Depth chart and needs going forward

[GSR121]

I feel the team is going to be competitive and exciting to watch as it is currently assembled. Joe has done a good job of upgrading the team with the tools he had available. The team has taken a HUGE step forward in regards to the future and I feel there will be more moves to come. That being said I still see the Pistons as a "work in progress". We have some pieces that do not "fit" and currently have a few too many guys. I have been reading everyone's posts about what we have and what we need, And here is my two cents worth on who I'd keep and what I think we need.

PG: Knight, Bynum, Billups, Stuckey (if needed)

SG: KCP, Stuckey, Billups, Singler (if needed)

SF: Smith, Datome, Singler, Middleton

PF: Monroe, Smith, CV, Mitchell, Jerebko

C: Drummond, Monroe, Slava

I see Siva getting cut/ sent to the D league/ Europe unless a trade is made. I would try to trade Stuckey and Jerebko if I could. CV would also be available but I feel that for the first time since he came here he may serve a useful purpose. His ability to stretch the floor could come in handy so moving him is not as much a priority. Stuckey needs to go. He is a cancer in the locker room and his skill set does not fit the team. Jerebko is a good guy that just does not fit any longer.

The thing that worries me the most is depth at center. If either Monroe or Drummond get hurt for any length of time ( a week or more) we have problems. Slava is good for brief periods but if he has to play extended minuets we are screwed. Even in the short term (a week or less) and either Greg or Andre, who ever is left, would have to play a ton of minuets. And if that guy gets into foul trouble who rests Slava? CV? Mitchell? I think we need to pick up one more center. It does not have to be a stud, just someone as insurance.

Free agent candidates:

Brandon Wright
B.J. Mullens
Timofey Mozgov
Hamed Haddadi
Henry Sims

Trade candidates:
Robin Lopez (POR)
Marcin Gortat (PHX)
Emeka Okafor (WAS)

[dan2314]

woah. those names are disgusting. ive been saying that we need another center since the first day of FA, but i think the ship has sailed now. i dont want anything to do with any of those players, and we already have 16 players.. unless we make another move, we arent signing another new name. there is still several months to make another move though.

[cedric76]

U r in great shape guys

Sent from my HTC One using RealGM Forums mobile app

[Piston Pete]

I would definitely look into Wright or Mullens (the only shooter of the bigs)....but to add either one of them will require more moves to be made by Dumars.

[rmfc]

U r in great shape guys

Sent from my HTC One using RealGM Forums mobile app

Yes.

[zeebneeb]

We need a PG, and a SG. Both of wich we have, but are young, or rookies. Mid way through the season, we will know how that turns out. I don't want to trade Monroe, as he is a legit threat on the block, and pairs nicely with Drumstick. No way in hell.

I want to see the team AS IS, before we trade out anyone right now.

[DetroitDon15]

I think a wing scorer is still needed. We have a lot of depth guys. I know Point Guard is a huge need but we have too many on the roster now. Not much we can do at this moment I guess.

[Alexander]

Our SG position is weak. We are likely to play 37 year old Billups out of position, start a rookie in KCP, or give significant minutes to the biggest jackass on the team in Stuckey. I'd be happier giving Datome and Singler (again) a shot at the starting open roster-wide SG competition.

I would spend the entire season searching for the two for one trade partner that could net me a SG for Stuckey and Villanueva.

[princeofpalace]

In order to be a successful team we IMO need a point guard who can set up his man and spread the floor. We also need a starting caliber SG that can play solid D and spread the floor. Stuckey is not that guy. This is the blueprint that Id like to follow;

Pass and 3/Bynum/Billups
3 and D/KCP/Middleton
Smith/Shooter/Shooter
Monroe/Smith/Stretch 4
Drummond/Monroe/Slava

Obviously guys like Knight, Stuckey, Jerebko and Singler don’t really fit with that template so those are the guys Id look to move.

1)      Trade Knight/Jerebko to Toronto for Lowry/2nd Why for us? We need a PG who can set up his man and spread the floor- Lowry fits that bill. Why for the Raps? Uriji is looking to rebuild and gets a young cheap PG in Knight and a solid backup F in Jerebko.

