I've still got my eye on Corey Brewer for the Pistons, I don't like seeing him in there at various spots from pick #8 through #13.

I'm still liking Corey Brewer with the Orl pick, but I'd be okay with Acie Law too.

As of yesterday, NBADraft.net has us taking:

14. Nick Young 6-6 200 SG USC Jr. (ahead of Brewer, who is at 15, and after Law who is at 13)

and

26. Nick Fazekas 6-11 240 PF Nevada Sr.

With Amir and Max waiting in the wings, I doubt that we look at a PF in the first round, but who knows?

Related discussion from NCAA forum: http://wtfdetroit.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8536

NBAdraft.net does not pay attention to team needs. They only rank the players (like Kiper's big board), then put the teams in their current pick slot. You could have 4 SG's and they'd still put the SG there if the player was slotted at your pick. It's not really a mock at all, so they shouldn't call it that. They should just call it their big board.

I highly doubt we take a PF at all. SF/PG will be our priority, and a project center as a distant 3rd. I'd like to see Law (orl pick) and a center at #26 (though most late first round centers don't pan out). Then sign a FA backup SF. Let DD walk and cut Murray. Hope the center can pan out in a few years. I wouldn't mind a junior/senior SF with our second rounder too that everyone overlooks (like Ryan Gomes a couple years ago).

I also wouldn't be opposed to Hawes then a swingman (Byers?) with our pick. Orlando would probably have to continue losing to have a chance at Hawes though. They say he's a versitile center like Brad Miller, which would be nice. He could learn from Webber and compliment Max nicely.

Okay, cool.

Do you know of a frequently updated mock?

The people doing the best mocks are probably in March Madness at the moment.

Okay, cool.

Do you know of a frequently updated mock?
No, I don't. Like Mxy said they are probably focused on NCAA's. We'll know a lot more after that.

I actually like that NBAdraft.net does not pay attention to team needs. This way, we can see how they rate the players and you can get an idea of who might be there around your pick. If you have a real mock, teams reach for needs. I suppose that will happen in the draft too, but this way it's a little easier to figure out a handful of players to watch in the tourney.

The reaching for needs is the only reason I think we won't get Acie Law. I'd love to see us grab him with the Orlando pick, but he's the first PG on the list and I'm sure someone will reach for him early.

The reaching for needs is the only reason I think we won't get Acie Law. I'd love to see us grab him with the Orlando pick, but he's the first PG on the list and I'm sure someone will reach for him early.

I've been thinking the same thing. Not necessarily somebody that's slotted to draft ahead of us, I think somebody might trade up to get him.

It will be interesting to see what Phoenix does with 3 first round picks.

Would they give them all up to take Durant or Oden? Would anybody give up Durant or Oden for them?

Would anybody give up Durant or Oden for them?


Absolutly not. 0%.

I'm not so sure that it is absolute.

Not saying I would give up Oden/Durant, but if you are Charlotte, let's say, and you end up at #2 overall and Phoenix comes to you with #4, #23 & #28, for example, I'd think they'd have to at least consider it.

As a side note, Philly's got 3 firsts this year too (currently 6, 18, 30).

I'm not so sure that it is absolute.

Not saying I would give up Oden/Durant, but if you are Charlotte, let's say, and you end up at #2 overall and Phoenix comes to you with #4, #23 & #28, for example, I'd think they'd have to at least consider it.


With Wallace as a FA, I can't image two late picks, even in this draft, would give them hold from taking one of the surest things in Durrant that we've ever seen. Not to mention CHA has plenty of talent.

I don't know, maybe a team is desperate to rebuild over a long-term scenerio so they make that deal, but #1 and #2 are solid gold.

If someone has the #3 pick, I could see em trading it to Phoenix for a bunch of slightly later picks, but not two.

I'm not so sure that it is absolute.

Not saying I would give up Oden/Durant, but if you are Charlotte, let's say, and you end up at #2 overall and Phoenix comes to you with #4, #23 & #28, for example, I'd think they'd have to at least consider it.

No way I do that if I'm any team, in need of talent or not. In the NFL where you can get talent in late first, yes. In the NBA, where only a few players are locks to be great (this year 2), I wouldn't. Granted...Paul, Bosh and Wade proved you can get great talent in the 4/5 range. But still, these two are too good. I'm not sure Noah is going to be anything great...Horford, wright or any of those others either.

If you are talking two lottery picks (#4 and something in the 9-13 range), then maybe you have something. But usually picks in the 20's are extreme project centers, PG's with big flaws, SF's that slipped because of issues, or tweeners. You can find solid backup PF's there, but you have to be lucky outside that.

I tend to agree, but it's interesting to think about nonetheless.

Right now, PHX has 5, 24 & 29. Here's a look back at what players went at those positions from 2003 through 2005 (guys taken in 2006 really haven't had a chance to show anything yet, so let's ignore them for purposes of this discussion).


2005
5. Raymond Felton
24. Luther Head
29. Wayne Simien

2004
5. Devin Harris
24. Delonte West
29. David Harrison

2003
5. Dwyane Wade
24. Brian Cook
29. Josh Howard

So are any of those packages worth considering for a potential superstar? 2003 for sure, maybe 2004, too.

I think that all of this talk is premature since 1) there is some (small) possibility that Durant could stay in college another year and 2) the Orlando pick could easily fall down to the 7-8-9 spot.

I'm not sure what the Orlando pick has to do with anything. I thought Glenn was talking about a team in the top 2 trading with Phoenix for all their picks.

For us to discuss the senario's laid out by Glenn, we have to assume that both Odom and Durant pan out. Otherwise the trades are easy to do. Lets assume Oden and Durant are the next TD and KG. Sure, they have different abilities, but from a talent level lets assume they are that good.

2003 would be hard to pass up, but I might still take TD or KG in their prime over an elite (yet ref helped) SG and an elite SF. That's a hard call because Odom and Durant could be very rare talents. The other ones I would not do. I also think you need a larger sample...

2002
5. Tskitishvili
24. Kristic
29. Steve Logan

2001
5. J Rich
24. Raul Lopez
29. Trenton Hassel

2000
5. Mike Miller
24. Bagaric
29. Madsen

Thread killer.

I guess we have to talk about the Pistons now, thanks Chris.

In reality, you should only compare this draft to other drafts where the top 1-2 picks were head and shoulders above everyone else. The Lebron/Darko/Melo draft could be used. here are some comparable drafts IMO where the top 1-2 guys were consensus:

2002 (above) with Yao

1997 (TD):
5. Battie
24. Rodrick Rhodes
29. Serge Zwikker

1996 (AI):
5. Ray Allen
24. Derek Fisher
29. Travis Knight

also, would you trade Lebron for Wade, Howard and Cook? That is the real question.

Don't sleep on Serge Zwikker, I wish Joe would give him a 10 day, lol.

Oden Chris, not Odom.

Oden Chris, not Odom.

shit, i have Odom on the brain because I got screwed and dropped his lying bitch ass.

Unless one of the top 10 slips to us at the Orlando pick, I say we go ahead and take Acie Law.

But the more intriguing player we should absolutely take with our late first because he'll be there is Trey Johnson. The SG from Jackson State. This kid is scoring machine. My prediction is he's the next Kevin Martin of the draft, small school, flying under the radar in the draft, GREAT player. Trey is more of a slasher than a shooter, but he can hit from anywhere on the court.

He's a bubble first rounder, and we'll pick around 25 or so, I say we take the gamble.

I've been on the Acie Law bandwagon, and am still on seeing him go all chauncey billups in the last few minutes to keep A&M alive. Now he's up for Player of the Year... all of which leads me to believe he's going to get snapped up in the Top 10.

^ i agree, sadly he will likely be gone before we can take him. i LOVE this kid though- he has ice in his veins and is one hell of a player. his composure, more than anything, is what impresses me.

pg's take a while to develop, though. chris paul came in fast, but he wa a super star in college. look at jay williams, who was about as nba ready as it gets. i wouldnt have wanted him running my team his rookie year. i like acie law the fourth too, but i might prefer guys who can help out more right away. best big available, and a good swing player, glenn's boy brewer would be fine.

my fear with AL4 is that he gets lost in the shuffle and never develops for us and we give up on him. i think that maybe happened with this squad once or twice... he'd need pt to get better. more than 5-10 mpg.

i wish we could give some pt to will blalock. i think he might be an ideal backup for us. assuming we have essentially the same talent, he could take lindsey's role nicely, i would think. and thats really all we'll need for a couple years.

pg's take a while to develop, though. chris paul came in fast, but he wa a super star in college. look at jay williams, who was about as nba ready as it gets. i wouldnt have wanted him running my team his rookie year. i like acie law the fourth too, but i might prefer guys who can help out more right away. best big available, and a good swing player, glenn's boy brewer would be fine.

my fear with AL4 is that he gets lost in the shuffle and never develops for us and we give up on him. i think that maybe happened with this squad once or twice... he'd need pt to get better. more than 5-10 mpg.

i wish we could give some pt to will blalock. i think he might be an ideal backup for us. assuming we have essentially the same talent, he could take lindsey's role nicely, i would think. and thats really all we'll need for a couple years.


I'm telling you, that nice wing player will be there with the 25th pick in Trey Johnson. This guy is going to be a G.

I haven't seen your boy Daviticus, but I agree with taking the SF with our pick. Can't pass up Law if he's there. I'm almost hoping A&M loses this weekend just so his stock doesn't go too high.

ESPN is ranking Ty Lawson, the PG from North Carolina, as better than Law, and if he comes out we're should be able to get one of them.

All this talk about who we are going to draft and we have a draft pick who looks like the real deal just killing everyone in the NBDL but can't even make our squad........tsk, tsk.

We're too stacked at PF to get him any playing time apparently. Personally, I'd find 5 minutes a game for him. Then again, I'd also be giving a lot more minutes to Max and Delfino, so what do I know.

Also, another thought. Maybe Amir isn't playing in the bigs because he's having trouble learning and remembering plays. The only reason he went into the draft instead of going to Louisville is because he couldn't make grades to get in. They would never come out and tell us that because it would hurt the young guys psyche, so they just give other reasons and let him dominate down in the minors while he matures and (hopefully) starts to grasp things a bit better. Its a possibility.

even though i just said i wouldnt be crazy about drafting a pg, and i've been saying draft upper, not lower classman. i'd take lawson if available. kid is a thoroughbread. he's raymond felton part 2. him being the successor to chauncy would line up well, also.

All this talk about who we are going to draft and we have a draft pick who looks like the real deal just killing everyone in the NBDL but can't even make our squad........tsk, tsk.


Playing at a top tier school in D 1 college is better competition than the NBDL...

Playing at a top tier school in D 1 college is better competition than the NBDL...

I'm not so sure about that. The NBDL is full of a bunch of guys who were actually drafted or guys who actually made the pros. A D1 college team may have a bigger star like Oden or Durant but as far as the ten guys on the floor, I would think that the NBDL is at a higher level talent wise.

I'm not so sure about that. The NBDL is full of a bunch of guys who were actually drafted or guys who actually made the pros. A D1 college team may have a bigger star like Oden or Durant but as far as the ten guys on the floor, I would think that the NBDL is at a higher level talent wise.


Then how come none of the guys from the NBDL getting picked up by NBA teams are making a difference for clubs, but first round and even some 2nd round picks are?

Theyre younger, therefore have more potential

Then how come none of the guys from the NBDL getting picked up by NBA teams are making a difference for clubs, but first round and even some 2nd round picks are?

I think that you're missing my point. In the NBA draft you are talking about the top 60 players in college not a single D1 team. A typical or even a top rated D1 team still won't have the same talent level as an NBDL team which would likely have a pile of ex-college stars. You're right that most NBDL payers haven't made much of an impact but it is the DEVELOPMENT league. Then again there are some older NBA retreads in the NBDL who would be stars in the NCAA if allowed to play agian.

Then again there are some older NBA retreads in the NBDL who would be stars in the NCAA if allowed to play agian.
:mateen:

:mateen:
First thing that popped into my head, even before I scrolled down and saw the picture.

Some guys are just built for the NCAA game.

What do you guys think of Mike Conley? If he's around with the Orlando pick, would you take him? Reminds me a little of Tony Parker.

Conley would be a no-brainer if he is there, IMO.

