There isn’t a great deal of good news coming out of the Motor City these days. A horrendous level of criminal activity, large portions of the city completely abandoned, employment levels lower than Muggsy Bogues’ kneecaps, are all things commonly associated with the once great, unofficial Michigan capital. Perhaps Pistons general manager Joe Dumars, disgusted by his city’s downfall, chose to give his people something to believe in, to construct a beacon of hope that would shine down upon the weathered brows of Detroit’s weary inhabitants. Dumars would… No, must, put together a Pistons team that could serve as the magnificent ship for which their fans, like the mighty barnacle, could latch onto and set course for a new beginning.
More likely, he was just trying to save his job.
Joe Dumars traded for Ben Wallace, Rip Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace, signed Chauncey Billups, drafted Tayshaun Prince and won an NBA Championship. That year was 2004, almost ten years ago. The Pistons remained competitive for a few more years, they returned to the Finals and lost to the Spurs the following year, but were largely disappointing from that point on. Dumars bucked the trend of tanking and drafting and built a championship team through trades and free agency which never possessed a true star player. The Pistons were the epitome of the old adage that the sum was greater than it’s parts. To say that Dumars has made his share of puzzling moves since those days of greatness would be an understatement. After showing the correct restraint by choosing not to match Chicago’s gigantic 4 year, 60 million dollar contract offer for Ben wallace, Dumars years later opened the checkbook for two players not deserving of the contracts he would give them.
Before the 2009-2010 season Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon agreed to head to Detroit, and why wouldn’t they with the money being waved in their faces? Dumars spent almost 20 million dollars on two players who would become little more than rotation players. But who could have possibly seen it coming? Hmmm… Every other GM in the league maybe? More shocking than the actual players involved in the transaction, was the timing of the deal itself. Villanueva and Gordon were signed in the summer of 2009, that’s right, one year prior to the legendary 2010 free agency, you know the one that saw a couple of guys taking their talents down to South Beach. The Pistons had the salary cap space to hold off a season and roll the dice on a chance of signing a true franchise player, Dumars would be no fun in Vegas. Perhaps Dumars still undervalued players like Wade, Bosh and Anthony (requiring they wait a bit longer), since he chose Darko Milicic over all of them in 2003!
After years of obscurity and laying wait, the Pistons had developed a nice pair of big men in Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond, the pair coupled with his most recent transactions bring us to the team as presently constituted.
The Pistons were unwilling to part with either of their big men, as they should be for now, but made themselves players in the Eastern Conference by once again building a team via trades and free agency that still possesses no true star. The difference is this time they’re not contenders. In a relatively unexpected move, the Pistons dove headfirst into free agency and signed a player around whom there was much speculation as to where he would end up.
Josh Smith is an enigma. He averaged 17.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game last season, yet is either loved or hated by NBA fans with equal conviction. The Pistons signed Josh Smith to a four year 48 million dollar contract, it sounds like a lot of money for a player who will not be a go-to-guy in the clutch or an exemplary Playoff performer. Such is the NBA these days folks. Josh smith can not create his own shot, in fact if you’re a Pistons fan, pray that he doesn’t even attempt to, and his love of the three point shot is most assuredly one sided, however, if Smith is able to do what he does best, he will flourish in Motown. Let Smith crash the boards and go for put backs, feed him the ball on the fast break and he’ll be fine. Honestly the best way for Smith to succeed is to never give him the ball when he isn’t in motion, the moment he thinks about how he is going to score is the moment he should already be passing the ball, this responsibility relies on the point guard. Josh Smith is a good defender and if he is to play the bulk of his minutes at the small forward position (he should), Tylenol should then be handed out to the opposing teams small forwards approximately thirty minutes prior to tip off. Do these characteristics describe a player worthy of 14 million dollars a year, no, but again, such is the NBA these days, if you’re tall, you get paid.
