Kwame Brown: Is It Possible the Saviour of the Pistons Has Been Misjudged?

(Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Can you believe it? Kwame Brown has become the greatest defensive force since Ben Wallace, and suddenly the Pistons are relevant again!

Okay, allow me to take a risky step that many of you will disagree with.

Kwame Brown is an underachiever who has failed to live up to people's expectations of him. Owners, coaches, and fans—all wanted him to be a franchise player and "The Second Coming" of Shaq, Zo-Mo, and a lot of other things.

However, they expected him to take this responsibility on his shoulders when he was still freshly out of high school, without the guidance of anyone..."Mr. Brown, here is your team; now lead them to a championship."

I understand that he has let many people down, but he has always looked for improvement in every aspect, but although he has always been defensively decent, he has never been great.

Brown has also never been given the playing time to prove himself; the free range to focus on defense, his preferred end of the game, and the opportunity to make and correct mistakes; and he's never had Ben Wallace.

Last year, the Detroit Pistons signed Kwame Brown and tied him to a minor contract for two years, with him having the option to opt out after one. He chose not to do this.

Kwame Brown is a defensive player who needs a defensive team to even remotely display his true potential. Unfortunately for him, he has managed to play only for  offensive teams so far.

The Washington Wizards, who have almost no defense to speak of (further emphasized by their recent hiring of former Pistons' coach Flip Saunders, who despite his amazing zone defense is still a pure offensive coach), was one of those teams.

The Los Angeles Lakers, who were an offensive team, and remain one until they added a commitment to defense after their defiling by the Boston Celtics in 2008; and the Memphis Grizzlies, a team who despite years of failure continues to focus on offense which is further emphasized by their recent signing of legendary offensive (yet terrified of defense) player Allen Iverson, are two other teams that he has played for.

As for Iverson, he has always thrived in offensive situations, but crumbled in Detroit where the mode of play is defense.

Why can't Kwame be the same?

Kwame has been involved mostly in offensive situations, but he thinks himself a defensive player. Having his career statistics in mind, if you add 10 more minutes per night, he will be a 18-and-nine guy, and that's without the addition of one of the greatest defensive players of all time, who I think was also brought on with the potential of teaching Brown.

Ben Wallace was a nobody throughout the first half of his career, but Joe D believed in him. Joe D also believes in Kwame Brown. I think that under the leadership of Ben Wallace, Kwame Brown will flourish.

I think that I made a valid potential point, and remember, before you think too much...this is a great possibility, but not an actual prediction. I think he will prove all nay-sayers wrong.

What do you think?

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