The more things change, the more they stay exactly the same with nary a change made at all. For all of the bluster emanating from the Pistons front offices after their Playoff ouster about big trades and whatnot, this team looks remarkably like the one that came up short just four months ago against Boston. Despite proclaiming that all of the top talent was available for the right price, each piece of that top talent remains with the Pistons to this day. Call it the 'Ben Wallace Effect'. It could be what undoes this entire Piston team.
Basically, the thinking goes like this: when Ben Wallace left the Pistons for Chicago two summers ago it was made abundantly clear, by Wallace, that much of his success could be attributed to the meticulously-conceived environment in which he previously played. Wallace, like most of the Pistons roster, was an ideal fit in a system that lacked any truly dominant players. They excelled as a unit where they probably wouldn't as individuals - at least not to the level with which they had in Detroit.
So this summer, when Joe Dumars put his A-level talent up for sale, most teams looked on with apprehension. While each player fits the Detroit system like a glove, no one can say for certain that said success could be mirrored in their town. And even if they were willing to roll the dice with the thought that perhaps these guys are actually kept down by the team-first system in Detroit rather than propped-up by it, it would be difficult for even the most aggressive of teams to match the demands of Dumars and co.
That being the case, the summer rolled on with nary more than an unsubstantiated rumor or two, be it for Carmelo Anthony or Tracy McGrady. They are the kind of rumors that don't even deserve much mentioning beyond the fact that they amounted to the bulk of the roster talk for the entire summer. Outside of the team adding Kwame Brown to its frontline and losing Theo Ratliff, the roster that is fielded this October will be essentially the same one that was ousted and decried last May.
The hope for better fortunes, then, rests on the shoulders of first-time head coach Michael Curry. A defensive-specialist during his playing days, Curry is now tasked with doing what Flip Saunders and Rick Carlisle could not, and that is get the Pistons to the NBA Finals. It's an incredibly daunting task, and the margin for error is slim. For most head coaches new to a team they are being asked to get their new squad into the Playoffs or out of the first round. For a first-time head coach to be brought in to make it to the NBA Finals is audacious, especially in a Conference with Boston defending its title. It's not that it cannot be done, but to say that it would be a mighty feat would be an understatement. Still, Avery Johnson was able to get the Mavericks there with only a season-and-a-half under his belt. Johnson, though, had an MVP-caliber Dirk Nowitzki. The Pistons have several All-Stars, but at this point they lack that true knockout punch, a factor in their losses to the Celtics, Cavs and Heat in recent Conference Finals appearances.
The line offered by Pistons management is that the improvement of the young guys on the team should be enough to bolster the roster and get them over the hump. Perhaps that's true. But if he's talking about young guys helping this team get over the hump, then he is implying that there is an impact player on the bench to be found. And if he's implying that, then the only player he could be talking about is second-year combo guard Rodney Stuckey. Stucky filled in admirably last year when starter Chauncey Billups went down with an injury, and his stock in NBA circles is high after being asked to participate on the USA Select Team, a group being assembled as a testing ground for future Team USA participants. While he still exists under the banner of 'potential' until he actually becomes an impact player, his ascension could hasten the trade of Billups or Rip Hamilton for a lower price. Of course, suggesting that a still-in-development sophomore is going to unseat multiple-time All-Stars is thoroughly premature. For now he should be watched with a curious eye as he tries to avoid the dreaded 'Sophomore Slump'.
As for the Pistons, they are just going to look to avoid a slump, altogether. Their string of appearances in the Conference Finals (six) is very impressive, but it won't amount to much in the history books. Right now they are a team that won one title as David to the Lakers Goliath and lost a nail-biter series a year later to the Spurs. They are eager to get back to the big stage with their formidable core still intact. Another Conference Finals appearance looks probable at this point, but they are going to have to find a way to deliver a more decisive punch to their opponents. Their stumbling against Philadelphia last season in the first round exposed a team that was cocky and unfocused. They have to get back to playing the underdog role if they have any hope of regaining their concentration and achieving their Championship goals.
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUP
PG - Chauncey Billups
Because of Stuckey's emergence last season, many felt that Billups' time with this team was at an end. Of all the people on this roster, Billups seemed the most likely to thrive in another system as well as bring with him a sensible contract that might be able to get the Pistons something nice in return. However, Billups is still a Piston, and that's probably a good thing. This team has had such success together as a unit that any GM would want to be 100% sure that it was time to break them up. This isn't some team clinging to a faded glory as they struggle to make the Playoffs each year. This is a team usually one or two wins out of the NBA Finals each and every season, and Billups is the engine behind that attack. He is a superb all-around player and at this point in his development Stuckey would be unable to match his output. This arrangement makes the most sense until Stuckey proves he's ready for the promotion.
SG - Richard Hamilton
Hamilton is the kind of player that a lot of other, more heralded two-guards, should look to be…or at least the coaches of those players should encourage them to be. Hamilton is a skilled offensive weapon that knows how to maximize his abilities and stay away from his deficiencies. Instead of taking the ball at opponents and trying to create something out of nothing (a skill far fewer NBA players have than they think), he works within the team offense to get open looks off of screens or kick-outs. Could he score more points or be the focal point of another team's offense? Perhaps. But Detroit would be hard-pressed to find another player with Hamilton's scoring punch that would be willing to play such a blend role within the team.
SF - Tayshaun Prince
Prince the Olympian. Prince the Gold Medalist. Never an All-Star, rarely hailed in the press and often the forgotten as the Piston that made drafting Carmelo Anthony 'unnecessary', Prince finally got some much-deserved attention this summer. Sure he might have been a ninth or tenth guy off of the bench on a star-studded team, but his presence not only on the team but on the floor proved the indefinable impact Prince has on any roster he plays on. No coach can keep him off of the floor (except perhaps Rick Carlisle, a decision which cost him his job). He was probably considered to be the least expendable starter in trade talks this summer and count on another season of him proving why with no one noticing.
PF - Antonio McDyess
There are some who feel this spot should go to one of the young guns like Jason Maxiell, but right now the young bigs on the Pistons are far too raw to open up the game with and the provide a better punch of energy off of the bench, anyway. McDyess was unsure of how his body would hold up after becoming a permanent starter in this system, but his minutes were tightly controlled (he played only 29 minutes per game) and his production remained consistent. While the team would probably welcome a scenario that would allow them to bring their savvy vet off of the bench again, for right now he is their most logical starter at this spot and the team will invite the internal competition to knock him out of it.
C - Rasheed Wallace
Rasheed was probably the next-most likely player to be traded this summer. He remains a formidable talent in the NBA and the thinking went that there were a handful of teams on the cusp of contention that could use a unique talent like him to put them over the top - like Detroit did in 2004. He also represents a contract that expires at the end of this season, which will kick nearly $13 million off of someone's books if not Detroit's. Wallace has a few good years left in that body of his and he may be an attractive free agent next summer since his temper problems of his Portland days are far less frequent. The thought of losing Wallace without compensation next summer may provoke a trade at the deadline, but the thought of having that kind of money come off of your books could provoke the team to just let him expire and go shopping for their new-look next year if they once again fall short of their intended goal.