Very intriguing blog post by Dave Dial this morning. The Pistons signed their 2008 2nd round pick Deron Washington. Washington played in Israel last season. As yet another 6'7 small forward (didn't the Pistons draft three small forwards a few days ago?), Dave Dial postulates that this signing is the precursor to a trade.
Clearly, there's no reason for the Pistons to have five small forwards on their roster, so this guy will likely be on the move. The question is where? And for whom? The likely candidates would be Tyson Chandler or Boozer. Both guys will make over $12million this season. If Dumars ships Rip only, the salaries won't match - Rip will make a little under $11million.
My guess is that Utah would be extremely willing to part with Boozer. They were hoping he'd opt out anyway. And Rip would fit in quite well to their lineup. A starting lineup of Deron Williams, Rip, Kirilenko, Memo, and Millsap would be formidable. As for Chandler, New Orleans already tried to trade him once. I'm not sure why they don't like him. Perhaps his injury was more serious than originally thought? If he is healthy, he'd be a great pickup. He was entering his prime before the injury took him down, averaging 12pts/12boards in 07/08. The Pistons desperately need his defense and rebounding.
so, this is a rebuilding year, right? with all the trades and firings and signings, no ones expecting to make it to the playoffs, right? no one's expectations are too high, right?
ReplyDeleteI'd definitely say it's a rebuilding year. Nobody will expect them to compete with Boston, Cleveland, or Orlando. Yet, I bet most fans expect them to make the playoffs. They should eke out enough wins to earn the 7th or 8th seed.
ReplyDeleteOf course, many fans would prefer them to tank the whole year and enter the lottery. Unfortunately, that rarely works in the franchise's favor. The Pistons could "earn" the worst record and still end up with the 4th pick.