He's a no brainer for Sactown though I think. I'm just hoping Law will be there. I'm hoping the Clippers win so they won't pick ahead of us. GSW might still take Law, but they might not (if they think Ellis can play PG if Baron gets hurt). They still have that knucklehead Jackson to replace and J Rich isn't part of their long term plans it seems like. There is a better chance they take something besides PG than the Clippers.

okey dokey, its all set. #15 and 26. pretty much everyone is in.

imo, conley is the guy to target. what can i say, im completely seduced. the frosh was the reason osu got to the finals, and this was a tough ncaa's.

if the draft order remains, i see seatle as our best bet to move up and grab him. i would go as far as to offer 15, 26, and maxiel to seatle for #5.

If by any chance that trade was even possible (which it isn't), there are certainly better prospects to pursue than Conley, who I think is a fine player. With CWebs likely departure, DD being a free agent, and Nazr not really being that good, we are going to have a gaping hole at C. This draft is absolutely stacked with Center prospects, and we just aren't going to get a good chance to land one in the future. IF (a big if) we keep Chauncey, then drafting a starting caliber center keeps us in our championship window. If we have a great backup PG and no C, then keeping Chauncey is kind of moot, isn't it? Unless you think that we can win with Nazr and Dice at C.

I agree. We should keep our picks and go for a C and PG. Maybe we could burn our 2nd rd. and Minnys 2nd rd. to move up a couple spots from 26 ( if it's even worth it) but I love the depth in this draft and we will see some guys going in the late teens and 20's that would be considered lottery picks. I say use our picks and then fill out the roster with trades and FAs.

Conley will go to Sactown IMO. If not there, than the Clippers. I think Law will be gone too.

If Hawes or Hibbert slip to us I would take them. Then I'd take Darren Collison with our pick. I'm thinking the centers and PG's will both be gone, and our first goes on whatever wing is there (Thaddeous Young maybe). I don't think we need to move up from #26. We can get Collison or Pruitt there IMO. I wouldn't mind using another pick to move up from Orlando's pick to get the guy we want though.

Hibbert will go to Chicago I think (Ben and PJ have a lot of miles on them). Hawes may go to Atlanta, or they may take Law/Conley.

Id like Spencer hawes, very young and we could send him to d leauge for part of the season./

i honestly dont think hed fall to 15.

Id like Spencer hawes, very young and we could send him to d leauge for part of the season./

i honestly dont think hed fall to 15.

I don't think so either, but it could happen.

Sactown, NOH, LAC and Philly have high priced centers already. Atlanta needs a PG more than a center, and does have Zaza and a host of career backup bigs. Charlotte and Portland have centers. Basically if Minny doesn't take Hawes or Hibbert than you really only have the Bulls and maybe Atlanta looking at them before us.

I heard Darren Collison isn't going pro.

I heard Darren Collison isn't going pro.

You are correct:

http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/6702432

Thanks Chris

These are %'s that demonstrate the chances of getting the top pick.


Lottery Odds
Memphis 25.0
Boston 19.9
Milwaukee 15.6
Atlanta 11.9 (if not in top 3, pick goes to PHX)
Seattle 8.8
Minnesota 6.3
Portland 4.3
New York 2.8 (Chicago holds rights to swap picks, which they will)
Charlotte 1.7
Sacramento 1.1
Philadelphia .8
Indiana .7 (if not in top 10, pick goes to ATL)
New Orleans .6
L.A. Clippers .5

Who do you want to win the lottery?

I know who I don't want to win, and that would be Chicago. Phoenix getting the 4th pick would be tough too.

If Atlanta gets in the top 3, and the Pacers don't, the Hawks will have two lottery picks, which if they used them well, could turn them around right quick.

From a fan standpoint, the Clippers. I like that team best (Kamen, Brand, Maggs). I also wouldn't mind KG getting a legit center to help him. I agree on Chicago, and also the Bucks. I hope the Bucks don't get Durant to help Redd. They were a borderline playoff team hit with injuries.

I'm rooting for Minny I guess. That way there are no more excuses for KG. Either he gets somewhere and kills the talk, or doesn't get anywhere and justifies the talk.

If Atlanta gets in the top 3, and the Pacers don't, the Hawks will have two lottery picks, which if they used them well, could turn them around right quick.

Oden and Conley would be a huge steal for them. That would add some big talent to a team full of G/F's.

Ok sorta off topic but draftexpress.com has Detroit's second round pick going to Milwaukee on their mock draft. I don't remember the Pistons owing the Bucks any second rounders. Anyone else know anything about this?

I think that is an error.

^me too. BTW, the Suns need to trade some picks away. They are messing up my mock with all their picks.

i don't believe we can package picks and move up as easily as some others seem to think. nba roster spots are at a premium and few teams are going to take on 2 contracts for 1.

also, since the dropoff of talent is greater with each passing pick than in the nfl, teams are less willing to move down the board, even for multiple picks.

You would think teams would be more willing to take the extra pick with the NBDL to stash players now.

Yeah but even with the NBDL they still take up a roster spot

I could see Joe trying to package our two firsts together to move up, but not just to move up for a better player, but the main reason would be to save from paying two salaries.

Which is exactly the reason that another team may not want to package.

Ok sorta off topic but draftexpress.com has Detroit's second round pick going to Milwaukee on their mock draft. I don't remember the Pistons owing the Bucks any second rounders. Anyone else know anything about this?

Looks like they fixed it.

Along those same lines, if PHX ends up with 3 first round picks, they pretty much have to deal at least one of them don't they?

I know they are close to the luxury tax already, and adding in three players at first round $ would certainly put them way over.

Maybe somebody here is bored and will do the math on this.

edit: I just checked and just with the 10 players that they have under contract for next year, their payroll is nearly $10m higher than it is right now (they have $76m on the books with those 10 players).

The big jump is Diaw whose salary is going up from $1m+ to $9m and Barbosa is going from $1m+ to $5m+.

Next year's Suns might look a whole lot different that what we see now.

what they should do is trade shawn marion and marcus banks to the lakers for their 1st rnd pick and brian grant. theyd have to do that in that week period after the finals. we talked about this scenario a few years back re: uncle cliffy.

this would put their figure at ~55 million, probably just enough $ to sign their picks. they could take horford at 4, and then use their 3 others to move up to take brewer. its pretty likely that atl will be keeping their own pick, btw.

what they should do is trade shawn marion and marcus banks to the lakers for their 1st rnd pick and brian grant. theyd have to do that in that week period after the finals. we talked about this scenario a few years back re: uncle cliffy.

this would put their figure at ~55 million, probably just enough $ to sign their picks. they could take horford at 4, and then use their 3 others to move up to take brewer. its pretty likely that atl will be keeping their own pick, btw.

Yeah, it's a %42 chance that Altanta ends up with a top 3 pick.

42% huh?

Out of curiosity, where did you find that?

Also, if that 42% is correct, then it is more likely that they will not have a top 3 pick than it is that they will. I wouldn't call that "pretty likely", more like "entirely possible".

i'd settle on 'virtually plausible'. my first wording was "potentially happable", but i thought that was too emphatic.

42% huh?

Out of curiosity, where did you find that?



they have 119 combinations in round one

11.9% chance of #1.

if they dont win, the second drawing removes anywhere from 5-250 lottery balls. meaning their odds would be from 12-16% (variable) likely to get #2.

round 3 takes out 11-349 lottery combonations, making their odds to be 12-18%

in short, i have no idea where he got that # from.

I know that when I need some good info, like NBA Draft Lottery odds, I just google the NBA site. Same thing for whn I need any kind of information, I google it.
If I don't find it there, or if I just don't feel like googling, I just make up the facts to fit my opinion or belief. I wish more people would do that. Made up facts are better to work with, a little more flexible, and usually they are funnier.
In short, making stuff up is sometimes, nay, most of the time, the RIGHT thing to do.

people can make up statistics to prove anything, zip. 14% of people know that.

they have 119 combinations in round one

11.9% chance of #1.

if they dont win, the second drawing removes anywhere from 5-250 lottery balls. meaning their odds would be from 12-16% (variable) likely to get #2.

round 3 takes out 11-349 lottery combonations, making their odds to be 12-18%

in short, i have no idea where he got that # from.

I got the numbers from wikipedia. perhaps they are wrong there.

FTR, I'm not saying that those numbers sound wrong, I was just interested as to where you saw them.

I know that ATL has a 11.9 chance at #1, so that means a slightly better chance at #2 and a slightly better chance than that for #3, so 42% sounds about right to me.

There is a chart here for each seed and the odds of each pick:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBA_Draft_Lottery

I just added up the #4 seed odds for picks 1-3. Actually, it looks like it changed from last year (oops). It is %38 when you add them up.

Note that if teams tie, they divide the seed combinations evenly for those number of teams (the average).

42% huh?

Out of curiosity, where did you find that?

Also, if that 42% is correct, then it is more likely that they will not have a top 3 pick than it is that they will. I wouldn't call that "pretty likely", more like "entirely possible".
Yeah, but now you are talking about two different issues.

The Hawks are the team with the best chance to get a pick in the top three. But every NBA team has a better chance of getting a pick in the rest of the lottery than their chances of getting a top 3 pick.

From that perspective, I'd call their chances "reliably considerable."

They are the team with the best chance to get a pick in the top three but no team has a better chance to get a top 3 pick then they their chance to get a pick in the rest of the lottery.

Okay, what the fuck does this mean?

Better?

Better?

Maybe?

The wording is still confusing the hell out of me, but that's not hard to do I suppose.

Explain how "the Hawks are the team with the best chance to get a pick in the top three". How are they more likely to land in the top 3 than Memphis? Boston? Milwaukee?

I still think saying that it is "pretty likely" that the Hawks will get a top 3 pick is a stretch. It's more likely that you can flip a coin and correctly pick the result than it is that the Hawks keep that pick.

Oops, I jumped into the middle of this thread. I assumed the Hawks finished with the worst record. You can pretty much nix that whole post.

I assumed the Hawks finished with the worst record. You can pretty much nix that whole post.

Lots of NBA credibility points being lost here today. Maybe I will stop posting for the day and not risk it.

Ok smart guy. Who finished with the worst record the last 3 seasons?

of the top of my head...Memphis (this year), Toronto (bargnani), Bucks (Bogut), Magic (Howard), Cavs (Lebron).

Those are the top picks, not sure if they were all the worst teams.

Portland was the worst last year, Hawks year before, Magic year before, Cavs before that.

2-4 were correct. And that's historic finishes, which is a lot harder than the current year. I could probably rattle off the draft order right now without looking, but I also did the mock. lol

Chris is earning the lost cred point back in spades, lol.

I'm going to post about hockey the rest of the day.

Chris is earning the lost cred point back in spades, lol.

I'm going to post about hockey the rest of the day.

i had to look up the worst records. The bucks were actually the 4th worst team, lucky punks.

From DraftExpress


NBA Market Watch: Detroit Pistons

by: Matt Kamalsky
April 24, 2007

The Detroit Pistons will come to an impasse this offseason when both Chris Webber and Chauncey Billups become free agents. For the second time in two years, they may have to part with one of their impact players. The team survived the departure of Ben Wallace, but the potential departure of Billups is a serious threat to the team’s future. Webber has spent less time with the club, but his arrival served as a catalyst of sorts for the team. At his age, Webber isn’t going to break the bank on the open market, so he should be easier to retain.

Fortunately for the Pistons, they can offer Billups a bigger contract than any of the other handful of teams that are pursuing him. General Manager Joe Dumars has done a fantastic job assembling his roster, but his real work will begin this offseason. The Pistons have an extremely solid rotation and a number of quality prospects, but Billups is the cornerstone of their franchise.

Roster and Financial Breakdown:
http://www.draftexpress.com/gallery/General/1177398749.jpeg
(Salary Cap projections were created taking the average increase over the past 5 seasons)


Record/ Overview:
53-29, 1st place Central Division, 1st seed Eastern Conference
The importance of the point guard position can not be overemphasized in the NBA. As one of the best point guards in the league, and Detroit’s franchise player, Chauncey Billups has everything you look for in a floor general and more. He will inevitably lead the Pistons to the Eastern Conference Finals, and give them a decent shot at an NBA Championship. The Pistons are not a team that is looking to make a huge move this offseason, as they have positioned themselves to be very good for quite a while. They have most of their rotation locked up for a few more years, but it remains to be seen if the team can be competitive without Billups.

