Author Archive for Matt Watson

Ben Gordon as The Microwave

Published by Matt Watson on July 3, 2009 in Interviews. 13 Comments

Ben Gordon in a radio interview with ESPN Chicago (via Sports Radio Interviews):

How hard did Chicago pursue you?

“They didn’t pursue me at all, they didn’t even make an offer. It was pretty much a one-man race.”

[…] Did you function well with Derrick Rose or are you a better fit in Detroit?

“Personally, me and D-Rose, I thought we played well together. Our games are pretty different - I’m more of an outside shooter, he’s more of an attack player. I think we played well off of each other. Moving forward with Detroit, one thing Joe told me he wanted to create was that 3-guard offense that they used to have back in the ‘Bad Boy’ days when it was him, Isiah, and ‘The Microwave.’ I think with Rip, Rodney Stuckey and myself - we’re no Isiah, Joe, and Microwave but I think anytime you have three guards of that caliber, it makes it a tough matchup.

He’s doing a good job selling the “three-guard” line — who knows, maybe it’s actually true. My hunch is that Dumars will trade Rip for a big man in a heartbeat if the right package comes along, though. Time will tell.

Report: Deron Washington gets a guaranteed deal

Published by Matt Watson on July 3, 2009 in Rumors and Transactions. 89 Comments

As spotted by MLive’s Dave Dial, Seth Greenberg, Deron Washington’s former college coach at Virginia Tech, let the cat out of the bag by announcing that Washington signed a guaranteed deal with the Pistons in a tweet on Wednesday evening:

congrats to Deron Washington for signing a guaranteed contract with the Pistons Great to have a Hokie in the league!

It’s a bit curious the team decided to guarantee Washington on the eve of summer league — why not wait a couple of weeks until the coaches can see him up close? — but assuming Greenberg’s intel is correct, the Pistons now have six guards on the roster (Stuckey, Bynum, Gordon, Afflalo, Hamilton and Washington) …

Anyone else think Rip Hamilton is on the way out of town? At 31 years old, he’s suddenly the oldest player on the team, not to mention the highest paid. At 6-7, Washington can also play forward, but the Pistons just drafted a trio of small forwards, and, as strange as it sounds, Dumars has already hinted that all three might make the roster.

Whatever happens, this is as good of an excuse an any to run this classic reel:

Washington was flat-out one of the most entertaining players to watch in summer league last year, not only because he gives max effort on every play (by my eye, his defense is already NBA ready) but also because the guy lives above the rim. Even if he’s destined to warm the end of the bench, he’ll earn his keep in practice, not to mention as an unofficial mentor to the Pistons’ Flight Crew. Thumbs up on the move.

Here’s the original DBB post on Washington when he was drafted 59th overall last year — can any Israeli DBB readers offer a more recent scouting report on Washington? (Note: Ohad comes through in the comments) Or even a reliable set of stats to examine? It’s late, and my Google-fu isn’t sharp tonight.

Previously on DBB:
Ex-Pistons in the Holy Land
Update on Plaisted and Washington

Who do you want to coach?

Published by Matt Watson on July 2, 2009 in Polls. 102 Comments

Doug Collins is out, Avery Johnson has already interviewed and Bill Laimbeer may get a chance to soon (much to the delight of those hoping for a day when “armored warriors fly around and punch each other while fans throw fireballs at them”).

Sad to say, I’m guessing Dumars’ interest in Laimbeer only extends to giving his friend and former colleague a chance to tell other NBA teams he interviewed for the job, but you never know. If you were in Dumars’ shoes, who would you go with?

Doug Collins enjoys being wanted more than coaching

Published by Matt Watson on July 2, 2009 in Rumors. 9 Comments

A year after letting himself be courted by the Bulls before withdrawing from consideration (and months after manufacturing controversy by contradicting himself within hours regarding his candidacy for the 76ers’ job), Collins is once again making headlines for announcing that he’s not interested in a job.

From ESPN’s Marc Stein:

Collins told ESPN.com on Wednesday night that he called Joe Dumars to thank the Pistons president for considering him and to inform him of his preference to stay in television. That would appear to leave an unobstructed path to the job for ex-Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson, who just completed his first season in TV as an analyst for ESPN.

Sources close to the situation told ESPN that Johnson had his first substantive discussion with Dumars about the position earlier Wednesday.

Whether it’s Johnson or someone else, expect the Pistons to act swiftly; Dumars told Eli Zaret earlier this week that he hopes to have a new coach in place by this coming Tuesday, when the Pistons touch down in Las Vegas and hold their first summer league practice.

Charlie Villanueva commits to the Pistons

Published by Matt Watson on July 2, 2009 in Transactions and Videos. 20 Comments

The word has been out for several hours, but for posterity’s sake, here’s the “Charlie Villanueva is (likely) a Piston” post. After visiting the team on Wednesday, the first official day of free agency, he reportedly agreed to a five-year deal worth $35 million or $40 million, depending who you ask. Just like with Ben Gordon, no agreement is official until July 8, the first day free agents are allowed to sign contracts.

Either way, the deal sounds like a relative bargain for 24-year-old whose best days are almost certainly ahead of him. Despite playing fewer than 27 minutes a game, Villanueva averaged better than 16 points and nearly seven boards a game; given regular starter minutes, 18 and nine is likely, and, if all of us cross our fingers, 20 and 10 isn’t out of the question.

