Stanley Johnson wishes he had gotten more preseason 'flow': Stanley Johnson tried a different pair of shoes in Wednesday night’s exhibition loss to the Toronto Raptors. And his left foot pain subsided. That was a good bit of news for the Detroit Pistons' second-year swingman, who missed Monday’s victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Doctors told him that his pair of Kobe Bryants likely was the cause, so he switched to another pair of black Nikes. “Today was pretty mild," he said Thursday. "I had a little pad in there and I had different shoes on, so maybe the doctors know what they’re talking about." -- Detroit Free Press

Raptors will know to watch out for Drummond in regular-season opener: When the Raptors open the regular season next Wednesday against Detroit, one of the key goals will be to limit how often all-star centre Andre Drummond gets the ball. That’s easier said then done, since Drummond is right near the top of the list when it comes to the planet’s best examples of size, speed, strength and athleticism all in one package. Drummond had 16 points and 13 rebounds against the Raptors during Wednesday’s pre-season loss a couple of days after hitting all of his shot attempts against Milwaukee and the man who averaged 16.2 points and 13.8 rebounds a year ago has averaged 14.6 boards in the pre-season, easily tops in the league. -- Toronto Sun