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The Detroit Pistons are at a bit of a crossroads in advance of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline.
On one side of the coin, there is the “plan for the future” group. This mentality makes the most sense, seeing as how even the most wishful of Pistons’ fans acknowledge that this current edition cannot accomplish anything of significance. The thought here is to blow things up as much as the trade market will allow and look toward 2015 and beyond.
The other camp, and one that Pistons’ ownership seems to be firmly entrenched in, is the “playoffs or bust” strategy. For some odd reason, qualifying for this year’s postseason has become an obsession for owner Tom Gores. Keep in mind the NBA playoffs are not like that of the NHL, where any team that secures a slot has a fairly legitimate chance of getting all the way to the Finals. If you’re a 7 or 8 seed in basketball, the postseason stay will be a short one.
But Gores has made it clear that this remains the organization’s top priority. It might stand in the way of more meaningful improvement in seasons to come, but that’s not a concern right now. The man wants to host a pair of playoff games at a half-empty Palace, and he’s not going to stop until he gets it! Well, knowing his track record with this club, he probably doesn’t care that much, but rumors are swirling that he might actually attend consecutive games at some point in the month of March.
Moose Monroe: To Move Or Not To Move
The biggest debate in the Pistons’ camp revolves around what to do with Greg Monroe. The 23-year-old big man is wrapping up his fourth season and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. The Pistons have a few options.
They can keep him through the end of the year and re-evaluate the situation in July. This would obviously help the franchise short-term in their quest for an inconsequential 2014 playoff berth. Not dealing Monroe would also indicate that the team wants to ink him to a multi-year contract this summer. It would be illogical to hang on to Monroe for the next two months and let him walk during free agency. However, the million dollar question remains, “Is Monroe worthy of such a commitment?”
Steady would be the best word to describe Moose Monroe during his four years as a Detroit Piston. Not spectacular, not terrible; just steady. He improved from year one to year two and now seems to be stuck in a 14-15 point, 7-8 rebound holding pattern. Now, those numbers are nothing to sneeze at. They are solid, Charles Oakley-Kevin Willis type figures. But they don’t make Monroe a true game-changer. They don’t make him a guy that could lead a team through an extended playoff march.
While his offensive arsenal has improved a bit over the years, there is nothing that would indicate he is going to become a LaMarcus Aldridge or Kevin Love anytime soon. Those are legitimate superstar NBA power forwards that franchises feel comfortable building around. Monroe will never be that guy. It’s not a knock on him. It’s just not who he is.
All of which leads you to believe that the prudent thing to do would be to trade Greg Monroe in the next 72 hours. Find a team looking to add a nice piece for the stretch run and go get something valuable in return. If you don’t deal him now and don’t plan on throwing the checkbook at him this summer, you run the risk of letting him scoot out of town without receiving a darn thing. You could toss Rodney Stuckey into the trade as well (an unrestricted FA this summer) and get an even juicier array of players or draft picks coming back this way.
Planning For The Future
If you believe a lot of the NBA chatter in recent days, it’s beginning to seem more likely that the Pistons will hold on to the Moose and then show him the long-term money in a few months. It can’t be overstated how unimaginative that strategy would be. It’s been proven throughout this 22-win, 30-loss season that the oversized Monroe/Andre Drummond/Josh Smith frontcourt is not the answer. There isn’t enough variety among the trio’s skill sets, and the floor spacing becomes a disaster as a result. A change needs to take place somewhere, and with Smith’s contract essentially rendering him unmovable, Monroe is the logical and inevitable choice for immediate sale.
Make no mistake. The Pistons are still a long way from returning to the halcyon days of 2003-08 when playoff victories were more a formality than cause for celebration. There needs to be a massive organizational overhaul, possibly starting with ownership and trickling all the way down to a new tool belt for Abdenour. But even the most serious of renovations have to start somewhere, and this one begins with moving the Moose.
Monroe’s genuine effort and workmanlike attitude during his time as a Piston are to be appreciated. But hitching the franchise wagon to him for the next half-decade would be irresponsible. Wake up tomorrow and send him to Dallas or Cleveland. Rebuilding doesn’t just mean waiting for the same group of guys to progressively improve. Sometimes it means shuffling pieces in and out until the right mix is found.
It might result in another spring without playoff basketball at the Palace, but when such a venture carries with it no possibility for advancement, what’s the point?
You can’t look ahead to a brighter tomorrow if you’re unwilling to part ways with the mediocrity of today.