2)      Trade Rodney Stuckey to Boston for Courtney Lee/Jordan Crawford- Why for us? We need a wing to spread the floor. Why for Boston? They need to clear salary.

3)      Trade Kyle Singler for a 2014 and 2015 second rounder. Singler is a productive player- he’s just not a great fit. We should move him for a pair of second rounders

4)      Sign Austin Daye for the minimum to spread the floor in 15 mpg.
 
Lowry/Bynum/Billups/Siva
Lee/KCP/Middleton
Smith/Luigi/Daye
Monroe/Smith/Charlie V/Mitchell
Drummond/Monroe/Slava

This is a playoff team with ample shooting (Daye, Luigi, Charlie V, Billups, Lee, Lowry, KCP, Middleton) to spread the floor, with very good defenders (Lowry, Lee, Smith, Drummond) and versatility. We have the pieces to fill in our holes and I think that by the end of the offseason Joe D will have made the necessary moves to acquire the pieces that we need.

[Alexander]

...you really want to see Austin Daye clap his hands together in frustration fifteen minutes a night?

[princeofpalace]

...you really want to see Austin Daye clap his hands together in frustration fifteen minutes a night?

We need shooters, when a guy is a 41% shooter from deep and you can get him for peanuts to be a 3rd stringer, you do it.

[Brapman]

Because the team is so young, I think we should be looking at what our team will look like going forward into middle of the season after this one.

For now, we have to assume that the roster will stay the same - although we know that it's highly likely that Stuckey and CV won't be on the team, and that we'll have added a nice young piece to our roster plus a veteran cap slug when we move those two guys.

The immediate key to becoming a contending team is for Knight to take major steps up and to become one of the good PG's in the league. If that happens, then a developing KCP/Knight backcourt would be outstanding. KCP I think will prove to be an outstanding all-around SG.

Picture a roster with a much more offensively skilled Drummond, with Smith and Monroe totally dominating the boards - most of Smith's minutes at PF when one of the other two guys is on the bench resting - but having two of those three guys in virtually all the time. Teams will very much want to throw as many bodies into the paint as they can to stop us dominating the offensive boards. But then we'll have three fantastic 3pt shooters in at both guards and with Datome at SF.

On defense, we're setting ourselves up to be an elite defensive team. Knight, KCP, Smith, Drummond - these are all potentially dominant defenders, as is Mitchell.

Shooters like crazy: Knight, KCP, Billups, Datome, CV (this year), Singler, Middleton

All of our guys are unselfish players and very willing passers, and our big men are fantastic passers for their positions.

To me, the key unknown is how Knight develops at PG. My best guess right now is that he's going to get it and breakthrough big time.

[pistontr]

PG: Billups(15) Knight and/or Bynum (33)

SG: Stuckey(22) KCP(18), Billups(8)

SF: Smith (15), Singler(20), Middleton and/or Datome(13)

PF: Monroe(15), Smith(20), Mitchell and/or Jerebko(13)

C: Drummond (28), Monroe(20)

[GSR121]

I understand that we need a upgrade at PG and that our SG's are either young (KCP) or suck (Stuckey), but I think we have enough depth at the position to wait and see if KCP is good enough to be the future at that position. I still feel we need to add depth at center. We have three guys capable of playing that spot if we loose one due to injury for any length of time we will be in a bad spot. While two guys can man the position in the short term, if one gets into foul trouble it becomes a very tough situation. Centers get tired faster than any other position. Asking any one of them to play 40+ min. on a consistent basis would be asking for trouble. As i see it we have four players capable of playing PG Knight, Stuckey, Billups, and Bynum. Six players that can play SG Knight, Billups, Stuckey, KCP, Middleton, and Singler. At SF we have Five guys Smith, Middleton, Singler, Datome, and Jerebko. Five at PF Smith, Monroe, Jerebko, CV, and Mitchell. But at Center we have only three Monroe, Drummond, and Slava. At any position except center we could loose one or two guys and still be OK, at center, if we loose one we have issues.

[JR Hawks]

So what is the goal for the 2013-14 Pistons?

