Josh Smith has the chance to become the face of a revamped, historic franchise.
Mo-town? More like Mo-talent-town now (okay, bad joke). Detroit gained a ton of talent, but at what cost? The players that they’ve gained are not without character doubts and motivation questions, however the game of pros versus cons could end up being a one-sided affair for the positives gained by these acquisitions.
Free Agency
I suppose we should out the 6’9″ white elephant in the room to start. Josh Smith comes to a Detroit team that looks very different than the team that was here a year ago. He’s an All-Star caliber forward that is extremely versatile and can do a bit of everything (except shoot three-pointers unfortunately). At 27, his game may not have peaked just yet. Given a completely different roster and a new start, this could be his best year. On the contrary, the pressure of taking Detroit back to the playoffs could prove too overwhelming for a player that many consider to have diva-like qualities.
Joining Smith in Detroit via free agency are former Finals MVP Chauncey Billups, returning to the team he took to the Finals, and Luigi Datome, a 6’9″ small forward that’s considered to be one of the premier shooters in Europe. For Billups, this is an interesting position to be in. He is now in a very crowded backup, with Rodney Stuckey, Will Bynum, and newcomers Brandon Jennings and Peyton Siva. Clearly Billups is here to be a veteran presence on this team, but he can also be a starter immediately at shooting guard. Datome provides depth on the bench and some needed long-range shooting capabilities to a team that finished in the bottom half of the league in 3-point % as well as 3-pointers made.
The losses were not as great as the gains. Jose Calderon walked away in free agency, as well as Jason Maxiell and Corey Maggette. Maxiell is probably the only one I would have considered bringing back, simply due to depth. Josh Harrellson is the only backup center, but Charlie Villanueva/Jonas Jerebko are backing up Greg Monroe at PF and rookie Tony Mitchell could have a good amount of potential. Overall, this team has a young, stacked frontcourt in Monroe, Andre Drummond, and Smith and two talented ball handlers in Billups and Jennings.
Free Agency Grade B+
Trade
The trade that made this team into a legit playoff contender (in my opinion) was when the Milwaukee Bucks sent Brandon Jennings to the Pistons in exchange for Kris Middleton, Brandon Knight, and Slava Kravtsov. Jennings has better potential than all three of these players combined, so this was definitely a win for the Pistons. Under Billups’ leadership, Jennings could finally develop into the more efficient point guard that he is capable of becoming. With a matured Jennings on the roster, the Pistons can be setup nicely for the foreseeable future. However, Jennings’ sporadic shooting ability and score-first mentality could very well cause him to implode upon himself by February, leaving all of us speculating whether Brandon Knight needed just one more season to become a legit point guard. Here’s to hoping that doesn’t happen.
Trade Grade B
Draft
The Pistons were busy on draft night. In the end, they had three new players donning Detroit caps on stage in New York this year: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Tony Mitchell, and Peyton Siva. The latter of the three is a very intriguing pick; Siva is essentially Louisville’s championship team hero and a great leader, however he’s far from the prototypical NBA point guard. Caldwell-Pope is a talented shooter that can really make a Rookie of the Year candidate case if he usurps the backup SG role ahead of Rodney Stuckey. He can easily become the team’s starting SG in a year or two when Billups is ready to step down. Tony Mitchell is a great pick and should be able to contribute off the bench as soon as some space clears up down low. At 6’8″, he’s a good inside presence, but he can’t compare in size to the twin towers in Monroe and Drummond down low. Regardless, he plays hard and put up great numbers in college. Expect him to be a valuable bench contributor by next season most likely. Overall, none of the draft picks fit an immediate need aside from depth, which speaks volumes to the current roster that Joe Dumars’ front office staff has put together.
Draft Grade C+
Summary
The Pistons may have the biggest turnaround of any team this upcoming season, or they could be one of the most talented lottery team in the 2014 NBA Draft. The starting five is a squad that can definitely land a 7th seed in the East, and the bench that was put together is underrated and could provide meaningful production. Possibly the most important move this offseason was the acquisition of Maurice Cheeks as coach. The front office believes that Cheeks is their guy that can lead this team to a new standard in comparison to recent Detroit teams, however he’ll have to stay out of the spotlight with personal issues outside of basketball. Barring off the court issues, he’s definitely got a chance to lead the Pistons back to the promised land. Overall, the Pistons spent their money well and are looking at a completely different outlook than they were 6 months ago.
Overall Off-season Grade B
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