Dwane Casey sure sounds like the next coach of the Detroit Pistons

Dwane Casey has long been rumored to be the front runner for the Detroit Pistons’ head coaching job, and during a recent appearance on ESPN’s First Take, he talked like he was the coach of the team.

I wouldn’t be surprised by the time I hit publish that an announcement is made. Casey talked about his Raptors’ tenure, his overall success and even a little bit about his future.

Host Max Kellerman wanted to discuss how hard it is to win without a star in this league, and used the opportunity to get his thoughts on Detroit’s Blake Griffin’s star status.

“I’d put Blake Griffin as a star in this league. And Andre Drummond made the All-Star team,” Casey said.

Kellerman quickly shot back: “Is he (Blake Griffin) above DeRozan, Lowry?”

The trap was too enticing for Casey to stay out of completely, and he took the bait (emphasis mine).

“Well, I’m not going to say that because I haven’t coached him. But I know one thing, that Blake Griffin is a star in this league. I haven’t coached him but, again, his abilities, his IQ is off the charts. Again, I’ll let you know once I coach him down the road. But you have Blake Griffin, Andre Drummond, Reggie Jackson so you’ve got some good pieces down there in Detroit.”

You can hear the entire interview with Casey via the ESPN podcast (interview starts at the 22-minute mark).

Warning: High dosage of Stephen A. Smith being Stephen A. Smith in that clip.

Casey is one of two candidates remaining following John Beilein’s withdrawal from consideration. Ime Udoka, an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs is the other remaining candidate.