Tayshaun Prince and Rasheed Wallace form an incredibly formidable frontline, and Rip Hamilton is one of the most cerebral players in the league. Chris Webber has been a welcome addition to the roster, especially when his contract is taken into consideration. Webber’s future with the team isn’t entirely clear, but it is hard to see him playing for too many more seasons.

Current Assets:
The Pistons have a bevy of tradable assets, but how their roster looks next season is largely dependant on how the team fairs in the playoffs. While there are some big time decisions to make with some of the more veteran members of the club, Detroit is sure to retain the rights to the younger players under their control whose value hasn’t accrued much while sitting and studying the championship-caliber counterparts. A small investment in the future could pay dividends down the road.

Expiring Contracts-
The Pistons could have anywhere from three to seven players on their roster hit free agency this summer. The players who will be looking for new deals by default are Chris Webber, Dale Davis, and Amir Johnson. If the Pistons chose to let everyone who can opt out of their contract leave, the team would find itself with over ten million dollars in cap space. Based on that figure only, this offseason will be an extremely important one for the Detroit franchise. The players it could be losing would have quite a bit of value on the open market, but the team will be inclined to retain many of its pieces.

As the biggest target in the free agent market this summer, Chauncey Billups is likely to warrant a maximum contract. While another big contract would put a lot of pressure on the Pistons financially, it is hard to see the team letting Billups go. While he will be 31 next season, his age hasn’t affected his ability to impact a game. Detroit’s ability to leverage its other free agents to return could be dependant on their ability to resign Billups. A number of teams have already shown interest in Billups, but it is hard to see him walking away for the situation he is currently in.

Depending on whether or not he picks up his roughly 7 million dollar player option, Antonio McDyess could become a free agent at the end of this season as well. Of all the players with expiring deals, McDyess’ decision to resign may be the most dependent on the resigning of Chauncey Billups. McDyess has made it clear that he wants to play for a contender, and might feel that the Pistons won’t be able to win a championship without Billups.

Whatever decision Mcdyess reaches, it’s hard to see him matching the mid-level salary he received when initially signing with Detroit, so picking up his option may be the best payday. Jason Maxiell’s surge in production may ultimately be a deciding factor in this decision, as Mcdyess has never been overly motivated by financial incentives and has a strong loyalty to Billups and the rest of the Pistons organization. If Billups isn’t retained, look for McDyess to entertain sign-and-trade options to help satisfy both parties.

The contract of experienced post Dale Davis also expires at the end of this season. Davis hasn’t gotten a ton of time, but he has been serviceable in stretches. At 38 years old, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Davis hang them up if the Pistons win the NBA Championship. If Detroit comes up short, Davis may be looking for a new contract this offseason. Experienced, defensive-minded big men with playoff experience are usually in some type of demand until they choose to step away, look no further than Kevin Willis as proof of this concept. Whatever he decides, Davis doesn’t represent much value on the trade market and would be a throw-in player if dealt-a position he’s familiar with.

Two of Detroit’s youngest players will hit free agency this offseason. While neither Amir Johnson nor Will Blalock has received a great deal of playing time, both have shown the potential to warrant another contract. At just 19 years of age Amir Johnson is the more likely of the two to see a raise. Johnson spent a large portion of the season with the Fayetteville Patriots of the NBADL, seizing the opportunity to display the skills that got him drafted out of high school. He may not be ready to contribute next season, but he is getting close to where he needs to be skill-wise. The Pistons will consider picking up Will Blalock’s option, considering its barely over half a million dollars. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him back, but he may be the odd man out after the draft.

One of the most intriguing stories of this NBA season has been the journey of Chris Webber back to his roots in Detroit. Webber took an enormous pay cut to play in his hometown, and his production is worth many times more than the sub one million dollars he is playing for. At this point in his career, Webber may not be as concerned with making money, so he could come back for the veteran’s minimum or part of the mid level exception. At 34 years of age, Webber’s knees may not hold up for much longer, so he may consider retirement. However, he is thirsty for a championship and will likely resurface with the Pistons or another contender next season as all indications point to him doing so.

Total Cost: $17,531,965

Rotation Players-
The Pistons have one of the best rotations in the NBA, and appear to be in position to keep the core of it intact for at least two more seasons. The team will enlist the services of Rasheed Wallace for two more years, those of Rip Hamilton for three, and Tayshaun Prince for four. At 32 years of age, Wallace isn’t getting any younger, but when his deal expires in the 2009 season, he should still have a good amount of value on the open market. Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince are both playing under rather reasonable contracts considering their production, and should be staples of the Detroit roster even after their current deals expire.

Nazr Mohammed was brought in to lessen the blow of losing Ben Wallace, but hasn’t played much since the team acquired Chris Webber. Mohammed is signed through the 2011 season, and shouldn’t be going anywhere considering the relative ages of the Detroit front line. Detroit would gladly unload his contract if they could, but it’ll take a team desperate for a veteran frontline player to do so.

Jason Maxiell is virtually ready to take over as the main rotation big behind Webber and Wallace, and Amir Johnson deserves to start getting some spot time next season if the team sees fit to retain him. Mohammed isn’t a bad player per se, but it’s hard to swallow the length of his deal in terms of salary cap implications and asset loss with him as the return.

Flip Murray could be a free agent this summer, but expecting him to pick up his player option is questionable considering Murray’s age, productivity, projected role, and current cap figure. Look for Murray to test the waters this summer and re-up only if there’s nothing more lucrative on the horizon. If Murray does pick up the option he probably won’t be retained after his option expires since the Pistons will likely have drafted or acquired a swingman to replace him, or maybe have brought back 2005 draftee Alex Acker back from Greece. Veteran wing Lindsey Hunter may be in the same boat as Murray. He has another year left on his deal, but the Pistons may have found someone to replace his production by the time he is looking to be resigned, although his locker room presence might be a factor in bringing him back.

Total Cost: $36,253,740

Prospects:
Outside of Amir Johnson and Will Blalock, the Pistons have three other interesting prospects. Second year power forward Jason Maxiell may be undersized, but he is as a monster in the paint, and could bring to the table some of the same things that made Ben Wallace successful. He will undoubtedly be retained, as the Pistons will need his contributions on the inside.

Argentinean forward Carlos Delfino has really become an asset off the bench during his third season in the NBA. While he may not ever be a starting caliber player, he is a very productive bench player. At only 24 years of age, Delfino still has some room to grow. Both Delfino and Maxiell are still developing on both sides of the ball, but they have progressed to the point that they can do so while contributing. Each would have value to another team on the open market, but the Pistons are probably best served retaining the rights to each and reaping the benefits that continuity and chemistry provide young players.

The third and often forgotten man is 2005 draftee Alex Acker, whose rights are still held by the Pistons this summer after leaving their qualifying offer on the table to sign with wealthy Euroleague outfit Olimpiacos. Acker proved to be one of the best swingmen in all of Europe this year, at the very least in the versatility category. Having turned 24 just a few months ago, now is a great time for the Pistons to bring him back on the cheap and insert him into their rotation. At 6-5, Acker can play the 1-3 positions, featuring excellent passing, ball-handling and rebounding skills, and also a smooth jump-shot.

Total Cost: $2,849,929

Free Agency:
The Pistons won’t have a lot of money to work with going into free agency if they choose to re-sign Billups and retain their other potential free agents, so they will likely have to shift their focus to the draft. They will spend quite a bit in retaining players, and will likely use either their mid level exception or lower level exception to resign Chris Webber.

If the Pistons are able to use their mid level exception on a free agent, they could target a backup point guard like Steve Blake. The Pistons don’t have a ton of holes considering the amount of minutes their backups play, but it wouldn’t hurt to have another steadying presence behind Chauncey Billups. If the team decides to pursue a backup combo guard, Smush Parker could be an interesting option. Jalen Rose is another option, given his ties to Michigan and relationship with Chris Webber. If the team looks for a post player, Melvin Ely will be available. Who the Pistons pursue is almost entirely dependant on who they are able to resign. With International scouting ace Tony Ronzone on board, testing the European free agent market is always a strong option as well.

Draft:
The Pistons have both their first and second round selection in the upcoming draft, as well as the first round pick of the Orlando Magic. Joe Dumars will be almost completely justified in his decision to trade Darko Milicic based off the strength of this draft and the position the Magic’s pick falls into. The Pistons will likely take the best player available from their perspective, rather than drafting on pure need with their first selection.

Detroit will have numerous options with Orlando’s pick, including Acie Law IV who could ultimately develop into Chauncey Billups’s successor, or even play next to him. Mike Conley jr. is a player who has small chance at dropping to Detroit in this slot, and would certainly be a terrific player to bring on board. Forwards Corey Brewer and Jeff Green would also be good selections as they play the type of defense that has defined the Pistons over the last few seasons. This pick will likely be used on the best player to fall out of the top ten, as there will certainly be someone extremely talented available considering the sheer depth of this draft. As always, though, the player that is selected must fit Detroit’s unique personality on and off the court, that is, a tough-minded and unselfish player with strong fundamentals, particularly on the defensive end.

With their second selection, the Pistons could target a polished player who can contribute immediately like Alando Tucker, Morris Almond, or Jared Dudley. It is also possible that the team looks to add some extra insurance down low, by taking a center prospect like Aaron Gray if he is available.

In the second round, the Pistons may look to draft a player that they could stash in Europe like Mizra Teletovic, Kyrylo Fesenko, or Joao Gomes, or some other unknown sleeper that Ronzone finds through his extensive network of overseas contacts. The team could also pick someone who could fall to them like Russell Carter or Carl Landy and stash them in the NBADL if they earn a spot in training camp. Carter is a particularly intriguing selection this late as he has very similar ability to Flip Murray to go along with a winning attitude and relentless defensive motor.

pretty solid recap. isnt draftexpress done by a bunch of realgm guys?

even when im in complete doomsday mode i dont think c-bill is getting the max, though.

it raises a good idea: we should just overload the sg spot. if we tell flip: "we have rip, our draftee, and acker over you in the draft slot, AND we'll slide chauncy tay, delfino and lindsey in front of you if it comes to it" we might scare him away. im not sure where he's at in his career. his rep might be enough to get him his next K, but i would think pt would mean more to him than $$$ right now. i would love to be part of his mngmnt team right now. he's got some fun/difficult decisions to make.

I think who we draft all depends on what you believe for the future of the franchise. One thing we don't have, long term, is a true center. Those are usually projects. So take one and stash him in the D League? If a projected top 10 pick somehow slips to 15 I think you take him regardless of position. Example, if he's an athletic PF do we pass him up just because we have Amir and Maxiell? Not necessarily. I think we still take him since we can trade him of put all of them on the floor at the same time in a big lineup. It may depend on his range - if he can either finish down low and defend bigs OR hit an outside shot extremely well, I think they go ahead.

Do they believe Blaylock is the answer at PG in the future - whether that's resigning Chauncey and playing Will as the backup for a few years or a bigger role should Chauncey move on, is he the guy? If not you probably have to take a guy will handles. Then let 27 or whatever be a project pick.

I really think SF is the last thing we need in the first round. Yes, we need a backup to Tay, but only for 10-15 minutes a night, and Delfino can play there too. I'd rather sign Mo Pete, Rose or some other SF to back him up. Get your PG and Center of the future to learn under Sheed and Billups.

I agree with that. We've got all kinds of tweener/swingmen in the works already. We don't have back ups to the two definitive parts of any good team.

The only reason a backup to Tay was our biggest issue this year was because Ben left and we had to use the MLE on a Center. If Ben hadn't left unexpectantly, we'd have a SF here already. Now we can fix that hole with a FA if we want to.

I have to echo a lot of your sentiments. Glenn, thanks for the article. I agree that a backup to Chauncey is our most immediate need, but in terms of the long term, we are not going to have a better chance at getting a good Center for the foreseeable future than this Orlando pick. The Center position drops off right about where we pick, and I don't think these are lotto quality players in another draft. Look for a backup PG/swingman as best available with our other picks and free agency.

I'm not sure where these "free agency" dollars are coming from to sign a backup swing.

That is, unless we all think that the luxury tax doesn't matter to Davidson anymore and he won't mind paying for a FA and the dollar for dollar match on that player.

