Tuesday’s Layup Drill

"I’m just excited to be back on the court," McDyess said at the Verizon Center. "It was a long month — a great month, though."

[...] "I’m not a savior; I’m just going to help them the best I can," McDyess said.

Curry has been surprisingly impatient during the first 20 games. He groomed Amir Johnson to be a starter throughout camp, then removed him during the early West Coast trip in favor of Brown. Now, he's taking an entirely different approach.

I understand that he wants a true point in the lineup dishing the ball to Allen Iverson and Richard Hamilton on the wings. But wasn't Iverson supposed to give the Pistons a different dimension at the point? Instead, Prince was taken out of his comfort zone by becoming a point forward.

What's really mindboggling is that Curry kept emphasizing that he needed Stuckey and McDyess to be the leading scorers of the second unit. Then, just as McDyess comes back, he makes Stuckey a starter.

He's now got four power forwards and centers (McDyess, Jason Maxiell, Johnson and Brown) coming off the bench. How is he going to find adequate minutes for even three of them? And will Stuckey stay in the game and play longer minutes to run pick-and-rolls with McDyess? How is he going to find enough time for Arron Afflalo and Walter Herrmann, whom Curry says deserve more playing time?

Curry said the lineup change also will provide a steadier role for Will Bynum, who will serve as Stuckey's backup.

"It's a great opportunity for me," Bynum said. "I'm ready to take full advantage of it."