DETROIT — The Detroit Pistons finally got in on the action of the 2025 NBA Draft Thursday night, making their [lone selection at No. 37 of Tennessee guard Chaz Lanier](https://www.mlive.com/pistons/2025/06/2025-nba-draft-detroit-pistons-pick-tennessee-guard-in-second-round.html).
Going into the draft without a first rounder and feeling positive about a young roster coming off a playoff berth meant the Pistons planned to select the top player on their draft board.
It’s not hard to see why Lanier — a 6-foot-3.75 guard out of Nashville, Tenn. — ended up being the pick for Detroit after leading the Volunteers to a 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament and an appearance in the Elite Eight last season.
Here are four things to know about Lanier.
**Spent four season at North Florida**
A little-known recruit out of The Ensworth School in Tennessee with two Division I offers, Lanier committed to play for the ASUN Conference’s North Florida, which has only been a DI team for 20 years.
He spent three seasons primarily as a bench player, averaging 4.2 points as he waited his chance to take on a larger role with the team. Lanier’s fourth season was a true breakout as he started 31 games and averaged 19.7 points on a career-best 51.4% shooting and 44% three-point shooting, which ranked fifth in the nation.
**Won the Jerry West Award in final season**
After transferring to Tennessee for his final season, there was little struggle for Lanier to get accustomed to a more physical brand of basketball in the SEC. Lanier averaged 18 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game while shooting 43.1% from the field and 39.5% from three-point range. Lanier won the Jerry West Award, given to the best shooting guard in the nation, and was named SEC Newcomer of the Year as the culmination of his college career.
**He almost quit basketball because of his height**
Lanier played basketball from an early age — with both of his parents playing college ball — but was tempted to move away from the game when he got to high school and stood just 5-foot-6.
His mom encouraged him to stay with basketball through the challenges of being undersized, so Lanier focused on honing his guard skills. It paid off as he grew to 5-foot-10 as a sophomore, reached 6-foot-3 by the time he went off to college and had developed a good skillset he’d only continue to build on.
**Lanier was drafted during a commercial break**
If you weren’t watching the ESPN broadcast of the NBA Draft Thursday night, you didn’t miss much of the Pistons’ draft selection. The broadcast was on a commercial break when the pick was made.
Fans on [social media were quick to point out](https://x.com/JimmyCollins77/status/1938400491844813139) that three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić was also infamously drafted during a commercial in 2014 when he was the 41st overall pick. Now the Pistons will just hope Lanier can offer something similar to Jokić‘s Hall-of-Fame career.