According to an article from The Athletic’s Brendan Quinn, Beilein was very much considering the Pistons job. Adrien Wojnarowski’s reporting that he was a candidate changed up things:
“I didn’t want this be one of these things: ‘Hey, the NBA called me.’ I didn’t want it to be that way. I wanted it to be, ‘Hey, let’s talk, let’s listen. If it’s a good match, great. If it’s not, it’s not.’ But then I hated the drama. I hated the attention on myself.”