Introduction
Detroit Pistons
2003 NBA Draft
GM: Curtis Hill, NBA Disaster Consultant
Wow. For the first time in a while I get to work with a team that is a
whole lot closer to a NBA title than the first spot in the lottery. I
do feel badly that Jerry West was oh-so-close to a dream come true, but
Detroit fans have to be happy that the stars might align in the next year
or two in such a way that the Pistons might be called "NBA Champions" again.
While the #2 pick for the Pistons isn't much of a challenge this year, this
will be a very active and important off season for the Pistons. There is
going to be several roster moves and the picks at #25 and #58 are likely not
to be throwaways.
Detroit started making waves pre-draft, firing Rick Carlisle in favor of
Larry Brown. While it was a tough move, getting the Hall of Famer is going
to be a good move for the Pistons. He's a great teacher, works well with
younger players, and is hungry for his first NBA Championship.
Detroit needs a quality inside player and some help at backup guard and
wing. With picks at #2, #25, and #58, they have a good chance of filling
two of those needs.
Current Team Roster/Status
2002-03 Roster
No Name Po Ht Wt DOB College
7 Atkins, Chucky G 5-11 160 8/14/74 South Florida
20 Barry, Jon G 6-5 210 7/25/69 Georgia Tech
1 Billups, Chauncey G 6-3 202 9/25/76 Colorado
12 Curry, Michael G 6-5 227 8/22/68 Georgia Southern
24 Davis, Hubert G 6-5 183 5/13970 North Carolina
32 Hamilton, Richard G/F 6-7 193 2/14/78 Connecticut
5 Manning, Danny F 6-10 241 5/17/66 Kansas
31 Okur, Mehmet C 6-11 249 5/26/79 Turkey
22 Prince, Tayshaun F 6-9 215 2/28/80 Kentucky
39 Rebraca, Zeljko C 7-0 257 4/9/72 Serbia-Montenegro
52 Reid, Don F 6-8 255 12/30/73 Georgetown
30 Robinson, Clifford F 6-10 225 12/16/66 Connecticut
14 Sanchez, Pepe G 6-4 195 5/8/77 Temple
3 Wallace, Ben F 6-9 240 9/10/74 Virginia Union
35 Williamson, Corliss F 6-5 245 12/4/73 Arkansas
2002-03 Detroit Pistons Stats
Player G GS MPG PPG RPG APG FGPT FTPT TPPT PF TO DQ HI
HAMILTON 82 82 32.2 19.7 3.9 2.5 0.443 0.833 0.269 249 200 1 34
BILLUPS 74 74 31.5 16.2 3.7 3.9 0.421 0.878 0.392 136 134 1 33
ROBINSON 81 69 34.9 12.2 3.9 3.3 0.398 0.676 0.336 258 158 4 25
WILLIAMSON 82 1 25.1 12 4.4 1.3 0.453 0.79 0.2 238 126 0 22
ATKINS 65 7 21.5 7.1 1.5 2.7 0.361 0.816 0.355 108 77 0 21
BARRY 80 0 18.4 6.9 2.2 2.6 0.45 0.86 0.407 104 81 0 19
WALLACE 73 73 39.3 6.9 15.4 1.6 0.481 0.45 0.167 178 87 0 17
OKUR 72 9 19 6.9 4.7 1 0.426 0.733 0.343 167 66 0 22
REBRACA 30 12 16.3 6.6 3.1 0.3 0.552 0.792 0 79 29 0 21
PRINCE 42 5 10.4 3.3 1.1 0.6 0.449 0.647 0.435 25 21 0 13
CURRY 78 77 19.9 3 1.6 1.3 0.402 0.8 0.296 163 43 0 11
MANNING 13 0 6.8 2.6 1.4 0.5 0.406 0.833 0.375 11 7 0 18
DAVIS 43 1 7.6 1.8 0.8 0.7 0.392 0.833 0.333 23 11 0 11
REID 1 0 10 1 0 0 0 0.5 0 4 0 0 1
