Once-dominant Pistons lurch toward an uncertain future

Posted Nov 17 2009 10:27AM

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Seven weeks from now, when we usher out the old, the Pistons will have mixed feelings as the big ball finally drops. The last decade was very, very satisfying for the franchise. But what do they do now for an encore?

The Pistons qualify as the team of the decade ... in the East, anyway. Look at what the 2000s wrought. They won a championship. They took six straight trips to the conference finals. They won 50-plus games seven times. Larry Brown stopped by for a quick bite. Tickets came tough at the Palace. Unlike the local economy, basketball flourished, proof that not everything in Detroit teetered on disaster.

"Man," said Rip Hamilton, along for the entire ride. "Time flies fast."

The decade began when the Pistons pulled off a sign-and-trade of Grant Hill and got somebody named Ben Wallace in return from the Magic. Folks thought they were nuts for doing that. And the decade ends with the Pistons shelling out $90 million combined for Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva. Folks thought they were nuts for doing that, too.

What the Pistons and their fans want to know is whether Gordon and Charlie V. will help stimulate the franchise back to good health or if there's a lengthy stretch of stagnation ahead. The Pistons are still trying to figure that out as they mix new blood with the old and deal with a rookie head coach. It makes for a strange brew and, right now, they can go in either direction.

There was a hunch that general manager Joe Dumars spent the team's money in the wrong offseason. While the rest of the league decided to save for the 2010 free agent class, Dumars gave $55 million to a sixth man and $35 million to a quirky forward with an unconventional game. Neither is blessed with enough talent to turn a team around, meaning, they're not LeBron James or Dwyane Wade, the franchise-changing free agents come next July.

Well, the Pistons are getting an immediate return on their investment. Nothing massive, but good enough. Gordon and Villanueva are getting big minutes because of injuries to Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince and making the most of it. They're playing at or near the best ball of their careers. Villanueva had big games against Charlotte (30 points) and Orlando (28) and is averaging roughly 17 points and six rebounds. Aside from his 1-for-16 shooting last Sunday against Dallas, Gordon has looked comfortable as a go-to scorer, averaging 22 points.

"They've come in and done everything we've asked them to do," said Hamilton, "and more."

Neither may start once the Pistons get fully healthy, but that's not the point. When it matters most, Prince, Gordon, Hamilton and Villanueva will be on the floor, possibly along with Wallace. And a word about Wallace. He's not quite the Ben Wallace of the championship run, but then he's not the Ben Wallace of the Bulls and Cavs, either. He's not overpaid and underwhelming. Here in his twilight, he's healthy and "back home," according to Hamilton, and finally back to doing what he does best: rebounding (over nine per game) and supplying help defense (nearly two blocks per game).

"Pleasant surprise," said John Kuester, the first-year coach. "Not only has he been able to play a large number of minutes, but also because of his passion, he has led by example."

If the Pistons don't reach the postseason, it'll likely be because of a couple of shortcomings. There's no true point guard, at least of top-shelf quality; Will Bynum could eventually supplant Rodney Stuckey. And there's no true small forward, either, which hurts the Pistons in certain defensive matchups.

Also, for those who still remember the Pistons of the earlier decade, the Palace seems ... different. The building is barely three-quarters full most nights. The team isn't peeling off six-game win streaks anymore. Clearly, the Pistons are in transition, stuck in the middle of the pack in the East.

"We used to do things that other teams never saw before," said Hamilton. "We held them under 70 points some games. Beat people by 30. We'd come to the game knowing that the other team already packed it in."

Then the core of the Pistons began to gray. Wallace wanted more money then the Pistons wanted to give. Brown left in a huff. Dumars drafted Darko Milicic (instead of Wade, Chris Bosh or Carmelo Anthony). The Allen Iverson experiment was a massive failure last season, costing the Pistons their certified leader, Chauncey Billups. That forced Dumars to spend money right away.

They could use a superstar, but didn't feel confident enough in getting LeBron or Wade next summer. Now, they could use a trade. With an abundance of guard-types, Hamilton would seem likely bait, and if the Pistons can get a small forward in return, a swap may be possible before the trade deadline. Or they could trade Prince, who would benefit a playoff team.

One way or another, the Pistons are poised to make a break from their past this season. They'll fight for one of the last few playoff spots, then hope Dumars can pull something off next summer to jump start a new era.

"It's a new chapter," said Hamilton. "It's going to take time to get where we want to go. But I like our chances."

Shaun Powell is a veteran NBA writer and columnist. You can e-mail him here.

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/shaun_powell/11/17/pistons/?ls=iref:nbahpt1

Why would they trade Rip for a small forward while keeping Prince?

thats nonsense this team doesnt lack a SF...whats a 'true' SF anyway?

LeBron

C'mon guys, it was written by a VETERAN NBA reporter.

Nothing to see, really.

Not worth the time it took to read it.

Naturally Glenn just had to post it.

Agreed. Swat.

