UK basketball: Fox talks current team, Willis on signing with Pistons
LEXINGTON, Ky. — De’Aaron Fox, Dominique Hawkins and Derek Willis were back in Lexington for the 2017 John Calipari UK Pro Camps. Fox was selected No. 5 overall by the Sacramento Kings in the 2017 NBA Draft, while Hawkins and Willis went undrafted.
Willis was signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Pistons on July 20 after playing for their summer league team.
“It meant everything,” Willis said. “I believe my fiancée actually got the call first. She informed me. It was a little different. But she had like this big little surprise thing. I’m just grateful. My agent made a great call on it, to play with (the Pistons) in the summer league. I did the things I was supposed to do and it just worked out for me. I’m really happy.”
FOX DISCUSSES PICKUP GAME WITH CURRENT TEAM
Fox, Bam Adebayo and Malik Monk played pickup ball with some of the current team on Saturday. Fox said Hamidou Diallo and Kevin Knox didn't play, but several of the current team did.
"Quade (Green) played really well," Fox said. "P.J. (Washington), Jared (Vanderbilt), Jared really shot the ball well. Nick (Richards) is really active on the boards. Catches lobs, blocks shots. Just what you’d expect him to do.”
Willis didn't play with the team, but when asked about Wenyen Gabriel, he recalled seeing him earlier in the summer.
"It was probably the start of the summer for them, but I guess when (Wenyen) went home for the three or four weeks, but his body was in incredible shape," Willis said. "It seemed like he put in a lot of work for that. I’m sure he’s done just as much on the court as well. He’s probably made improvements for sure.”