SANCHEZ 9 0 4.1 0 0.7 0.9 0 0 0 3 2 0 0
Total - - 24.1 9.1 4 2 0.43 0.771 0.359 1746 1042 6 -
Opponent - - 24.3 8.8 4.1 1.8 0.438 0.746 0.346 1902 1098 9 -
Player MIN PTS FGM-FGA FTM-FTA TPM-TPA ORB DRB TRB AST STL BLK
HAMILTON 2639 1612 570-1286 440-528 32-119 88 230 318 208 64 13
BILLUPS 2328 1199 366-870 318-362 149-380 38 235 273 287 63 15
ROBINSON 2824 992 372-935 161-238 87-259 81 237 318 268 87 95
WILLIAMSON 2061 987 374-826 237-300 2-10 147 211 358 104 44 25
ATKINS 1398 462 168-465 40-49 86-242 21 75 96 175 27 4
BARRY 1473 555 191-424 86-100 85-209 33 147 180 206 63 14
WALLACE 2872 506 210-437 85-189 1-6 293 833 1126 120 104 230
OKUR 1367 494 180-423 96-131 37-108 117 218 335 71 25 39
REBRACA 488 198 80-145 38-48 0-0 27 65 92 9 6 14
PRINCE 435 137 53-118 11-17 20-46 5 40 45 24 10 15
CURRY 1556 236 92-229 36-45 16-54 16 111 127 104 44 3
MANNING 89 34 13-32 5-6 3-8 7 11 18 7 9 3
DAVIS 328 79 31-79 5-6 12-36 7 29 36 29 5 0
REID 10 1 0-3 1-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0
SANCHEZ 37 0 0-5 0-0 0-0 4 2 6 8 5 0
Total 19905 7492 2700-6277 1559-2021 530-1477 884 2444 3328 1620 556 470
Opp 19905 7190 2744-6269 1413-1895 289-835 859 2529 3388 1500 567 356
Salaries
As usual, I'd like to give credit to Patricia Bender and her excellent NBA
resource site at http://www.dfw.net/~patricia
Detroit Pistons Date # of total
Player signed years salary misc FA
Jon Barry ............. 8/10/00 3 $9 million '03
Michael Curry ......... 8/2/99 5 $12 million p-opt '03
Richard Hamilton ...... 9/7/99 4 $8,603,543 rc t-opt '03
Danny Manning ......... 2/5/03 1 minimum '03
Don Reid .............. 7/25/01 2 $2.1 million '03
Hubert Davis .......... 8/1/00 4 $10 million '04
Zeljko Rebraca ........ 7/24/01 3 $11,550,000 t-opt '03 & '04
Mehmet Okur ........... 8/21/02 2 $2.1 million '04
Pepe Sanchez .......... 9/18/02 2 minimum '04
Chucky Atkins ......... 8/3/00 6 $22.5 million '06
Tayshaun Prince ....... 9/2/02 4 $4,541,153 rc t-opt '06
Clifford Robinson ..... 8/1/99,3/11/03 4+3 $29+$15.4 mill t-opt '06
Ben Wallace ........... 8/3/00 6 $30 million '06
Corliss Williamson .... 7/24/01 6 $31,500,000 '07
Chauncey Billups ...... 7/17/02 6 $33.7 million '08
rc = rookie contract, 1st round picks from 1995 and on are signed to 3
year contracts at a set range, with for picks from 1998 and on with a
4th year at the team's option
t-opt = team option year(s) (if team chooses, player will be under
contract for another year)
FA = year player becomes a free agent (year = summer of) [Note: For
players who have less than 3 years of experience (most noteably,
rookies), the players are restricted free agents - their team can match
any offer made to the player. 1st round draft picks who have completed
the 4th year of their rookie contract are also restricted free agents.]
