Detroit Pistons Running On Empty: Just What Is John Kuester Doing?

Can someone please explain to me what exactly Detroit Pistons coach John Kuester is up to?

Let's not kid ourselves. Despite the fact that the bulk of the Eastern Conference is an unmitigated disaster and the playoffs are not outside the realm of possibilities for Detroit, this is not a team on the brink of contention.

Team president Joe Dumars obviously has his hands tied until the team is finally sold, something that is not likely to happen until after the All-Star break at the earliest.

That means that the Pistons likely will not be making any major moves before the trading deadline and the current roster is likely to remain until next year.

Given this likelihood, the Pistons should be focused on developing their young players.

Richard Hamilton, Ben Wallace and even Tayshaun Prince likely are the past and not the future of this franchise.

The only reason that it makes sense to play those players, especially Hamilton and Wallace, would be if the Pistons have no other options on their roster.

Despite the abundance of older players on their roster, however, the Pistons also have plenty of young players who need to be getting meaningful minutes on a team that is not in contention.

So why exactly are the young players of this team consistently overlooked in favor of the old guard?

Austin Daye, their first round draft pick a year ago, has played a total of 38 minutes over the last nine games, and in fact was benched three times.

Prince on the other hand, who has been playing lights out basketball but has an expiring contract and is not likely to return, has played 28 minutes or more in all but one of those games.

Now take a look at Ben Gordon, a player that the Pistons invested a lot of money in just a year ago. He may not be as young as Daye, but at 27 he is certainly younger than the soon to be 33 year-old Hamilton.

Still Hamilton has been playing 28 minutes a game while Gordon has been logging 26 per game. And despite the second half experiment in the Pistons most recent win against the hapless Cavs, Hamilton and Gordon should not be paired together. They play the same position and have shown an inability to both find their niche while on the court together.

Hamilton has a few years remaining on his contract, but Gordon is his obvious successor and needs to find more minutes than Hamilton.

The only argument for playing Hamilton over Gordon would be to boost his trade value. But if a Pistons sale isn't imminent and Hamilton is likely to stay this year, then why showcase him at the expense of Gordon?

Yet another example of clueless roster management by Kuester involves rookie Greg Monroe. When he has gotten an opportunity to play, the first round power forward has shown flashes of brilliance

But those minutes have been few and far between. Recently, Monroe has been getting more minutes, but that has more to do with the fact that the Pistons were getting blown out in most of those games. But when he gets meaningful minutes, he has been one of the most consistent rebounders, averaging nearly 10 boards every 36 minutes.

Some have argued that Monroe looks like a project, but when else are the Pistons going to have time to play the rookie? 

Piston fans have been somewhat patient despite all of the controversy surrounding their team. And despite their team having one of the worst records in the conference, they are still making it out to the games to the tune of 16,000 per game. While that is a far cry from their attendance records of the past decade, it is still far from the worst in the league.

The most important thing for this franchise is that the fans feel that the team is heading in the right direction. The only way that will happen is if the young players get regular playing time and the transition from past to future is fully realized.

Otherwise, this season will be completely in vain and the silence that has been emanating from the front office will be reflected by the fans in the stands.