Detroit Pistons Need A Player Like Joe Smith, Not Big Ben!

One of the lesser headaches former Pistons coach Michael Curry inherited last season was trying to incorporate a triad of young post players with limited offensive skill sets (Amir Johnson, Jason Maxiell, and Kwame Brown). Often they seemed to cancel each  out, as it was difficult to play two of them at the same time.

This season, with several off-season additions, the Pistons are looking to be a more high-octane offensive team that attacks the basket and hits outside shots. Having big men who can spread the floor with outside shooting is valuable in such a offense because it creates space for players like Rodney Stuckey, Ben Gordon, and Will Bynum to penetrate for easy layups.

Last season the two big men Michael Curry relied on the most were Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess. Both did their best offensive work away from the basket. This season both Dyess and Sheed are gone, and the recently signed Charlie Villanueva is the only veteran big man the Pistons have who is capable of spreading the floor consistently.

This summer, rumors abound that the Pistons will soon bring back Ben Wallace. The problem is that Ben is another player whose best offensive move is a dunk. The Pistons already have Chris Wilcox, Kwame Brown, and Jason Maxiell. What this team needs is offensive diversity. Whatever player the Pistons bring in should ideally provide a skill-set that compliments the other players on the team, not duplicates them.

For this reason the Pistons should look to sign a player like Joe Smith, Mikki Moore, Chris Mihm, or Juwan Howard. They need a player who does not only provide veteran leadership, but who can hit the mid to long range jump shot.

Doubtless, Ben Wallace would generate much more excitement in Auburn Hills than any of those players. I am not saying that Ben is a lesser player than those guys. However, unlike those guys, Ben only brings to the table things that other players on this team already do. True Pistons fans will be more excited about a player who can help win a few more games than a player who can bring fear the fro signs at the Palace.

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