I'm not sure where these "free agency" dollars are coming from to sign a backup swing.

That is, unless we all think that the luxury tax doesn't matter to Davidson anymore and he won't mind paying for a FA and the dollar for dollar match on that player.

Well, I am assuming that if we draft a Center and a PG in the first round that Hunter retires (why would he stay with a guy like Law and also Blaylock here?), Flip Murray is cut, and Nazr traded (if we have a new Center why keep him?). Sure, we'd probably have to take on a salary for Nazr, but we could probably get a crappy player with an expiring deal from a team needing a center badly. I haven't done the math, but even if we are in the tax area it would only be for a year (if that deal was an expiring). I also don't mean a full MLE guy to backup Tay either. I'm talking about a guy like Posey or EJ from Miami (they won't keep both) that will be cheaper and only be a stop gap for a couple years.

If Law is there, take him. I think Brewer would have to be the next option.

Brewer will be gone after his strong NCAA showing IMO. He won't get past Philly, who isn't happy with Korver starting and needs some help for AI2 on the wing (they'd also like a PF, but the big names will be gone in the top 5-6 picks). If they don't take him, the Hornets will (Peja can't be counted on and they don't have any other good wings anyway). Certainly they need a solid wing defender with Peja being a liability anyway.

I agree with Chris here.

My Corey Brewer as a Piston pipe dream is dead.

That is, unless they move up to get him, lol.

And that's a bad move IMO, unless they are trading away Delfino to make that move. Othwrise it's pointless to have Delfino when Brewer can back up both spots.

I really think they should take a PG with the Orlando...any chance Conley would make it that far? If not, we should move up. We've got 2 picks, but I don't think we've got 2 spots. Any center in this draft aside from Oden pretty much looks like a stiff. Hibbert seems clumsy (he'll go hiigh anyway, someone elses problem) and Hawes...anyone ever see him play? "No thanks 7'1 Shawn Bradley, we're all set."

If we can get a strong back up for Billups plus Blaylock, I think that position would be set. I'm suddenly confortable with delfino as Tay and Rips back up, albeit we could definitely use another back up there, just in case. We've got a glutton of big men, so not a ton of need to has those things.

I'm almost positive we don't get Conley with the Orlando pick, he's going sooner than that. However, there is a good chance we can get the oft-mentioned-here Acie Law. Added bonus, I read an interview where Law flat out said billups is his favorite point guard and he's tried to model his game as such (i think interview was with nbadraft.net or one of those sites). He could really get motivated playing here.

If there's a GOOD SF available there, not some long-term project, i'd be open to taking him but I think we have solidify our PG and C positions for the future.

I don't think Conley will make it past Sacto at #10, we'd have to move into the top 10 to get him IMO.

Acie Law 4 is about the most realistic PG option right now at #15, and he might not even be there. If that is the case, then I think the wise thing to do is hold off on a PG until the second 1st round pick (our own at #27) and then take the best available PG on the board (Crittenton or Pruitt). With the ORL pick I'd take the BPA, with emphasis on a "true" SF (6'7" or taller).

We're going to shorten Tay's career by several years if we don't get him a backup that can guard opposing SFs and play 10-15 minutes a game.

edit: Jeff Green would be nice at #15 if Conley and Law are gone.

Law won't be there either. Atlanta or the Clippers will grab him IMO. When Collison, Lawson and a couple other PG's withdrew from the draft I think our best bet became PG with our own pick.

Chris, remember Atlanta loses their pick to PHX if it is not in the top 3.

If Atlanta or the Clippers win the lottery and get into the top 3 it could get interesting, too. That might be too high to take Conley (referring to pick #3, since we all know what's going to happen with the top 2 spots).

That could push Law to #15.

Atlanta has Indy's first rounder. They would take Law or a center there.

doh! Forgot about that.

I suppose we can hope that the Pacers get into the top 3 and keep their pick.

(Did I just type that?)

I wonder how much an improvement Atlanta could make if they won the lotto. Oden and Law would be a huge step in the right direction with a team full of swingmen and forwards.

or oden and connelly.

i didnt see almost any of law's games. i'd like to hear what the scouts think of him. it seems like lots of the mocks are down on him, though.

or oden and connelly.

i didnt see almost any of law's games. i'd like to hear what the scouts think of him. it seems like lots of the mocks are down on him, though.

I saw him 10 times or so, he's a guy who can take over a game with a jumpshot, and can put the ball on the floor, but doesn't strike you as a super athlete. People compare him to Billups because of his size (which in part is due to being a senior) and super clutch play, but I see him more as Jason Terry without the crazy range. He'll be a good guy if we want someone to come right off the bench next year, but his ceiling is limited to being a decent starter.

There are 3 spots I think we could use help:

PG - possible - Conley, Law, Crittendon
Big athletic SG/SF - possible - Al Thorton, Thad Young, Marcus Williams, Brandon Rush
C - Possible - Spencer Hawes, Gumpy McGumpenstien, Nick Fazekas, Foreign dude

Law is the one guy that might be available to us that is a good bet to step in and play immediately if we aquire him.

He's a big PG that can shoot the lights out. Chauncey in training.

After Game 5, seeing what happens when Chauncey has to sit out for an extended period of time, and how sucky our offense gets... there's really no doubt that we need a backup point guard, and no not some combo swingman/guard guy who "can play the point for small stretches", i'm talking someone who can actually run an offense.

Law is a great option, i've read columnists calling him the most nba-ready guard in the draft. Moving up for Conley isn't a bad idea either, but once you get past Oden and Durant, there's really no telling exactly where Conley could go, we could move up to 10, and he could go... like 5, or something. The biggest obstacle to getting Acie I guess is LA Clips and Atlanta.

If I am Joe I offer our 2nd rounder to move up a few spots and secure Law. Atlanta doesn't have their first rounder (unless top 3) or their second rounder. They have Indi's first. They might want a 2nd pick. They can grab Hawes at our spot. If Law is there at the Hornets spot, I definately pull the trigger on a deal because LAC will take Law for sure. It's their biggest nead.

We are going to struggle to find room for 3 picks anyway, why not package the 2nd rounder to move up a few spots. It's a good deal for NOH because they need a wing and the Clippers won't take one anyway. They can get a free pick out of it.

I'd like to see us get Law but after watching his workout i'd rather see us trade up to get Yi. He's a really athletic big man who can handle the ball and shoots well. I know that it smells a little like the Darko thing but the guy looks impressive plus he's 7' 5".

Well, in the NFL you have a chart for trades. I'm not sure what it takes to trade up in the NBA. Probably our whole draft plus a future pick to move into the top 6.

Well, in the NFL you have a chart for trades. I'm not sure what it takes to trade up in the NBA. Probably our whole draft plus a future pick to move into the top 6.

I would think all three of our picks plus the Minny pick and maybe Delfino. I'd like to see more of Yi but he looks as if he's worth it.

chad ford raves about this workout warrior. i'd pass. he wont be available to us anyway.

Fuck a Yi. Seriously, we of all teams should know that it's not worth it to take an unproven overseas player that high in the draft--wait 'til later. We stole Mehmet, we did pretty well with Delfino, and we may have done something good with Samb. If we would trade up, I'd rather it be for a Mike Conley/Corey Brewer type than a Yi type.

I'd rather package our 2nd rounder to move up and get Law. Then we can get Aaron Gray with our pick.

Yi is tall, but he's a forward type player according to scouts. We already have Max, Amir, Dyess, and Sheed that basically are forwards. Yi is not a true center, just like Darko is not either. Go get the true C or PG that we need.

A good PG is hard to find. You need someone with great ball handling skills and exceptional basketball smarts. The problem with these is that ball handling is kind of a dying art in the NBA, and a high b-ball IQ seems to develop with age. That's why there are so few exceptional young point guards.

So now that we know who's where, what are your opinions on who we take? Its seems like a bit of a stretch now to think Conley or Law are going to drop to us, so should we hope for Pruitt or Crittenton with our second pick and someone else with our first?

I wouldn't mind seeing Tiago Splitter or Thaddeus Young with the first pick and the best PG on the board with the second.

What about if we do get Law? I haven't done a whole lot of research on late-first guys, but I took a look at a few that drew my interest.
C's: Sean Williams (character could be handled by our locker room, I think), DeVon Harris if he's healthy, Marc Gasol (although the whole "needs conditioning thing" kind of reminds me of how Darko needed coddling)

SF: Marcus Williams anyone? Tay needs a solid backup if Flip doesn't finally give in and give it to Delfino. Something about Alando Tucker just doesn't seem like a good fit. Not sure what it is though.

I don't think the 2nd rounder helps us move up in the first. 2nd rounders don't make many rosters, iirc. It'd take one of our younger bench players, imo.

I'll be doing my mock again today to reflect the lotto results.

Its seems like a bit of a stretch now to think Conley or Law are going to drop to us, so should we hope for Pruitt or Crittenton with our second pick and someone else with our first?

I wouldn't mind seeing Tiago Splitter or Thaddeus Young with the first pick and the best PG on the board with the second.

This is the plan that I endorse also.

If Hibbert, Hawes, Conley and Young are all gone, I'm not sure what to do. I don't want another PF, that is for sure. We'd probably have to get the best SF available I guess.

If I believed the majority of mock drafts, I would be preparing to see either Al Thornton or Thaddeus Young at 15, and Aaron Gray at 27. Basically a backup for Tayshawn and the "true center". Ehh. Whatever. Nothing terribly exciting at this point. Hard to really guess how next year's squad is going to come together. The big question marks of players re-signing and how Amir will fit in, etc. Will we finally deal Nazr? Is Flip Murray a lock to be gone? Chauncey, McDyess and CWebb are obviously the biggest question marks. To think that 3 of the top 6 from the current team could potnetially be elsewhere scares me a lot.

Nazr is the biggest mystery to me. He's much like the Darko situation, without the hype. He just gets filed away somewhere and we have no clue if he's making any progress here or not.

NBADRAFT.NET now has Law hovering around the #20 pick... trading down may be an option now (and still get Law)

NBADRAFT.NET now has Law hovering around the #20 pick... trading down may be an option now (and still get Law)

there is no way law drops down to 20 let alone 15.

acie law IV i think could drop. we'll see how he does in the combine, but if his athleticism is marginal then he's probably not going to be more than an eric snow type player at best. which is fine, but thats more #20 than 10. and conley slipping to us is a pipe dream. if he doest go #3, he'll go shortly after.

i think this year joe actually has to draft for need.

lately, ive been a big fan of conley, and is anyone else willing to trade both our first rounders to move up and draft him?

I wouldn't think it would be awful to get Conley but I would rather take our chances with what we have and get a couple of good players. There is really no saying whether Conely will be better than Law or Crittendon or Stucky. I say we keep our picks and get a couple of quality guys and take our chances.

i think its guaranteed conley will be better than all those guys. but i dont think we have the bullets needed to get conley, so its all just wishful thinking.

If you were one of the teams in this lottery, meaning you need to land a great prospect in this draft badly, would you trade away a guy like Conley so you could get a 3rd-best point guard and a guy at the end of the draft that is debatable to be more than a late rotation bench guy? I wouldn't.

If you were one of the teams in this lottery, meaning you need to land a great prospect in this draft badly, would you trade away a guy like Conley so you could get a 3rd-best point guard and a guy at the end of the draft that is debatable to be more than a late rotation bench guy? I wouldn't.

This is the correct answer.

The thing about Conley is he's going to take a couple years to be a difference maker. He has a higher ceiling than Law, but I think Law makes more sense for us. We're in a situation where our window is the next couple years, while we still have guys like Rip, Chauncey (if...) and Tayshaun in the prime of their careers. I'd much rather have a guy come in who can give us decent minutes, than a guy sitting on the bench with loads of potential, but a year or two away from quality help. We've seen what can happen there. The guy gets discontent sitting, then leaves after his rookie contract is up. We put in the time to nurse him along, then another team benefits by signing him as a ready-to-go player.

Honestly, I think Conley would be a difference maker right away. Conley was keeping Ohio State in championship distance as a freshman PG before Oden had recovered from his injury.