[RTM]

Assuming no other moves are made, here's how I would slot the lineup:

Knight (30) / Billups (10) / Bynum (8)
Billups (10) / KCP (22) / Stuckey (16)
Smith (12) / Gigi (18) / Singler (18)
Monroe (14) / Smith (22) / Villanueva (12)
Drummond (28) / Monroe (20)

That's an 11 man rotation. Staggering minutes will be important, as certain combos should see the floor more than others - for example:

- Smith/Monroe should spend as much time on the floor together at PF/C as they can
- CV should only play when Andre is on the floor, and Bynum should only play when both are on the floor
- When we do play Smith/Monroe/Drummond, Stuckey should never be on the floor
- Don't give Smith the bulk of his minutes at SF, and allow for Gigi/Singler/Jonas/Khris to compete for that time
- Knight should play with two of Billups, Monroe, and Smith whenever possible to help ease his playmaking burden

We have big deficiencies when it comes to playmaking and outside shooting/spacing, so we have to be careful not to do anything stupid, like play Bynum/Stuckey/Smith/Monroe/Drummond.

[treefi]

Assuming no other moves are made, here's how I would slot the lineup:

Knight (30) / Billups (10) / Bynum (8)
Billups (10) / KCP (22) / Stuckey (16)
Smith (12) / Gigi (18) / Singler (18)
Monroe (14) / Smith (22) / Villanueva (12)
Drummond (28) / Monroe (20)

That's an 11 man rotation. Staggering minutes will be important, as certain combos should see the floor more than others - for example:

- Smith/Monroe should spend as much time on the floor together at PF/C as they can
- CV should only play when Andre is on the floor, and Bynum should only play when both are on the floor
- When we do play Smith/Monroe/Drummond, Stuckey should never be on the floor
- Don't give Smith the bulk of his minutes at SF, and allow for Gigi/Singler/Jonas/Khris to compete for that time
- Knight should play with two of Billups, Monroe, and Smith whenever possible to help ease his playmaking burden

We have big deficiencies when it comes to playmaking and outside shooting/spacing, so we have to be careful not to do anything stupid, like play Bynum/Stuckey/Smith/Monroe/Drummond.

Good post!

[jaredtyshaf]

I don't understand how people can think that Moose, Dre and Smoove are only going to be on the court for 12-15mpg together. Those are by far our best 3 players and they will be on the court atleast 20-24mpg together.

My prediction/hopes on minute break down.

PG: Billups (30) - Knight (12) - Bynum (6)
SG: Knight (24) - KCP (24)
SF: Smith (24) - Singler/Gigi (24)
PF: Monroe (24) - Smith (12) - Mitchell (12)
C: Dre (30) - Monroe (12) - Krav (6)

You could cut Bynum and Krav out of the rotation and give Dre and Billups 36mpg if they can handle it.

[pistontr]

I don't understand how people can think that Moose, Dre and Smoove are only going to be on the court for 12-15mpg together. Those are by far our best 3 players and they will be on the court atleast 20-24mpg together.

My prediction/hopes on minute break down.

PG: Billups (30) - Knight (12) - Bynum (6)
SG: Knight (24) - KCP (24)
SF: Smith (24) - Singler/Gigi (24)
PF: Monroe (24) - Smith (12) - Mitchell (12)
C: Dre (30) - Monroe (12) - Krav (6)

You could cut Bynum and Krav out of the rotation and give Dre and Billups 36mpg if they can handle it.

because it does not work

[Q00]

This is more a longterm view, but if we trade Monroe for Rondo and no longer need to give Monroe a max deal next year, we might have enough money to go after Carmelo in free agency instead. With Chauncey here we would have the recruiting power, and with a core of Drummond, Smith, and Rondo we'd have the talent to attract him, as well as a need at his position. Also, Sheed would help in the recruiting having played with him last year in a NY. It would probably take dumping some of our smaller contracts like Knight, Jerebko, Singler, Bynum, etc to total up the space to make him a max offer, but that should be doable and if we can come away with a starting lineup of Rondo/KCP/Carmelo/Smith/Drummond, and then fill out our bench with minimum contracts I'd take that any day over keeping Moose/Knight + role players (Jerebko/Singler/Bynum). I think most assumed this was our one summer to hit big in FA, but we may have max money to spend next year as well. The Smith signing may be just the beginning.