Pistons executive vice president of basketball operations Michael Blackstone discusses his ongoing battle with stage 4 lung cancer in an interview with Hunter Patterson of The Athletic.
Blackstone has largely kept the experience private since he was first diagnosed in 2023 while working in an office in New Orleans, but now he’s speaking out to encourage others to get tested if they’re experiencing unexplained pain. Blackstone began experiencing pain in his right shoulder and later learned it was cancer that had metastasized from his lung to his shoulder and spine.
“The reason I’m talking about it now compared to three years ago is because time is basically all I have now, right?” said Blackstone, 54. “Timing is of the essence. … If I hadn’t paid attention to the discomfort I was having and asked a very innocent question, I wouldn’t be here now. It was already stage 4 when we found it; it was too far gone.”
The five-year survival rate for people with late-stage non-small cell lung cancer is only 12 percent. Blackstone, who is under the care of doctors at the Mayo Clinic, accepted his current position in July 2024, knowing that he may have limited time to work with the president of basketball operations Troyan Langdon to rebuild the Pistons lineup.
Blackstone cites his love of basketball and the city of Detroit as a source of inspiration for helping him cope with radiation treatment. He has no plans to stop working, seeing his work as a chance to fight the disease.
“That logical side of my brain kind of dominates; he helps me understand what it is.” said Blackstone. “It is what it is, I have what it is. I don’t control anything; there’s nothing I can do. I do what the doctors tell me to do. I ask a ton of questions. … The truth is, if it all ended tomorrow, I’ve lived a great life. I’ve been so lucky with the things I’ve been able to do. … The people I’ve met, the places we’ve gone, the friends, the support system, this job, the people (in Detroit) — of course, I don’t want it to end tomorrow, and nobody’s telling me it’s going to end.’
Patterson notes that Blackstone remains active in his role and refuses to let his health issues interfere with his duties with the team. He spends much of his time at the Pistons Performance Center and attends shootarounds, practices and games — both home and away — to understand what it takes to make the team a contender.
In just the past few weeks, Blackstone has decided to share his battle with cancer with the Pistons staff. Although Blackstone is aware of the seriousness of the disease and the great odds he faces, he has not lost faith that he will eventually be able to overcome them.
“There is hope”, he said. “There’s hope because of the various advances, especially in lung cancer, that we can eventually get to a place where it’s a chronic disease and not a death sentence. … Pay attention to the signs, don’t ignore them. I’m trying to do everything I can for this team, continue to do my job as long as I can at a high level, but also try to help as many people as possible. There’s only one way to do that, and that’s with awareness, if I can make one person do a double take, talk, go to their doctor, make a different choice, it’s all worth it – even if I don’t know it.”