At this point, I'd take the guy with more upside. He may not be the better guy right now but we're not asking him to come in and be a starter. We're asking him to come in and be the backup to Billups. Then once he's ready we'll be able to run some lineups with Billups playing SG. We haven't been able to do that for a while but i remember it going fairly well when Billups was able to just relax and hit shots for a bit without having to run the team.

Honestly, I think Conley would be a difference maker right away. Conley was keeping Ohio State in championship distance as a freshman PG before Oden had recovered from his injury.

i completely agree. conley carried osu for alot of the time against some pretty good teams. i think he's chris paul II, and will hit the nba running. granted he didnt exactly have a team full of nobodies, but how many frosh pgs lead their team to the ncaa championship? i think its also fair to say that 9/10 that osu team wins a championship.

Why do we keep talking about Conley when the Pistons have no chance of getting him? Most mocks are suggesting we can't even talk about Acie Law. If we're talking guards, the most realistic conversation to have revolves around Rondey Stuckey.

Or Pruitt IMO.

Why do we keep talking about Conley when the Pistons have no chance of getting him? Most mocks are suggesting we can't even talk about Acie Law. If we're talking guards, the most realistic conversation to have revolves around Rondey Stuckey.
ive been raving about conley for years.

So if/when the Pistons draft a PG this year, do they just release Blalock?

What's the point in keeping him if you've just drafted his replacement?

They'd basically be saying, "you didn't make it, kid".

Maybe he can go Euro a la Acker?

So if/when the Pistons draft a PG this year, do they just release Blalock?

What's the point in keeping him if you've just drafted his replacement?

They'd basically be saying, "you didn't make it, kid".

Maybe he can go Euro a la Acker?
Or Hunter could retire.......

The Pistons have an approx $700K (x2) team option for Blalock, so they'll need to decide if he's worth that money playing in the NBDL.

They are on the hook for Hunter's $2.2m no matter what, so there's no chance that pennypincher could realize any cost savings there.

I'm guessing he tells Joe to part ways with Blalock and banks the $1.4m from Blalock (lux tax, 2x).

Blalock wouldn't play in the NBDL next year... As I recall, players in the NBA can only be sent to the NBDL in their first two years.

It probably depends on if Hunter retires.

Yep, my bad, for some reason I stupidly thought next year was only year two for Blalock.

So now he's $1.4m plus an active roster spot.

He'd probably be gone unless Hunter retires. If we draft a first round PG and Billups does not leave, then Blaylock isn't going to get much PT anyway. Only in case of an injury.

Why do we keep talking about Conley when the Pistons have no chance of getting him? Most mocks are suggesting we can't even talk about Acie Law. If we're talking guards, the most realistic conversation to have revolves around Rondey Stuckey.

same reason we talk about getting kobe?

It's all speculation.

The Celtics will most likely trade their pick imo. They dont need any more youung guns. Should be pretty fun to watch what Ainge does

ive been raving about conley for years.

Years, eh? Had a craving for those exciting middle school games?

Incoming Players
Jermaine O'Neal
Salary: $18,084,000 Years Remaining: 3
PTS: 19.4 REB: 9.6 AST: 2.4 PER: 18.86

Rasheed Wallace
Salary: $11,650,000 Years Remaining: 3
PTS: 12.3 REB: 7.2 AST: 1.7 PER: 15.81


Outgoing Players: Andrew Bynum, Vladimir Radmanovic, Kwame Brown, Lamar Odom, Jordan Farmar, Maurice EvansDetroit Pistons

Incoming Players
Andrew Bynum
Salary: $2,030,280 Years Remaining: 2
PTS: 7.8 REB: 5.9 AST: 1.1 PER: 15.44

Marquis Daniels
Salary: $5,883,600 Years Remaining: 3
PTS: 7.1 REB: 1.8 AST: 1.3 PER: 11.67

Darrell Armstrong
Salary: $1,178,348 Years Remaining: 3
PTS: 5.6 REB: 1.7 AST: 2.4 PER: 15.19

Maurice Evans
Salary: $1,620,000 Years Remaining: 2
PTS: 8.4 REB: 2.9 AST: 1.0 PER: 12.14


Outgoing Players: Rasheed WallaceIndiana Pacers

Incoming Players
Vladimir Radmanovic
Salary: $5,215,000 Years Remaining: 5
PTS: 6.6 REB: 3.3 AST: 1.2 PER: 11.02

Kwame Brown
Salary: $8,287,500 Years Remaining: 2
PTS: 8.4 REB: 6.0 AST: 1.8 PER: 13.79

Lamar Odom
Salary: $12,348,596 Years Remaining: 3
PTS: 15.9 REB: 9.8 AST: 4.8 PER: 16.20

Jordan Farmar
Salary: $939,120 Years Remaining: 2
PTS: 4.4 REB: 1.7 AST: 1.9 PER: 10.79


Outgoing Players: Jermaine O'Neal, Marquis Daniels, Darrell Armstrong

http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=981~2748~1031~3002~617~1016~88 3~24~2200~615&teams=11~8~8~11~11~11~13~8~8~13

im pretty sure indiana doesnt do it. but something like this could be worked out. mainly, the idea is getting sheed for bynum.

then, i do everything i can to trade chauncy to atl for the #3. speedy, lue, and lorenzen wright works.

now i have an excellent young pg and center, and have kept prince, rip, and dyce. we even have vet pg's (and lots of them) to tutor young conley. keep dale D around suddenly becomes a good idea, too. idealy, i could package a few bodies together to find a serviceable 4, but with dyce still here, and wanting to get pt for max and amir, that really isnt a priority.

maybe lakers and pistons both give indy a pick, and then we also give atl the orlando pick.

I don't want anything to do with Bynum (Kwame Brown II).

i dont know about that. at 19, bynum is already putting up better #'s than kwame.

with kwame, its not just a mental, or developmental flaw to his game. he has stone hands. probably the worst hands in the game. if brown had zach randolph's hands, he probably be a very good player.

even though bynum really struggled down the stretch, he had a great year, imo. especially in early 07. i suspect if we brough him in here he could give us something like 13 pts, 8 brds, and 2 blocks in about 30 minutes. that would be as a 20 year old. i fully expect him to be an allstar fairly soon.

can you possibly edit that and put in team names? It says incoming players, but not for who.

It shows when you click the link however.

Maybe if the Lakers swapped picks with us too (our pick)

even though bynum really struggled down the stretch, he had a great year, imo. especially in early 07. i suspect if we brough him in here he could give us something like 13 pts, 8 brds, and 2 blocks in about 30 minutes. that would be as a 20 year old. i fully expect him to be an allstar fairly soon.
It really depends on foul-proneness. Tyson Chandler's big breakthrough was not being a foul machine, and that took six years and I'm still wondering if it's a fluke or not. Bynum could turn out to be a Nazr Mohammed foul machine.

Do we even have enough room on our team to make that trade? We'd lose Sheed but gain 4 bodies, then you want to trade Billups for 3 more bodies. And we'd have 5 pg's on the roster BEFORE the draft. Unless Hunter retires we're trading a few of the incoming guys, that's just way too much.

yea, it wasnt really completely worked out, just something along the lines of what i'd like to see done. im saying bynum is the real deal. i also really like daniels going back to his dallas days. if we got conley, i'd also like to see some vet depth behind him. but obviously five is overkill.

Maybe if we had something worked out to get rid of some of them, or if we substituted other players for them. Not sure exactly what we could do there, but I'm sure if I took the time to take a look at it I could figure something out.

Just saw some highlights of Thaddeus Young and he looks like a super explosive kid:

check out the rebound putback dunk at the end.

z2Syh8zSChE

Yeah is very athletic, I wonder why hed drop down to 15 though.

Kids a left too. 2 left handed small forwards[smilie=heatsmiley2:

Been pimping Young all year, watched him twice and I was shocked this guy wasn't a lottery lock. Word is he drifts in-and-out of games, but whatever.

He'll fit right in.

I've been hearing some Rodney Stuckey to Detroit. A combo guard who can shoot.

Im feeling more Thaddeous young than Stuckey on the pistons

Stuckey is apparently claiming that he's got a promise from the Pistons that they'll take him at #15 if he is there.

http://www.draftexpress.com/viewarticle.php?a=2102


Stuckey to Detroit?

-Does Rodney Stuckey have a promise from Detroit? That’s what some people are starting to believe, even though we don’t really buy these types of rumors, since it makes very little sense. Some people say that Stuckey is privately claiming to have received the guarantee, while others believe he is one of a handful of players Detroit is considering with the 15th pick.

Unless we move RIP I don't see why we'd take Stuckey. We don't need a combo guard.

I like Young, Glenn and I had him in our mocks to us at the beginning. But I'd rather get Law or Hawes if they are there. Young would be my 3rd option.

Chad Ford has the Pistons taking Stuckey in his latest mock, too.

http://www.legendsofamerica.com/Route66/StuckeysLogo.gif

Why? Are we moving Delfino or RIP? Otherwise what is the point?

:chad:


#15 Detroit
(via Orlando)

Rodney Stuckey
Position: SG
Height: 6-4
Weight: 205
Age: 21
School: Eastern Wash.

The skinny: Many NBA scouts raised their eyebrows when I listed Stuckey this high, but I still think he'll be the pick for Detroit. He just seems like the type of player Detroit likes and he's an excellent fit.

Stuckey is a Randy Foye-type combo guard who can play some point but really excels by putting the ball on the floor and getting to the basket. He would be a big upgrade over Flip Murray.

Nick Young and Thaddeus Young also are possibilities here.

Billups is already a combo guard. I want a TRUE PG Ford, not Flip Murray part 2.


NBA Comparison: Dajuan Wagner


Strengths: Tremendous scorer with excellent body strength … Has the ability to play both guard positions, with solid ball handling and passing ability … Very good at driving to the basket and creating scores … Has a solid mid range game with a good pull up shot off the dribble … Showed the ability to create offense for himself even with opposing defenses keying on him with 2-3 defenders … Solid 3 point shooter at 37%, hitting 55 on the season ... On top of great offensive skills, he has the ability to lock down opponents defensively … Averaged close to 50% FG and 4 APG despite a weak supporting cast …

Weaknesses: A bit of a tweener at 6-3 as he’s better at the 2-guard position, but showed the ability to run the point as a freshman … Dominated lesser competition, so it’s tougher to gauge his abilities as the level of talent in the Big Sky Conference is inferior … Needs to show better focus on the defensive end of the floor at all times, as he is extremely effective when he gives full effort … He is a tremendous 1-1 talent, but prove he has the ability to involve teammates … A solid though not overwhelming level of athlete ... Could struggle to get shots off the same way on the NBA level as he's small and lacks frekish athleticism ...

Notes: Averaged 24.2 ppg as a freshman (9th in the country)... The leading scorer among returning players to NCAA basketball ... Never scored less than 14 pts all season ...


I do like the fact that he's a good defender though. However, if we get him, we better package Delfino somewhere because he'll become a whiner again.

An awful amateur rap video that mentions/features Rodney Stuckey (don't blink).

K370LwrVknQ

it's at the 1:26 mark.

that was awful.

A better Stuckey video from Yahoo.

What DWade would look like if he played against middle schoolers.

The music rocks, too.

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/player/popup/index.php?cl=2922695

A better Stuckey video from Yahoo.

What DWade would look like if he played against middle schoolers.

The music rocks, too.

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/player/popup/index.php?cl=2922695

much better, thanks Glenn.

his shot is smooth and his handles are real nice, but wtf is up with his shooting form? it almost looks like he shoots with two hands. i can see the DWade reference, but i'm scared because i almost see a future Flip Murray too.

hard to say off a highlite reel, but looked good. i will say this, if you can shoot in college, you can shoot in the pro's. form isnt everything. there are more good shooters with bad form than bad shooters with good form.

is body looks identical to d-wades, which is a little concerning. b/c imo wade wouldnt be 1/2 as affective without his top notch quickness and athleticism, which i doubt this guy has.

still would definitly give him a look, though.

Damn, kid loves the glass. Good footwork. Superior closeout speed on D. I like what I see, but it is a highlight reel and it is lesser college competition.

Stuckey to Detroit?

