The Detroit Pistons have exercised its team option on the contract of guard Luke Kennard through the 2019-20 NBA season.

Kennard, 6-6, 206, was selected 12th overall by the Pistons in the 2017 NBA Draft from Duke. Last season, he averaged 7.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 20.0 minutes in 73 games. 

Luke Kennard likely sustained a right shoulder separation. Kennard will undergo an MRI to confirm the injury.

Kennard suffered the injury after running into a screen set by Tristan Thompson.

In 73 games last season (nine starts), he averaged 7.6 points and 2.4 rebounds.

Blake Griffin had a career high 50 points in the Detroit Pistons' win over the 76ers.

"You know, the past two, three years, all I hear about is how bad I am, and I've been hurt, I've had bad games," Griffin said. "But we talked about it. This summer, being able to work out for the first time in three summers is huge, you know. The last three summers I was fighting and working as hard as I could to get healthy to be able to play.

"And this summer, I was able to really put time in and work on my game, work on my body, and I've always been a big believer in hard work pays off."

Griffin tied a career high with five 3-pointers and set a career mark with 20 field goals. 

"He's playing at a high level right now," Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. "Offensively and defensively, he's out there talking and making decisions, communicating. He's playing great. Of all the great players I've worked with, Dirk [Nowitzki], Kyle Lowry, Kevin Garnett, Shawn Kemp, all those guys, he's playing at that high level right now.

"And he's just one of those guys that is taking it to another level, leading his team, putting them on his back, being a leader in the timeout. But again, that's what we expect from Blake because he is that good of a player."

Joel Embiid believes he is in the head of Andre Drummond.

"I think I own a lot of real estate in his head," Embiid told reporters after the Sixers' 133-132 loss to the Pistons. "We lost, so I'm not supposed to talk trash, but he knows damn well that he can't guard me. But that was a team effort. You know, Blake [Griffin] had a good game, and they were able to pull it off, so we got another one tomorrow, and we got to do a better job."

Drummond was ejected when assessed his second technical foul late in the fourth quarter when his hand brushed Embiid's face.

Drummond held his palms in the air after the foul call, while Embiid, who had gone to the floor, got up and gesticulated to the official to throw Drummond out of the game.

"His hand touched my face, and you know, going back, what the referees were saying the whole game, there were a lot of cheap shots taken," Embiid told reporters. "At one point, I think [referee] Tyler [Ford] said that the next cheap shot, the next one is going to get a technical foul, and that's why he got the other technical foul.

"All I was doing was just talking and playing basketball and trying to win the game, and obviously on the second one, you can see that he hit me, and his hand actually touched his face. ... But like I said, I feel like I own a lot of real estate in his head."

The Detroit Pistons have exercised its two-way player conversion option on guard Zach Lofton.

Detroit also announced that guard Reggie Hearn has been waived.

Lofton, 6-4, 180, appeared in four games with the Pistons this preseason and averaged 5.5 points (.471 FG, .400 3FG), 2.0 rebounds and 0.5 assists in 8.9 minutes per game. A member of the Pistons’ team at the 2018 MGM Resorts NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, NV, Lofton played last season at New Mexico State where he averaged 20.1 points and 5.0 rebounds per game and was named the Southwestern Athletic Conference Player of the Year.

Hearn, 6-5, 210, played in one game this preseason, recording three points at San Antonio on October 5. He was signed to a two-way contract on January 15, 2018 and appeared in three games with the Pistons where he averaged 1.0 points in 2.3 minutes per game.

The Detroit Pistons have waived forward Chris McCullough. 

McCullough, 6-11, 200, was signed to the training camp roster on September 25 and did not see action in any of the Pistons’ two preseason games.

McCullough has played in 59 career NBA games with the Brooklyn Nets and Washington Wizards. He was drafted 29th overall in the 2015 NBA Draft by the Brooklyn Nets from Syracuse University.