Next they chose to bring back a familiar face. One can presume that Chauncey Billups will slide into the shooting guard position, a position it must be noted that he did not prefer playing with his most recent team, the Clippers. Never fear Pistons Fans, you won’t have to worry about Billups struggling with the off guard position this year because he’ll probably miss a large portion of the season with some sort of injury. The question is who will play the shooting guard for Detroit? Even if Billups is healthy, as a 16 year vet with a depleted skill set, he is not a viable option in a Playoff Rotation. Dumars has shown a propensity to bring back former Pistons, perhaps the Billups signing will at least garner some fan interest by harkening back to Detroit’s former glory days. Chauncey was at his best when playing point guard, so why wouldn’t he be the logical choice to handle the ball for the Pistons? Because Joe Dumars had a surprise up his sleeve.
Dumars made no secret of his desire to trade for Rajon Rondo of the Boston Celtics, but Rondo was never to be available unless Drummond or Monroe were in return. What were the Pistons to do? Should they hand over the reigns to Brandon Knight, give him the keys to the new car and see how the whole thing played out? Obviously Joe Dumars didn’t think so when he traded a package based around Knight for Bucks point guard Brandon Jennings in a sign and trade. Jennings should fit in just fine in Detroit.
Jennings averaged 17.5 points, 6.5 assists and 3 rebounds per game last season. Expect his assist totals to go up now that he has three finishers comprising his front court. Jennings is just on the cusp of breaking into the top ten point guards in the NBA, the most stacked position around the league. This should be a breakout year for him, the simple fact that he finally got out of Milwaukee should boost his efficiency rating at least 5 points a game. Despite their record or any Playoff appearances, the Bucks are the NBA’s least desirable destination. Now Jennings can call 8 mile home as he attempts to hoist another banner to the rafters, joining the Bad Boys of the 80s and the Not As Bad Boys of the 2004s. “Attempts” is the operative word here. The Pistons will be a significantly better team this season and will be a participant in the Playoffs. Unfortunately for Detroit, another NBA Championship, even a deep Playoff run, is not in their near future. The Heat, Pacers, Bulls and Nets will all still be better than the Pistons, and the Cavs and Knicks (get ready for that drop off) most likely will be too, and that’s just the East. So why do the deals, why make yourself good but not wait and hope to be great? This next draft is supposed to rival 2003’s, offering numerous franchise players that multiple teams are clamoring for. Why’d you do it to Auburn Hills Joe?
He wanted to keep his job.
Detroit, like much of the NBA’s cities not named Los Angeles, New York or Miami, is not a desirable free agent destination, therefore Dumars has shown for a second time that he prefers to better his team on the fly. In a time when it is widely agreed that if you aren’t a contender your best option is to tank, taking actions into your own hands could be viewed as a refreshing approach. However, barring a few occasions, the widely agreed upon approach is the correct one. Other than the 2004 Pistons and the 2008 Celtics (Garnett and Pierce are debatable), every recent team that has won an NBA title has had a top 5 player on it’s roster. Of course in order to draft a top prospect, you must first be a very bad team, a bad team with a bad record with a general manager who has captained the ship for multiple bad seasons in succession, usually ends in a former general manager looking for a job. The Pistons will be better, but at what cost? Most fans would trade a few years of relevance for a shot at a title, of course nothing is guaranteed with the draft lottery, but some times you just have to go with the odds.
The Pistons may not be done, Dumars has said he may at some point inquire about Rondo’s availability (must have been music to Brandon Jennings’ ears as he prepares to run the point for his new team). Detroit still has a few trade pieces that could be moved to bring in a true scorer, this is after all what the Pistons lack the most. They have defense for days, bring in a Jamal Crawford/JR Smith type player, a guy that turns his brain off, scores and does nothing else, and the Pistons become a very interesting team. Drummond and Monroe could continue to develop and become even better, thus changing the scope of the franchise. These are all intangibles and risks that Dumars has chosen to undertake, he has decided to gamble, he’s just playing a different game than most of his NBA peers. Who’s playing the right one, only time will tell, but when the NBA season begins in late October, the chips are down. Theres only one winner a year, it’s a high stakes game with no reward for mediocrity and certainly not for merely sitting at the big boy’s table.