the national college player of the year, to reinforce their middle. Garza averaged 24.1 points and 8.7 rebounds last season on 55.1% overall shooting with the Hawkeyes.
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Garza finished his career ranking 12th in Big Ten history in rebounds (931) and fourth in total points (2,306).
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Garza also showed a deft touch from the outside, hitting 44% of his 3-point attempts in his final year at Iowa, while taking 3.2 3-pointers a game.
This story will be updated.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons take Luka Garza at No. 52 in NBA draft