The NBA salary cap is about 41 million dollars. The salary cap next season
will probably be between 41 and 43 million.
Detroit is in a position that they could have a nice salary slot open after
this season. A good season and Larry Brown's presence could mean a quality
player could join a very good team in 2004.
Detroit Pistons Total: $47,777,892
Clifford Robinson .......... $8,421,875
Ben Wallace ................ $5,200,000
Chauncey Billups ........... $4,546,000
Corliss Williamson ......... $4,500,000
Zeljko Rebraca ............. $3,850,000
Chucky Atkins .............. $3,600,000
Jon Barry .................. $3,175,000
Hubert Davis ............... $2,687,500
Richard Hamilton ........... $2,681,783
Michael Curry .............. $2,600,000
Mikki Moore ................ $2,412,500 [released]
Don Reid ................... $1,100,000
Mehmet Okur ................ $1,000,000
Tayshaun Prince ............ $903,360
Pepe Sanchez ............... $587,435 [minimum]
Bobby Simmons .............. $512,435 [released]
Current Team FA Status
Free agents: Barry, Curry (player option),
Hamiton (team option), Manning,
Reid
Current Team/Player Breakdown
Guards
Atkins, Chucky G 5-11 160 8/14/74 South Florida
Chucky is a solid player but with his salary and the improving play of
Chauncy Billups, most expect Chucky to be traded this offseason. With the
recent coaching change, I think this is a very likely scenario as Larry
Brown will be looking to find "his type" of players to bring to Detroit.
Billups, Chauncey G 6-3 202 9/25/76 Colorado
Maybe not a break out season for Chauncey, but certainly a very good year --
good enough that the Pistons can move Chucky Brown and look for a solid
backup instead.
Curry, Michael G 6-5 227 8/22/68 Georgia Southern
A player option FA, another player who will likely find himself traded over
the offseason.
Davis, Hubert G 6-5 183 5/13970 North Carolina
Hubert has one year left on his contract. I expect given his North Carolina
pedigree, Larry will keep Hubert around for the last year of his contract.
Hubert can provide some experienced backup at the guard spots and perhaps
mentor a guard if Detroit selects one at #25.
Barry, Jon G 6-5 210 7/25/69 Georgia Tech
Jon has game left, but given the current situation with the Pistons,
it is unlikely he will return, instead moving on as a FA.
Forwards/Swing Forwards
Hamilton, Richard G/F 6-7 193 2/14/78 Connecticut
Rip really busted out after getting out of Washington. Certainly a player
the Pistons expect to build around over the next few years and gives a coach
a little flexibility at the 2/3 spot. A FA next year and a key player for
the Pistons to re-sign.
Manning, Danny F 6-10 241 5/17/66 Kansas
This should be Danny's last year as a player. He might well return to the
bench, or at least the extended bench, as an assistant to Larry Brown, his
college coach. There has been a lot of talk that Danny wants to coach and
he allegedly lobbied hard for a spot on the KU bench in the wake of Roy
Williams' return to Chapel Hill. Working a year or two for Danny would be
the best training he could get if he wants to coach in the future.
Prince, Tayshaun F 6-9 215 2/28/80 Kentucky
A quiet regular season was followed by a break out performance in the
playoffs. I'm not 100% sold on Tayshaun as a NBA star, but I think he's
going to be very good at the least and a valuable offensive weapon. It will
be very interesting to see how Larry Brown uses Prince next season.
Centers/Power Forwards
Okur, Mehmet C 6-11 249 5/26/79 Turkey
Okur showed some promise this season. Detroit gets to keep Okur on the
cheap for the upcoming season. He'll certainly be playing for a bigger
money FA contract whether with Detroit or another team.
Rebraca, Zeljko C 7-0 257 4/9/72 Serbia-Montenegro
Rebraca is another player with plenty of promise. All indications are that
Detroit will stick with Rebraca for another season. Certainly his PPM
production in the regular season warrants an extended look.
