| The Flip Side Authored by Curtis A. Clark - October 19, 2005 - 7:47 pm
Life on the Flip side has been good so far for the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons, 3 and 1 in the pre-season, have shown all the signs fans could ask to be prepared for another deep playoff run. Joe Dumars appears to be, once again, on his path to validation in a tough front office decision. Make no mistake this was a hard off season for Joe D, but as usual Joe has produced despite skepticism.
Replacing a Hall of Famer is never easy. However Flip Saunders appears to be seamlessly integrating his philosophy with what has already been established in his players. He has gotten the most out of Rasheed Wallace in 4 pre-season games, created more offensive motion, and freed up Chauncey Billups to launch long range bombs without sacrificing ball distribution. Saunders is yet to show his toy zone, but understand he wont stray very often from the tough man to man the Pistons prefer.
Saunders has also boosted the production and confidence of his young bench. Carlos Arroyo is free to create as he deems fit, Carlos Delphino is healthy and looking very able, and Darko Milicic has shown more talent in 4 preseason games than in 2 season under Larry Brown. In fact Saunders is quickly making Detroiter forget Larry Brown’s 2 year term. There may be no bigger shoes than LB’s to fill in the NBA, but Saunders is doing what he has to do to fit in with his inherited team. He is staying with what works and fixing what hasn‘t.
Dumars also made a splash by extending Darko Milicic’s contract 2 more years with a team option. A move some deemed surprising with trade rumors that swirled around Milicic this summer. Joe however made it clear that Darko is here to stay and here to play. Saunders has echoed that point as well. Sticking with the security of stating Darko will need to earn playing time, still though Saunders has to be excited about Darko’s excellent preseason. Something that fans cannot stop buzzing about. As one die hard Pistons fan put it to me, “ I live for Darko”.
So what about Milicic?
Well Darko has Contributed in points, rebounds, and blocks (leading the league after 4 games with 14) in each preseason game. Against the Timberwolves he produced a 10 point, 5 rebound, 6 block effort. Most impressive though was his ability to bounce back from early first half foul trouble to finish with just 3 fouls in roughly 20 minutes. Something Darko has not been able to do in his limited NBA experience.
Darko’s confidence, aggression, and personality have all grown leaps and bounds in the first few games. His biggest cheerleaders, Chauncey Billups and Rasheed Wallace, are smiling ear to ear as they watch their young prodigy challenge shots and call for the ball. Darko has even been seen smiling and taking post game interviews in English without a translator.
A point also can also be made for Saunders impact on Dos Los, Carlos Delphino and Carlos Arroyo.
Delphino had a rough first year marred with injury and a questionable recovery period. A fresh start has him showing why he was considered a draft day steal. The Pistons early exit in the Michael Finley sweepstakes makes Delpino’s development key to adding a playmaker to their previously one dimensional bench. In fact Saunders rated Delphino Detroit’s top player at creating his own shot.
Arroyo has also bounced back in Flips motion system, causing fans to forget his rough 2005 playoffs. Even though he will contend with Lindsey Hunter for backups point duties, Arroyo has to be happier under Saunders than Brown. Arroyo as well will be needed to improve the horrendous production of last seasons bench scoring. His up tempo nature works well with Flip’s plan to run more this season.
Life on the Flip side it good for another reason, the lack of press. Specifically drama. Strange, but after the media firestorm of hurricane Larry most players welcome the return to relative obscurity. At least as much as any back to back finals teams can expect. Still though Flip hasn’t made a roster spot for drama on his team. Roster spots are becoming a big enough problem as it is.
Even though veterans Darvin Ham and Eldon Campbell are gone, the Pistons are at a dilemma to flesh out their roster. Rookies Maxiell, Acker, and Amir Johnson were all expected to make the roster this season. But strong play from Ronald Dupree has the Pistons looking at 16 men on the pine. The problem is they can only have 15.
Sending obvious candidate Amir Johnson to the NBDL is not an option to the front office. They believes they have a responsibility to keep the 18 year old with the team to help him adjust to his new life.
Jason Maxiell, the Pistons 1st round pick, has played to well in his summer league and limited preseason time to be kept off the roster. His size makes him invaluable long term.
Alex Acker may have been the Pistons best player this summer league and the uncertainty surrounding Lindsey Hunter makes his PG skills a useful commodity. Though a more viable NBDL candidate than the other 2 rookies, Acker has a very good chance of remaining on the roster.
Lastly Ronald Dupree has played better than all three rookies in the preseason. He has NBA and playoff experience, is familiar to the Pistons, their fans, and really embodies the Pistons in hustle and defense. Unfortunately Dupree plays the one position the Pistons are loaded at. He also has the best chance of landing on another teams roster. Still it is hard to cut the best player because of circumstance.
It’s anyone’s guess how the final roster will look, but suffice to say it wont be an easy decision for Joe and Flip.
Aside from the problem of having to many players on the roster the Pistons are looking very competitive this preseason. Better than last year? It may to early to tell. The 04/05 Pistons had a tough start but a great finish. But optimism is in the air, the 05/06 Pistons look to be the toughest yet, and they will need it in the new dominate East.
Curtis A. Clark
Resident Detroit Sports Resident Writer for Realgm.com
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