Villanueva’s arrival will come with mixed reviews, in part because of shaky defense and a reputation for being “soft,” but objectively speaking, he’s a better shooter, passer and rebounder than Rasheed Wallace, the man he’s essentially replacing. No, he’s not a complete package — Wallace was an exceptional defender, at least when he was up for the challenge — but for the price and potential for improvement, I have no quibbles with the move. He alone won’t put the Pistons over the top, but this roster is a couple of years away from worrying about the “missing piece.”

In time, I predict Villanueva will emerge as a fan favorite, as much for his play on the court as his good deeds and accessibility (he was one of the first NBA players to embrace Twitter — follow him @CV31 — and he has his own YouTube page) off of it.

And, just because, here he is showing off his hat collection and Rock Band skillz:

A hard rain’s gonna fall

Published by Matt Watson on July 2, 2009 in Videos. 33 Comments

Sigh.

Report: Pistons reach deal with Ben Gordon

Published by Matt Watson on July 1, 2009 in Rumors. 339 Comments

From Y!’s Adrian Wojnarowski:

The Detroit Pistons have reached agreement with free-agent guard Ben Gordon(notes) on a five-year contract worth around $55 million, a source with knowledge of the talks told Yahoo! Sports Wednesday evening.

Chris McCosky confirms:

“I am waiting for a final confirmation (he can’t sign until July 8 ) but sources close to the negotiations tell me it’s done.”

Detroit’s Summer League schedule and roster

Published by Matt Watson on July 1, 2009 in 2009 Draft and Summer League. 4 Comments

The Las Vegas Summer League schedule has been floating around for a week or so, but now that the draft is over, the Pistons have released the roster, as well.

There are some familiar faces, and by the time all is said and done, at least five or six players might actually appear on the regular season roster: Will Bynum, Walter Sharpe, Austin Daye and DaJuan Summers are obvious locks, while Jonas Jerbko, Deron Washington and Trent Plaisted at least have a chance. It’s unclear who will assume head coaching duties, but the Pistons currently list Darryl Walker, Pat Sullivan, Harold Ellis and Bill Pope as the staff.

I might be headed west for a second year in a row myself — that’s still up in the air, though for any DBBers looking to meet up, I’ll update this post once that solidifies.

#     Name Pos     Ht       Wt       College DOB           Exp.
14 Michael Bramos G 6-5 221 Miami (Ohio) 5/27/87 R
12 Will Bynum G 6-0 185 Georgia Tech 1/4/83 2
5 Austin Daye F 6-11 190 Gonzaga 6/5/88 R
6 Ibrahim Jaaber G 6-2 175 Pennsylvania 2/3/84 R
33 Jonas Jerebko F 6-10 231 Sweden 3/2/87 R
34 Dwayne Jones C 6-11 250 St. Joseph’s (PA) 6/9/83 4
7 Andre Owens G 6-4 200 Indiana 10/31/80 2
44 Trent Plaisted F 6-11 245 BYU 10/20/86 R
42 Walter Sharpe F 6-9 245 Alabama-Birmingham   7/16/86 1
35 DaJuan Summers F 6-8 240 Georgetown 1/24/88 R
20 Clay Tucker G 6-5 210 Wisconsin-Milwaukee 6/14/80 R
13 Deron Washington   G/F 6-7 210 Virginia Tech 12/12/85 R

7/10 3:00 PM (PT) vs Sacramento Kings
7/11 1:00 PM (PT) vs Toronto Raptors
7/13 7:00 PM (PT) vs Golden State Warriors
7/15 1:00 PM (PT) vs New York Knicks
7/17 1:00 PM (PT) vs Cleveland Cavaliers

Carlos Boozer is staying in Utah

Published by Matt Watson on June 30, 2009 in Rumors. 308 Comments

No need to ask anymore questions, Carlos Boozer is staying put. From the team’s press release:

Utah Jazz forward Carlos Boozer announced today that he is exercising his player option for 2009-10 and will be returning for his sixth season with the organization.

“We are excited that Carlos has decided to remain with the Jazz,” said Utah Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor. “We are hopeful he can continue to play at an All-Star level and will have an injury-free season.”

Pistons fire Michael Curry

Published by Matt Watson on June 30, 2009 in Transactions. 174 Comments

From Pistons.com:

Detroit Pistons President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars announced today that Michael Curry will not return next season as the team’s head coach.

“This was a difficult decision to make,” Dumars said. “I want to thank Michael for his hard work and dedication to the organization. However, at this time, I have decided to make a change.”

More to come, obviously.

From MLive.com:

The news of Curry’s dismissal was just reaching players Tuesday morning.

“I just found out about 10 minutes ago,” Pistons guard Rodney Stuckey said in a phone interview.

“It’s always sad to lose a coach,” Stuckey said. “But like I always say, this is a business and in this business, you have to be prepared and ready for anything.”

From Y!’s Adrian Woj:

No replacement has been hired, but a league source believes that one-time Detroit coach Doug Collins could be the favorite for the job.

Despite some public speculation, sources say former Pistons center Bill Laimbeer will not be a candidate to replace Curry.

Pistons president Joe Dumars had been considering a change for several weeks, sources say, and ultimately let go of Curry after concluding he couldn’t recover the locker room. Curry had a deteriorating relationship with All-Star Richard Hamilton, whom he benched at times in favor of Allen Iverson.

Names also being kicked around in the media: Avery Johnson and Cavs’ assistant John Kuester, who’s largely been credited with orchestrating Cleveland’s offense. I haven’t heard anyone mention Boston assistant Tom Thibodeau, the mastermind behind the Celtics’ defense, but I have to imagine he appears somewhere on Detroit’s list. Then again, Thibodeau was already passed over twice this summer after interviewing with Sacramento and Philadelphia, so perhaps there’s a reason he’s yet to get an opportunity.

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