Reid, Don F 6-8 255 12/30/73 Georgetown
A solid, veteran presence -- but a FA as well. I think he will be unlikely
to return to the Pistons unless Larry Brown or Joe Dumars has a fondness for
Reid.
Robinson, Clifford F 6-10 225 12/16/66 Connecticut
Another solid, veteran presence and, to me, the player the Pistons would
most like to trade solely for salary cap purposes. Easier said than done.
Clifford can still play a lot of minutes and if LB believes he can bust it
on both ends of the court I think he can get a lot of run next season.
Wallace, Ben F 6-9 240 9/10/74 Virginia Union
How can you not love Ben Wallace's game? What a great throwback player.
LB loves great defensive players and Ben Wallace should be a player LB
will enjoy coaching. A steadily improving offensive game is making Big
Ben even more dangerous.
Williamson, Corliss F 6-5 245 12/4/73 Arkansas
Corliss has certainly had a longer and more impressive NBA career than
I expected when he left college for The League. He changed his game to
suit the NBA style and has become a valuable and effective performer.
Expect Corliss to get plenty of opportunities next season to maximize
his effectiveness.
Team Needs
Detroit primarily needs more scoring options on the court, ideally in the
post as a compliment to Ben Wallace. Detroit is solid in the backcourt with
Billups and Hamilton. Wallace is solid whether he is at 4 or 5. Prince is
an emerging presence on the wing, though more help is be needed there.
Other needs depend on the roster moves the Pistons make over the summer.
However, it is likely that help will be needed in the backcourt in a reserve
roll and the #25 pick will focus on this need, though if an interesting
wing player is available that is a possibility.
Future Direction
There are many directions the Pistons can go in the future. Clearly, Larry
Brown is here to win "his" championship. However, this will not mean that
the Pistons will rely solely on veteran players. Look for Brown to bring in
one or two of "his" players -- players like Eric Snow and Derrick Coleman
are obvious, but don't forget someone like George Lynch. There will be
plenty of new names on the roster next season.
The Pistons, if they are smart and have a little bit of luck, will also clear
enough cap room to sign a "big name" FA in 2004. A solid 2003 campaign and
Larry Brown will make Detroit an attractive franchise for the 04 FA crop.
Detroit is also on the verge of having a good, solid young nucleus to build
around for the future and can be a legitimate NBA title contender for the
next several years. Heady times indeed for Joe Dumars and Larry Brown.
Draft Options
This pick is almost as easy as it gets. There are only two choices, Darko
Milicic and Carmelo Anthony.
Darko Milicic - a near 7 foot player with great skills, youth (17), and
overall athletic ability. Those who get paid to evaluate players have
come away amazed by his workouts and game performances.
Carmelo Anthony - had an amazing freshman year for Syracuse, displaying sick
all-around offensive skills.
While Anthony is a very good player, Milicic is a better pick for the
Pistons. Milicic can be a devastating compliment to Ben Wallace if he turns
out to be the player that most project him to be and while Detroit has some
options on the wing, their inside players only show promise of being good,
not great, like Darko.
The Pistons could trade their pick for a veteran player, most notably someone
like Elton Brand. I love Brand as a player but I think Detroit would be
unwise to trade this pick unless they get a great player AND can unload
most of their unfavorable contracts. Such a trade is unlikely to develop
but the chance does exist.
Of course, there is a selection at #25 for Detroit as well -- a much more
interesting pick.
Draft Pick
Darko Milicic, C/F
Milicic is getting nothing but rave reviews from all of his workouts and
from respected scouts. He is young and very talented and could become
a Kevin Garnett/Tim Duncan class player for Detroit -- the kind of player
who can define a franchise for a decade.
What will the Pistons do?
The Pistons are 99% certain to draft Milicic. Any other outcome would be
a serious surprise and either the result of excellent gamesmanship on the
part of Joe Dumars or someone making the Pistons an "offer they can't refuse".
|