Posted by A. Sherrod Blakely (http://blog.mlive.com/pistonsinsider/about.html) June 07, 2007 15:47PM


I'm sure some of you heard about the Detroit Pistons' so-called "guarantee" to combo guard Rodney Stuckey in the draft later this month. You expect teams to deny doing such things, but in this instance, I tend to believe them.
For one thing, the Pistons haven't worked out any players yet because of a new league rule which wouldn't allow teams to start working out players individually until June 5. It makes no sense to guarantee a player, when you haven't really had a chance to see, on an individual, one-on-one basis, your other options.
And while I think Stuckey is a decent player, I just don't see him being THAT kind of a talent to where you would be pressed to guarantee him a first-round spot.
Then again, this whole draft process will be different than previous ones for Detroit. Because of the new rule for working out players, the Pistons - like a lot of playoff teams - are a lot farther behind than they would like. Usually Detroit has had at least a dozen players in by now for workouts. In the past, they brought them in during the home playoff games.
The reason they didn't plan any workouts for this week was because they expected to be in the NBA Finals which, at this point, would have probably meant they were on the road for Games 1 and 2. Because of that, they didn't anticipate bringing guys in until sometime early week.
By the time their season ended, Detroit was left scrambling to try and arrange workouts, while most of the players they're interested in already had stuff lined up.

No number has been set for how many will come in, but I anticipate between 18-25 players will be in.
Stuckey will probably be one of those players, but don't read too much into that.
He's a good player that the Pistons like. But like most drafts, Detroit's picks will depend on what teams ahead of them do.
For example, if Al Horford, Brandon Wright, Al Thornton or a Jeff Green-type player is around at 15, you can bet the Pistons will snatch up one of those guys.
The Pistons may very well wind up with Stuckey, but I don't believe it will be with the 15th pick unless he wows them with his workout. He's expected to be among the last 10 or so players picked in the first round.
As far as what Detroit is really looking for, the Pistons need to add someone who can create their own shot off the dribble. They thought they had that guy in Flip Murray. We all saw how that didn't work out too well.

Stuckey is that kind of change-of-pace player Joe Dumars has talked about wanting; but again, a lot will depend on who is still left when its Detroit's turn to pick.
Detroit could also use another big man as well, knowing that C-Webb will probably retire and Dale Davis is expected to play elsewhere. Although I've seen a few mock drafts that link Detroit with Colorado State's Jason Smith, I really like Duke's Josh McRoberts who I believe is going to be a much, much better pro than he was a Dukie. He can be physical at times, goes through stretches where he dominates, and others when he disappears, and he complains to officials a lot -- sounds like a Piston, huh?
Once the full list of who's coming for workouts is finalized, I'll be back with my assessment of those players, as well as some random thoughts on the upcoming draft.

Rodney Stuckey performs well at pre-draft combine

Posted by Justin Rogers (http://blog.mlive.com/fullcourtpress/about.html) June 06, 2007 11:58AM



You're probably saying, "Why should I care about Rodney Stuckey?" Well, Stuckey has been the Pistons' projected pick by a couple different mock drafts, so it seems relevant to monitor his performance heading into the draft.

June 4, ESPN.com: (http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=2893057&name=ford_chad) And Eastern Washington 's Rodney Stuckey also came out smelling sweet. He didn't dominate in any one category, but tested well enough in each one to dismiss talk that he wasn't a good enough athlete.
June 6, Seattle Times: (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2003736036_draft06.html) Eastern Washington guard Rodney Stuckey improved his draft standing with a strong performance. The product of Kentwood High School in Covington ranked 10th overall and had the second-fastest sprint at 3.11 seconds.

I liked what I saw of Stucky in the video. He wasn't bothered by contact, seemed to play very solid D, has NBA 3 point range (seemingly), and was very aggressive.

Damn, kid loves the glass. Good footwork. Superior closeout speed on D. I like what I see, but it is a highlight reel and it is lesser college competition.

i didn't really notice how many bank shots he had in that video.

that's a good sign, IMO. you don't see too many guards using the glass that often (besides DWade), so that shows he's got some touch on his jumper.

his speed seems good as well.

interesting.

Dwyane Wade comparison is unfair, other than they both wear #3 and have the same body type. Wade has a killer first step, Stuckey has more of a Billups style to his game, more two steps and a pull up than get to the rim and finish.

I would so really like to have Hawes but Stucky would be a nice consolation. I just hope that we can get another earlier first and get them both.

He looked ok but something just screams Rodney White at me when we talk about guys that did well against inferior competition but no one is sure how they'll play against the real thing. We'll see how he does in some summer workout stuff and then I'll feel a little better about making up my opinion on him.


Anyone else worried that he's most comparable to Dajuan Wagner? Is he even still in the NBA?

He looked ok but something just screams Rodney White at me when we talk about guys that did well against inferior competition but no one is sure how they'll play against the real thing. We'll see how he does in some summer workout stuff and then I'll feel a little better about making up my opinion on him.
Rodney White's problem wasn't so much lack of talent, but lack of a brain.


Anyone else worried that he's most comparable to Dajuan Wagner? Is he even still in the NBA?
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2669233

according to hoopshype, we are working out Brent Petway from Umich, Josh McRoberts from Duke and Darryl Watkins from......

My initial reactions were "Who?", "Fuck" and "Who?", respectively.

Petway isn't listed anywhere that I've found so there is no scouting report on him. We've all heard about McRoberts, the Duke guy who didn't do a whole lot in college but should be a lot better as a pro (not sure how that works, but all the experts are saying it), and Watkins, from Syracuse by the way, sounds like a clumsy big man who blocks a lot of shots but doesn't play hard all the time and can't do anything else. Maybe worth a look with a second rounder but otherwise uninteresting. I'd rather take a foreigner and leave him in Europe unless there's an Amir Johnson guy with gobs of potential that came out too early waiting for us.

I doubt Petway gets drafted. People want their Josh Smith wannabees younger.

Petway isn't listed anywhere that I've found so there is no scouting report on him. We've all heard about McRoberts, the Duke guy who didn't do a whole lot in college but should be a lot better as a pro (not sure how that works, but all the experts are saying it), and Watkins, from Syracuse by the way, sounds like a clumsy big man who blocks a lot of shots but doesn't play hard all the time and can't do anything else. Maybe worth a look with a second rounder but otherwise uninteresting. I'd rather take a foreigner and leave him in Europe unless there's an Amir Johnson guy with gobs of potential that came out too early waiting for us.

the obvious answer is that he couldnt do much worse.

maybe lack of atheticism/speed/size/physique translate better to the nba than ncaa.

I doubt Petway gets drafted. People want their Josh Smith wannabees younger.

does this answer your doubts?

xIT9D2HdGjc&NR=1

you know a player is really good if his highlite real is filled with him exclusively in warmups.

but honestly, i'd take air georgia in the second round, just like i would have taken flight white in the second round last year. atleast make the shootarounds exciting.

Maybe just scouting him to bring him into camp as an undrafted rookie. Who knows.

He probably should have spent more time shooting than working on dunks off the shot clock. Anyone that spends that much time focusing on highlight dunks doesn't deserve to be brought in on any salary to the NBA. How will he ever make a roster when he works on shit that has no in game application what so ever?

The league does not need anymore And1-style highlight reel retards. Why people want to watch that, I have no idea. If I wanted to watch guys spin in circles before they get swatted, I'd go down to my smelly YMCA gym and see it live.

Stuckey coming in on 6/23 for a workout.

This is a handy link to hold onto: http://draftexpress.com/workout.php

:chad:


D (Indiana): what do you see DET doing at 15 and 27?

Chad Ford: I've had Rodney Stuckey and DeVon Hardin penciled in for weeks but I also think they'll consider Al Thornton, Thaddeus Young and Nick Young at No. 15 and there's a good chance that Hardin returns to school. Wouldn't be surprised if the Pistons also try to package the picks to move up a few spots.

Would you take a flyer on Sean Williams if his character issues let him slip all the way to our late first round pick?

I wonder if Conley is still on the board at #10 (as he was in the WTF User mock) if the Kings would take #15 and #27 for #10?

#10 is the only pick that they have in the draft right now.

They might get better offers than this, but who knows?

I'd still be a bit concerned about Conley's outside shot in Flip's offense, though.

If not this deal, I wonder how far up #15/#27 would get us?

I'm thinking about the mandate to save money from Davidson, btw.

What about #15, Minny's 2nd and our 2nd rounder? If not, I wonder if the Hornets would swap picks with us for a 2nd rounder. That way we pick ahead of the Clippers if we want a top PG.

If Conley, Critt and Law are all gone at 15, even if we take Stuckey, Joe could still go PG at #27.

Anybody got any dilly-o on Petteri Koponen PG Finland or Zabian Dowdell PG Virginia Tech?

I know that Gabe Pruitt may still be there at #27 and he is rated higher by most, but it's possible that even he is gone.

If we take Stuckey I can't see us taking a PG. Stucky is a combo guard and it would be a waste to take someone at #15 that only backs up RIP. Barring trades that doesn't make sense. I'm not big on Stucky, but if we take him I think we have to get a center with #27.

You're probably right.

I'm torn between Stuckey (D Wade Jr.), Thad Young (Tayshaun Jr.) and Acie Law (Chauncey Jr.) right now.

If all three are on the board at #15, not sure who I'd want.

edit: and of course if Thornton or anyone else drops, they'd have to be considered as well.

I kind of like Young, of that group. He seems like he has the most updside. Then again, if Stuckey can seriously be considered to backup the PG spot for us as well, then he gets right back into the mix for me.

Well, of course if all those "Jr's" were actually as good as the players you named, I'd want Wade/Stuckey. I fear Stuckey is Wagner Jr, or Flip Murray Jr. I also wonder about his ability to run the point. Iverson developed pretty good PG skills. I wish he'd done those highlights against better teams too. I'm not calling him a bust, but I'm leery for sure.

What do you guys think of Nick Fazekas at #27?

His shooting, passing and rebounding ability seem kind of similar to Sheed at that size. Seems like the type of player (jump shooting big man) that would excel in the Saunder's offense.

He's supposed to be a high bball IQ type too.

I'm surprised that NBADraft.net has him as low as they do in their mock (#46) because Draft Express has him at #26 with this caption:

26 Rockets Nick Fazekas PF/C
22 years old; 6'11"; 225 lbs.
Nevada, Senior

Statistically, there is a case to be made for Fazekas to be considered the second best player in this draft. Moneyball disciple Daryl Morey values that as much as anyone, filling a great need in taking a power forward who can pass and shoot the ball as well as any big man in this draft.

because i had no idea what Nick Fazekas's game was like (this was talking about him pulling out of last year's draft):

GraZzsaHHt4

I don't know. Sounds nice offensively, but has very poor body strength and can't hold his position on the block. Also, he is basically a PF. Also, his best case comparison is Princess Lattener.

I'm starting to like Kyrylo Fesenko with #27. Read his write up on draftexpress here (http://www.draftexpress.com/viewprofile.php?p=1065).

I like how agressive he is at the basket, always attacking.

I don't know. Sounds nice offensively, but has very poor body strength and can't hold his position on the block. Also, he is basically a PF. Also, his best case comparison is Princess Lattener.

I'm starting to like Kyrylo Fesenko with #27. Read his write up on draftexpress here (http://www.draftexpress.com/viewprofile.php?p=1065).

I like how agressive he is at the basket, always attacking.

Once Hardin decided to return to college, I pasted Fesenko in at 27 in my mock. LOL @ This-

27. Kyrylo Fesenko, center, Ferner

Fesenko worked out for the Bucks last year. About halfway through the 70-minute workout, Bucks assistant coach Brian James told the players he wanted them to “put the ball on the floor,” meaning take a dribble before shooting. Fesenko was first up, and after taking a pass near the baseline, he softly set the ball on the court and walked away looking puzzled as if to say, “Why did you want me to do that?”

He seems like the exact opposite of Darko. he lives to be in the post.

Sounds perfect to me. A young C (which we need) that wants to use his post up game (which we need). Works for both parties.

3 guys who will be 1st round picks are Petteri Koponen, Kyrylo Fesenko, and Marco Belinelli. Usually these guys only stay in if they are given a guarantee, and they have stayed in. Maybe the Pistons/Spurs gave them a guarantee.

