NBA trade rumors, Joe Dumars' future, Greg Monroe getting the max, and more

Let's Loyer up and get boisterous with some links around the 'net.

By Packey@Detroit4lyfe Feb 12, 2014, 10:08am EST

-- The trade deadline is a week from tomorrow and it's anyone's guess as to what the Pistons are going to do. I think fans would be happiest if Joe Dumars packaged himself and Josh Smith to anybody that wants them or simply decided to keep the status quo. The r00mers will swirl, though, and NJ.com links a story that suggests Luol Deng and Evan Turner could be trade targets. I just have trouble trusting a writer that refers to Josh Smith as the "more-efficient" player in comparison to Monroe. So I won't.

-- David Aldridge at NBA.com has eight names that may feel the trade deadline rumblings. Greg Monroe is No. 2, but the end of his write up has a reassuring piece of information [emphasis mine]:

If Falk finds a team ready to give Monroe the max or something close to it, expect Detroit to match the offer sheet and worry about the money later. At worst, you'd have a 24-year-old, 6-foot-10 power forward under contract that you'd then be able to shop. The Pistons had to lose a lot to wind up with top-10 picks in three straight Drafts. Those assets mean more to them than they probably do to others.

That is the "report" but as Matt Moore points out at CBSSports.com, you can't really predict what the Pistons are going to do because there has been no rhyme or reason to what they have done in the past. (Hat tip to Boney for having this first in the FanShots.)

-- Celtics fans don't want Josh Smith:

In my opinion, once you take a closer look at the numbers and where he's at in his career, you realize that Josh Smith doesn't seem so great after all. In fact, the only positive to be taken away in a hypothetical Smith-to-Boston trade is the fact that he's close friends with Rajon Rondo. Thankfully, Danny Ainge seems to understand that sentimentality doesn't factor into constructing a roster that will compete for championships someday down the road.

-- What the Pistons do at the deadline and this summer will be contingent on what Tom Gores does with Joe Dumars. In the same link above, Aldridge has a forewarning near the end of the article suggesting Dumars may still not get canned while adding that Phil Jackson's name may come up again:

Yet don't automatically assume that Dumars' days in Detroit are coming to an end as well, though I'm sure Gores will again kick Phil Jackson's tires to see if he'd coach. It's still hard, though, to see Big Chief Triangle going to Detroit for anything less than full control of the front office and a piece of the team -- and no coaching.

-- If Dumars is shown the door, Sean has a story on a HoopsHype tweet that Dumars is rumored to be in the mix for the open Cleveland Cavs GM spot. Wouldn't that be something hilarious and sad if Dumars again found the magic from over a decade ago as the hated-Cleveland's GM and brought them their first championship... Dan Gilbert apparently has an affinity for Dumars, but even Cavs fans -- ill-fated fans of a franchise that has zero titles while Dumars has tasted the glory in Detroit three times as a player and GM -- don't want him. (Aside: Is a Cavs fan allowed to call a championship a fluke?)

-- Rodney Stuckey is as used to coaches being fired than anybody else, playing now for his sixth head coach. Here's what he had to say about Loyer, while also suggesting some things about Cheeks [Freep]:

"John's a good guy," Rodney Stuckey said. "He knows basketball, X's and O's, he's really good. Offensively, we're going to be doing a little more movement, more sets and just simplify things. We're excited to have him."

-- Pretty good quote from Chauncey Billups on Loyer's reputation for losing his voice in the first half.

-- Speaking of Billups, he wants to be a mentor now and work in the front office (not coach) later.

-- Full Brandon Jennings and Andre Drummond highlights from the Spurs game, including this alley-oop:

- Drummond after that game [via Langlois]:

"Everybody loves John," Andre Drummond said after a game the Pistons led by 23 after outscoring the Spurs 67-48 in the middle two quarters and was never really in doubt even though the Spurs cut a 20-point fourth-quarter deficit to nine in the final minute. "You can see the excitement we had when we were walking off the court after the game. We're all excited he's our coach now. Of course, we miss Mo, too. But we've got to move forward and try to win some games."

AROUND THE NBA:

-- Bobcats destroyed the Mavs last night to pull back ahead of the Pistons in the playoff race.

-- Odds for All-Star weekend. Stephen Curry.

-- LeBron James dunk: