THE ATHLETIC's James Edwards III wrote the Pistons "find themselves stuck in a muck, unable to add prominent pieces to help bolster a roster that missed the playoffs the last two seasons." The NBA salary cap is set at $101M, and the luxury tax is "at about" $123M for the '18-19 season. The Pistons' payroll is currently about $5M "below the luxury tax." Pistons Senior Adviser Ed Stefanski said that the franchise "has no interest in going into the luxury tax before the start of the season." The Pistons "might consider the possibility" if they are a "serious Eastern Conference contender at the season's midpoint." Barring trades, the team "has very little room to add definitive impact players this offseason" (THEATHLETIC.com, 6/25).
FACE OF THE FRANCHISE: In Buffalo, Mike Harrington writes the drafting of D Rasmus Dahlin first overall in the NHL Draft might "impact" the Sabres for the next two decades. Harrington: "Think of how big this is." Dahlin "instantly gives the Sabres an international following in Sweden and the likely ticket to games there someday soon." The season-ticket base was "about to fall through the floor until the lottery victory, placing the hopes of the franchise squarely on the shoulders" of Dahlin. Harrington: "All the pressure in the world is on the kid. He's as close as a sure thing as you're going to find with an 18-year-old defenseman." Dahlin said of Buffalo, "I've been there twice and I love that city. ... I love to call my new town 'Buffalo'" (BUFFALO NEWS, 6/23).
CULT OF POPULARITY: In Cincinnati, Erin Caproni noted USL club FC Cincinnati "ended season ticket sales" for the '18 season 10 days earlier than planned. The club "rapidly sold out of season tickets after it announced it would join" MLS in '19. FC Cincinnati "initially had a goal of selling 15,000 season tickets" for the '18 season. When that goal was "met within days, the club expanded the goal to 20,000 season tickets" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 6/22).