Yeah the SF thing was just a pure WTF... unless they meant 'while Prince is injured' but the context of later SF mentions doesn't seem like that's what they meant.

We don't even need a SF while Prince is injured.

We've got Jerebko and Daye, plus Summers and if for some reason those 3 guys and Prince AND Rip are ALL injured you could even put Nova there.

Ain't no fucking way we need a SF.

Nothing to see, really.

Not worth the time it took to read it.

Naturally Glenn just had to post it.
Well, you've obviously got something up your ass because of the Will Bynum thing, so I don't know why I bother, but for everybody else, if I see a Pistons article that gives some national perspective, I'll probably post it. One can only take so much Langlois.

LMAO - I don't carry "beefs" from one thread to the other and if I DID have a real problem with you GD I would PM you, cause that's the kind of dude I am.

Do you really think I care enough about the Bynum thing?

I guess the tone of your posts just seemed different, but it's all good. I don't know how much you care about the Bynum thing, but I can see that we disagree about him as a player, which is fine, of course. I'm going to keep banging that drum because I think he's that good. For all of the heat that I give Joe D, he sure hit a home run by finding Will.

I guess the tone of your posts just seemed different, but it's all good.

Dude, it's words on a screen. Lesson for the future - don't take things so seriously - that's fucking hilarious coming from me!!!!


I don't know how much you care about the Bynum thing, but I can see that we disagree about him as a player, which is fine, of course. I'm going to keep banging that drum because I think he's that good. For all of the heat that I give Joe D, he sure hit a home run by finding Will.

Dude, I am a BIG fan of Bynum. I just see his role differently than you do.

You (and others) want him to start. In that role he is unproven, untested and unknown. How does him starting effect Ben Gordon and the rest of the starters? Do you know? How does him starting effect Rodney Stuckey? Does anyone know? Would that change in roles help or hinder the development of Stuckey, the team chemistry, the remaining roles of our other bench players.

I (and others, I hope) want him coming off the bench. He is exceptional in that role. He has performed like a fucking champion in that role. He is the spark plug that lights up the team, the crowd, the fucking fans at home and I don't wanna change that.

It has nothing to do with Stuckey. NOTHING.

And a quick question for all you "Bynum should start" people - if Joe had drafted Chalmers (and still brought Bynum in) which one of them would be riding the pine?

How does him starting effect Rodney Stuckey? Does anyone know? Would that change in roles help or hinder the development of Stuckey, the team chemistry, the remaining roles of our other bench players.

That is where we disagree. Protecting Stuckey and his feelings is not my concern. If he's destined to be a 6th man, so be it. If he plays his way into more playing time, so be it. I've felt the same way going back to Darko. Make it impossible for the coach to keep you off the court and let the chips fall where they may. Bynum is doing just that right now.

To be honest, I would like him to start, but minutes are what matter most. If he has to continue coming off the bench so Stuckey doesn't freak out, then so be it, but then you have to trade Stuckey because if he is that fragile, he needs to go.


I (and others, I hope) want him coming off the bench. He is exceptional in that role. He has performed like a fucking champion in that role. He is the spark plug that lights up the team, the crowd, the fucking fans at home and I don't wanna change that.


I want more champion.

GD - It ain't all about what you want.

It's about what's best for the team.

I'm ALL for playing productive dudes. You ALWAYS should ride the hot hand.

But you don't take a great bench player and put him in the starting line-up.

Doing so can cause all kinds of shit, not just with Stuckey. This has nothing to do with Stuckey (for me). It's all about using Bynum in the most effective manner and I believe that for him to keep doing what he's been doing you have to keep him in the role that he's got.

Some nights he's gonna play a lot of minutes. And other nights he's not.

What happens when Prince, Rip, Stuckey, Bynum and Gordon are all healthy? You ride the productive players.

If that means Stuckey sits then I'm sure he's man enough to handle it.

Which Pistons bench player scored roughly 18 ppg on 45% shooting in 29 mpg?

Which Pistons bench player scored roughly 18 ppg on 45% shooting in 29 mpg?

damn, you must be going really far back here.

He was only on the bench for 16 games. Fortunately, someone took a great bench player and decided he ought to start... again.

The suspense is killing me, Mxy.

I'd say Dumars.

Another clue... he was on our bench in 2009.

It's funny that you should mention that, because AI is the guy that I most often see as a player comparison for Bynum.

edit: nevermind, I assumed it was AI with that last clue, but it's not

Gotta be non-NBA stats.

Valter? Acker?

Maybe Rip in Washington.

If it's like Dave Cowens I'm going to blow the site up.

Rip?

Rip?
We have a winner! Those were Rip's numbers from when he was benched from January 26th to February 27th of this year. What prompted it was:


But you don't take a great bench player and put him in the starting line-up.

I had more words to say, about how we weren't good enough or healthy enough to be able to avoid pushing on some unproven elements, but I was in a rush at that moment for some reason so I just hit "Submit Reply".