Fesenko worked out for the Bucks last year. About halfway through the 70-minute workout, Bucks assistant coach Brian James told the players he wanted them to “put the ball on the floor,” meaning take a dribble before shooting. Fesenko was first up, and after taking a pass near the baseline, he softly set the ball on the court and walked away looking puzzled as if to say, “Why did you want me to do that?”

lmfao i rmember reading that. Well the 27 really depends who and what we get at the 15. If a bigman slides or we draft Thornton, we should obviously be looking for a backup point guard with the 27 because there are more options for the backup 4 via FA. If we take Stuckey, Id say we take a big with the 27.

News on Fazekas...


-Nick Fazekas has been one of the most impressive workout players around from what we’re told, shooting 75%+ from NBA 3-point range in virtually every city he’s visited. Some are wondering whether he’s not only the best shooting big man in this draft, but maybe the best shooter period. Considering he shot 57% from the field, 43% from 3-point range and 85% from the free throw line this season, that probably isn’t a fluke. If a team like New Jersey trades down in the first round, it could very well be to take him. He also seems to fit well in Los Angeles in the triangle offense, in Houston next to Yao, or even in Phoenix as a shot-maker. The only concern is his uncommonly high foot arches, which some worry may lead to injury problems down the road.

Houston would be a great fit for him for sure. I don't see LA unless they move Odom. A good deal for them might be Odom and Smush for Artest and Bibby or something similar. Then they could draft Fazekas and roll with Bibby/Kobe/Artest/Walton/Bynum, with Fazekas, Evans, Farmar, Radmon and a MLE player maybe.

I'm not sure how far they could get in the playoffs, but that would probably convince Kobe to stay.

WDFN just mentioned that Thad Young and Crittenton both worked out today for the Pistons.

I'd be happy with both of them here. Although I'd rather have a big if we can get one that fits.

Not a Crit fan.

Stuckey is in tomorrow and this guy (http://draftexpress.com/viewprofile.php?p=188) is here on Monday.

I wonder where Will Blalock would have been drafted this year if he would have stayed in school?

Looks like Acie Law will be definately gone by our pick...


One day after working out for the Atlanta Hawks , Texas A&M's All-American point guard Acie Law on Thursday pulled out of his scheduled workout with the Hornets, which was to be held today at an Edmond fitness center.

Law had been scheduled to work out today with a group of guards that included Florida junior point guard Taurean Green and Vanderbilt's Derrick Byars. But his sudden cancellation has lead to speculation that he has received a guarantee from the Hawks, who are in need of a point guard and hold the No. 3 and 11 picks in the June 28 NBA Draft

I wonder where Will Blalock would have been drafted this year if he would have stayed in school?

Just for kicks, I sent this question to Jonathan Givony at DraftExpress yesterday, here's his response:


Subject: Re: Select Category: Will Blalock
From: "Jonathan Givony" <jonathan@draftexpress.com>
Date: Fri, June 22, 2007 5:04 pm
To: "Glenn" <Glenn@WTFDetroit.com>


All depends on the season he would have had. Who knows? If they didn't
make the NCAA tournament, maybe undrafted?

Sorry I can't help out more, its just too many "what ifs." He did get
drafted last in one of the worst drafts of all time...

Thanks, Jonathan.

I think Wingspan plays a huge role in our picks, considering the zone. FT% in the PG, SG, and SF positions is also imprortant.

Without a doubt, our #1 player on our draft board (who actually might be available) is Nick Young IMO. Has a role on this team, can already play, is athletic, and is 6'5" with a freakish 7 foot wingspan.

After that my board has Julian Wright second, Thaddeus Young third, Law, and then Crittenton fifth. I am lukewarm on Stuckey, but he could give us a nice scoring guard off the bench.

My ideal draft would be:
15- Stucky (unless Thornton drops)
trade Nazr & #27, #57 for Watson & #31
2nd round- Fesenko

Flip & Hunter would be easy to move.

Speaking of pull outs, DraftExpress learned today that Josh McRoberts cancelled a workout scheduled with Detroit.

I'm betting Houston said he won't fall past them.

I wonder who they'd take if Davis is there as well though.

A guy that a lot of teams seem to be jockeying for at the end of the 1st round is 19 year-old PG, Petteri Koponen. I've read that there are several teams that like him so much that they are trying to trade into the mid-20's to get him.

If he's there at #27, he sounds like a real possibility.

Same agent as Darko, though.




Exploring European Draft-Day Storylines
June 17, 2007

Continuing a distinct trend that has followed him to every workout he’s attended so far, Petteri Koponen had himself another outstanding showing in front of multiple NBA teams, this time at a workout organized by his agent Marc Cornstein in New York City.

Eight Pinnacle Management clients worked out for at least ten NBA teams in separate workouts this past weekend on Saturday and Sunday. Teams that were in New York on Saturday/Sunday included Denver, Memphis, Boston (Danny Ainge), Houston, Utah, Portland (Kevin Pritchard), Toronto, Golden State, Seattle, Charlotte, Phoenix, Dallas, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Miami, the LA Lakers, and the New York Knicks.

According to an NBA executive that was present, the workout was well run and featured a good mix of shooting drills, and competitive one on one or two on two matchups. The players that were in attendance for the first session were Stanko Barac, Vladimir Golobuvic, Marko Lekic, and Milovan Rakovic—a group of big “bangers” who did a good job beating up on each other and neutralizing each other for the most part—even if Milovan Rakovic did well to separate himself from the pack.

The second session—featuring Petteri Koponen, Casey Hughes (Yale), Zoran Erceg and Artem Zabelin—was reportedly more informative. Erceg did a terrific job shooting the ball, although his flaws (rebounding, shot-creating ability, athleticism) were evident. Zabelin looks to be “oozing with potential,” although he still has a “very long way to go” as his body looks years away from filling out.

According to two separate NBA people who were in the building, it was Koponen that stole the show once again, showing good ball-handling skills, an ability to change directions quickly on the fly, excellent leadership skills, great poise, a high intelligence level, terrific intangibles, and a real winning attitude that made him standout in everything he did. The same “plays like an American guard” compliment that we heard from a different scout who saw him in Orlando conducting another multi-team workout was again repeated here—meaning he doesn’t suffer from the same athletic short-comings that other international guards do. His shooting mechanics were critiqued, but apparently his jumper went in at a good rate, particularly on pick and pop plays.

I've read that he isn't getting past the Spurs. I think the Lakers also like him.

My ideal draft would be:
15- Stucky (unless Thornton drops)
trade Nazr & #27, #57 for Watson & #31
2nd round- Fesenko

Flip & Hunter would be easy to move.
Why would we draft a combo-guard then trade for a guy that plays the point? If we trade for Watson I want us to take a C or a swingman, not someone who will be getting minutes at SG and PG.

In my mock I did today I have them drafting Julian Wright (SF), Aaron Gray (C) and Bobby Brown (PG)

Interesting.


Stuckey The Surprise Of The Green Room List
25th June, 2007 - 12:30 pm

The following players will be available for interviews with the media on Wednesday and will be in the green room during the draft on Thursday:

· Corey Brewer (Florida)
· Michael Conley (Ohio St.)
· Kevin Durant (Texas)
· Jeff Green (Georgetown)
· Spencer Hawes (Washington)
· Al Horford (Florida)
· Yi Jianlian (China)
· Acie Law IV (Texas A&M)
· Joakim Noah (Florida)
· Greg Oden (Ohio St.)
· Rodney Stuckey (Eastern Washington)
· Al Thornton (Florida St.)
· Brandan Wright (North Carolina)
· Julian Wright (Kansas)
· Nick Young (USC)

In my mock I did today I have them drafting Julian Wright (SF), Aaron Gray (C) and Bobby Brown (PG)
I'm ok with that. I'm not so sure about Aaron Gray. From what I remember, he's a bit gumpy, but we do need a C. I'll need to do some more research on him, I haven't read anything about him in quite a while. I need a refresher.

Unfortunately besides Oden and Hawes I don't think there is much there at Center. Williams is a knucklehead, Gasol would be nice as well. He's not as agile as Paul, but looks like a solid player none the less.

Looks like we're in on Bellinelli, too


ITA - Clippers and Pistons head race for Bellinelli

ROME (NBA) - Italian basketball star Marco Belinelli is keeping his options open ahead of the NBA draft, but his handlers believe the Los Angeles Clippers and Detroit Pistons are the best placed franchises to sign him up.

Belinelli, 21, has already had try-outs with the Clippers and the Los Angeles Lakers, but plans others with the Phoenix Suns, Houston Rockets and the Utah Jazz before the draft on June 28.

His brothers Umberto and Enrico are acting as his advisers and Enrico told La Gazzetta dello Sport that he felt Detroit and the Clippers are the most interested outfits although he won't be able to control how the draft unfolds.

Enrico told the paper: "Detroit and the Clippers are the teams at the moment who have expressed the biggest interest.

"Others too have given us encouraging signals but these two seem to be the ones with the most serious intentions."

Tom Ross
FIBA

http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/lateNews/p/newsid/20126/arti.html

I'd have to think that is at #27 if we manage to get Hawes at #15 (or Law/Crittenton).

We'd better not take him at 15, fuck that.

Why would we draft a combo-guard then trade for a guy that plays the point? If we trade for Watson I want us to take a C or a swingman, not someone who will be getting minutes at SG and PG.
Use the MLE to get your swingman (Hill etc).
Backup to replace Rip that can defend and break down a defense... is not selfish (Stuckey)
Legit distributing PG that can defend (Watson)
Backup center that plays inside and is not a defensive stiff (Fesenko)
Get rid of Nazr's albatross contract and get a talent in return (Seattle has to make a move @ PG).

What's your plan?

If you just change Stuckey to someone else that can play SG and a bit of SF instead of SG and a bit of PG, I'm with you 110%. Someone like Nick Young would be perfect. Also, I thought Fesenko in the second was a legit possibility until I saw a few mocks with him in the first round this afternoon. He may slip to the second, but not the bottom of the second. I was disappointed when I saw that.

I take that back, I was thinking Fazekas, not Fesenko. My apologies.

I take that back, I was thinking Fazekas, not Fesenko. My apologies.

Fazekas is a PF, Fasenko a C.

I think I'd actually rather have Fasenko. He sounds like a monster in the paint where Fazekas is more of a Sheed/Lattener/Cliffy PF that floats on the peremiter.

AUBURN HILLS -- Pistons president Joe Dumars has made his feelings clear about the importance of this draft.

With the 15th pick Thursday, Dumars is looking to get a player who can step in and contribute -- next season.

"Like Joe has said over and over, we need to add youth and energy to our team," said John Hammond, vice president of basketball. "It can be at any position, on the perimeter or in the frontcourt. We are looking to get a player that will be capable of getting on the floor immediately. We are not looking at a project-type player with the 15th pick."

There are a couple of reasons why this draft is so critical for the Pistons. One, the average age of the team's core group is 30. Two, the Pistons have drafted two immediate impact players -- Mehmet Okur and Tayshaun Prince -- in the last 10 years.

"We are sitting in a good position," Dumars said via e-mail Monday. "We are looking to really upgrade our team through this draft, with youth, athleticism, energy, depth and toughness."

The Pistons have two picks in the first round -- 15 and 27 -- as well as the 57th pick. Dumars said he wasn't zeroed in on any particular positional need.

Typically, if the Pistons drafted a perimeter player at 15, they would most likely go for a front-court player at 27. This year, with the talent pool so deep, the Pistons likely would take the best available player at both spots, regardless of position.

And, if history holds, the Pistons will use the 57th pick to draft a European project, somebody they can hold the rights to without giving up a roster spot.

Dumars said 35 players will have worked out for the Pistons by Wednesday. Though no player has been asked to return for a second look, three players have stood out as prime candidates for the 15th spot.

Rodney Stuckey, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Eastern Washington, might have had the best workout from an offensive standpoint.

He shot well from the perimeter and showed NBA strength and quickness at both ends of the floor.

Stuckey was one of 15 players selected by the league to attend the draft in New York, an indication he might be selected before the Pistons pick. There have been reports Sacramento (10) and the Los Angeles Clippers (14) are interested in Stuckey.

The Pistons were also wowed by Nick Young, the 6-6, 200-pound swingman from Southern California. He has a great midrange game and deceptive explosiveness off the dribble.

The question about Young is his demeanor. He is a laid-back California kid, much in the mold of Tayshaun Prince. If the Pistons are looking for energy and exuberance, Young might not fit the bill.

Thaddeus Young, a 19-year-old, 6-8 forward from Georgia Tech, did not have a great workout for the Pistons, but he is intriguing nevertheless. He is a raw but gifted athlete.

He was inconsistent in his one season at Georgia Tech and his workouts have been just as erratic. But his upside is high enough that he probably won't fall much lower than 20.

The Pistons aren't looking to take on a project at No. 15, but if things fall badly for them early in the draft, he wouldn't be a bad fallback option.

The Pistons also liked what they saw of Jason Smith (7-0 power forward from Colorado State), Morris Almond (6-6 Richard Hamilton clone from Rice), Marco Belinelli (6-5 swingman from Italy) and Javaris Crittenton (6-5 point guard from Georgia Tech).

They will take a look at Al Thornton, a 6-8, 220-pound small forward from Florida State, today. He has been projected to go as high as No. 12 to Philadelphia.

"We are looking for talent and for a sense of urgency," Dumars said.

"We don't want guys who are underachievers. We don't want guys who have been coddled. We want guys with an edge, guys who have something to prove. That's what we're looking for (on Thursday)."


I think Thaddeus is out of the question which really makes me sad. However,if Nick Young falls to us I'll be very pleased.

NBA.com has no workouts for the Pistons which really makes me mad. I ended up finding this though.


Here are the 32 players the Pistons have worked out thus far. It includes Al Thornton, who was expected to work out today.


Mohammed Abukar, 6-foot-10, 229 pounds, power forward, San Diego State: A transfer from Florida, Abukar averaged 15.8 points and 5.8 rebounds for Steve Fisher's team last season. He is a perimeter big man whom the Pistons would consider with their second-round pick (57).


Morris Almond, 6-6, 215, shooting guard, Rice: Conference USA player of the year, averaging a conference record 26.4 points. Very much in the Richard Hamilton mode, a player who moves well without the ball. Pistons would consider him with their 27th overall pick.


Stanko Barac, 7-1, 240, center, Bosnia: Long-range project not likely to be drafted.


Marco Belinelli, 6-5, 192, shooting guard, Italy: Averaged 16 points and shot 54 percent last year. Heady player the Pistons would consider with 27th pick.


Bobby Brown, 6-1, 170, point guard, Cal State Fullerton : All-time leading scorer at Fullerton, averaging 20 points last season. Good shooter with range. Candidate for second-round pick.


Derrick Byars, 6-7, 220, forward, Vanderbilt: Versatile player, superb athleticism, excellent shooting range. Most likely a late first-round, early second-round candidate.


Ryvon Covile, 6-9, 250, power forward, Detroit Mercy: Aggressive, bruising front court enforcer with limited offensive skills. Projected late second round or free agent.


Javaris Crittenton, 6-5, 198, point guard, Georgia Tech: Considered one of the top five point guards in the draft. It would surprising if he fell to the Pistons at 15.


Jermareo Davidson, 6-10, 230, power forward, Alabama: A poor man's Antonio McDyess. Excellent length and leaping ability. Active on the offensive boards. Runs the floor, but his shooting proficiency is suspect. Late second round or free agent.


Glen Davis, 6-9, 289, power forward, Louisiana State: Undersized (length-wise) but active front-court player. Averaged 17.7 points and 10.4 rebounds last year. Mid to late first round.


Zabian Dowdell, 6-3, 200, point guard, Virginia Tech: Four-year starter. Can play both guard spots. Second-round candidate.


Zoran Erceg, 6-11, 196, forward, Serbia: Just 22, has limited experience in Adriatic League. Free-agent prospect.


Brandon Heath, 6-4, 198, guard, San Diego State: All-time leading scorer at SDSU and Mountain West Conference. Plays both guard positions. Adept at slashing and finishing at basket. Candidate for late first round, early second round.


Herbert Hill, 6-10, 240, forward-center, Providence: Old-school low-post player and superb shot blocker. Four-year player. Late second-round prospect.


Quinton Hosley, 6-6, 210, forward, Fresno State: Above average athleticism and length. Second-round prospect.


Trey Johnson, 6-5, 218, shooting guard, Jackson State: Threatened Lindsey Hunter's scoring records at Jackson State (he's also from Hunter's high school, Murrah). Second in the nation averaging 27 points last season. Complete scorer. Second-round prospect.


Jared Jordan, 6-2, 187, point guard, Marist: Twice led the nation in assists. Son of Michael Jordon (but not the Michael Jordan). Second-round prospect.


Sammy Mejia, 6-6, 195, shooting guard, DePaul: Good mid-range shooter who can play all three perimeter positions. Second-round prospect.


Gabe Pruitt, 6-4, 170, guard, Southern California: Another skinny kid from Compton, Calif., who can play. Streaky shooter, but active defender. Late first round, early second round.


Chris Richard, 6-9, 255, power forward, Florida: Gritty role player with the Gators, projected late second round or free agent.


Ramon Sessions, 6-3, 190, point guard, Nevada: Pass-first point guard with underdeveloped shooting skills. Second-round prospect.


Jason Smith, 7-0, 240, power forward, Colorado State: Active and smart with a better than average shooting touch (54.8-percent shooter over three seasons). Has a post game, as well as a perimeter game. Projected as high as 16.


Rodney Stuckey, 6-5, 205, guard, Eastern Washington: No promises were made, but the Pistons love his scoring ability. Best pure shooter to work out for the Pistons and a capable finisher at the basket. Very strong physically and a work horse at both ends. Best bet right now for No. 15 pick.


Al Thornton, 6-8, 220, forward, Florida State: Above average scorer. Confident from the perimeter (44 percent from beyond the arc last season) and even better at scoring off the dribble. Projected to go as high as No. 12.


Anthony Tolliver, 6-9, 245, power forward, Creighton: Played four years for Creighton. Free-agent prospect.


Ali Traore, 6-9, 240, forward, Ivory Coast (France): Wing span exceeds 7 feet, but a raw talent. Second-round prospect.


Darryl Watkins, 6-11, 258, center, Syracuse: Good rebounder, big body, no offensive game. Second-round prospect.


Marcus Williams, 6-7, 205, forward, Arizona: Offensive-minded player with diverse skills. Strength is an issue. Second-round prospect.


Dashaun Wood, 5-11, 180, guard, Wright State: From Detroit. Smart and unselfish offensive player. Second-round prospect.


Nick Young, 6-6, 200, swing player, Southern California: All-Pac-10 player has a great mid-range game. Pistons loved his workout, but is projected by most mock drafts to go before the Pistons pick at No. 15.


Thaddeus Young, 6-8, 220, forward, Georgia Tech: Very promising but young (19) player. Projected to go in the top 20, but the Pistons might not want to take on an unpolished player at 15.


Artem Zabelin, 7-0, 215, center, Russia: Raw, 19-year-old. Late second round at best.

Thanks Cross. There are actually a good number of foriegn projects to take in the 2nd round. Especially with the age limit pushing more players into this draft, some of the projects fall from late first/early 2nd to the end of the 2nd.

Two things:

1 - Mehmet Okur being drafted as ready to play? Did they forget we drafted him then left him overseas?

2 - What is a "heady" player? Does it mean he plays smart?

Yes, heady = smart.

I'd like immediate impact too, and I really hope one of the top 3 PGs falls to us at 15. If not, I like the Finnish one getting some buzz at 27. I don't think we can come out of the draft without a backup PG. To me, it's more important than a big man.

I love Joe's comment about avoiding "coddled" players.

Maybe he learned something from the Darko situation after all.

I love Joe's comment about avoiding "coddled" players.

Maybe he learned something from the Darko situation after all.

true, but wasn't Darko's thing before the draft "i played in a war torn country, where they'd kill you for missing a free throw"? i always thought that Darko's MO was that he had a mean streak coming from humble beginnings. this is all pre-draft of course.

who the fuck knew that he'd turn into a douche bag.

He got to America and got that first taste of a fat check and gave up his mean streak on the spot. I was honestly excited when we drafted him. Fuck....




:emo kid:

2. Will concerns about Al Thornton's wrist -- which may need surgery this summer -- cause him to drop?



Something to look into if we are looking to take a forward

I'm not saying the Thornton injury isn't legit, but this close to the draft, potentially serious injuries tend to pop up like wildfires. Other players' agents have a job to do, get their guy drafted as high as possible to the best fit for him, so if it takes a couple inflated injury stories, so be it, it seems.

As long as he falls to 27 ;)

The Hollinger article didn't bode well for him either BTW.

By his article we should be taking Stucky and Fazekas.

The Hollinger article didn't bode well for him either BTW.

By his article we should be taking Stucky and Fazekas.
If Stuckey can prove to be a decent backup at PG, then I'm happy with this.

Blakely


Pistons eye draftees who can compete for playing time

Wednesday, June 27, 2007
By A. Sherrod Blakely

AUBURN HILLS -- The only draft-day promises Joe Dumars is making have to do with the expectations he has for players the Detroit Pistons select in Thursday's NBA draft.

"We don't want guys who have underachieved," said Dumars, Detroit's president of basketball operations. "We don't want guys who have been coddled. We want guys coming with an edge, something to prove. Yeah, we're looking at them talent-wise, but we also want to know what's on their mind going forward."

With the No. 15 and No. 27 overall picks, there are several players the Pistons will consider drafting who meet that criteria.

Southern Cal's Nick Young is a 6-foot-6 guard/forward with an explosive first step to the basket, but he received little national attention while in college. Rice's 6-6 Morris Almond set several scoring records in Conference USA, but seemed to save his best performances (44 points versus Vanderbilt; 42 against versus Utah) for non-conference schools from major conferences last season.

Other players the Pistons will consider with their first-round picks include 6-5 point guard Javaris Crittenton of Georgia Tech, 6-5 combination guard Rodney Stuckey of Eastern Washington, 6-7 guard/forward Derrick Byars of Vanderbilt, 6-4 combo guard Gabe Pruitt of Cal, and 6-8 forward Thaddeus Young of Georgia Tech. Georgetown's 6-9 Jeff Green and Florida State's 6-8 Al Thornton are also targets, but both are expected to be gone when Detroit makes its selections.

As talented and deep as this draft may be, whoever the Pistons draft won't likely make an immediate impact on the veteran team. Still, Dumars recognizes the need for the Pistons to get younger sooner rather than later. It started last season with the increased role of second-year forward Jason Maxiell, who will likely be in the playing rotation next season. Dumars expects Amir Johnson to play more next season -- he is a restricted free agent who Dumars has said is the team's top priority after the Pistons re-sign Chauncey Billups.

"We gotta keep bringing in young blood," Dumars said. "Young blood, new blood, athleticism, all that stuff -- it's time for that influx to start having an impact on this team going forward."

After trading Carlos Delfino earlier this month to Toronto for a pair of future second-round picks, the Pistons have a void at backup small forward. However, Dumars contends he's open to drafting at any position.

"I think we're at a stage where we have to keep an open mind about going forward," Dumars said. "I don't think we can get so locked in, to where we're only looking at this position. That limits what you can do as a team going forward."

And after last season's playoff collapse in the Eastern Conference finals, Dumars is more focused than ever on keeping the Pistons among the NBA's elite teams.

Part of his plan includes drafting players who will provide a stiffer challenge for his starters than some of the recent reserves did.

Dumars realizes whoever he drafts in the middle or end of the first round won't immediately compete for a starting spot ahead of Billups, Tayshaun Prince, Richard Hamilton or Rasheed Wallace.

"What you do, you have to keep bringing in people that will challenge those guys," Dumars said. "You can't sit back and just have complacency set in. We're at that stage right now where there has to be more of a challenge for the guys who are going to remain here. You have to keep changing and bringing in new people. Otherwise, that complacency will continue to fester."

League executives believe Law could be the last draft-night invitee to leave Madison Square Garden's green room, possibly falling to the Miami Heat at No. 20. The Los Angeles Clippers are believed to have settled on Georgia Tech freshman Javaris Crittenton at No. 14, satisfying their need for a young point guard with Shaun Livingston's future uncertain. And sources say the Atlanta Hawks are unlikely to take Law at No. 11, even if they keep the pick, which reportedly would go to the Minnesota Timberwolves as part of the three-way Kevin Garnett trade involving the Phoenix Suns.



Do we pass? I don't think we should giving us the ability to take a 2/3 with the 27.