How the Detroit Pistons Can Fix Their Lineup Problems

In the beginning of the season, before the Iverson trade, Pistons coach Michael Curry announced his plan to move Antonio McDyess to the bench. 

He cited an excess of scorers in the starting five, making it impossible for a frontcourt threat like McDyess to get the touches that he deserved. Instead he decided that either Amir Johnson or Kwame Brown would start, giving the starting five a Big Ben-ish presence. 

Since having problems following the trade, however, Curry moved Rodney Stuckey into the starting lineup, replacing Brown, while still trying to keep the now power forward, Tayshaun Prince, involved and getting the touches he should.

Basically, if we look at the starting five at the beginning of the season (Billups, Hamilton, Prince, Wallace, Johnson) and now (Stuckey, Hamilton, Iverson, Prince, Rasheed), Curry has replaced his hustle big man with the quintessential volume shooter in Allen Iverson.  And somehow this is supposed to balance scoring out between the starting and second units.

Problem is, forgetting the lack of scoring off of the bench, this does not even make for a good starting unit.

With a scoring point guard like Stuckey running the point (who just proved his worth by scoring 40 points against an admittedly porous Chicago defense), and having both AI and Rip off the ball, there is a glut in the guard department.  Pistons games have been much been much more guard oriented as of late, and Rasheed Wallace, already reluctant to play the post, has been almost completely ignored on offense.

Michael Curry has said that he wants to play these five together often to gain chemistry, because they are likely to be the finishing five.  But it seems obvious that, although the starters are comfortable playing together, they should not spend the bulk of their minutes together.

With the added defensive assignments, Rasheed is already slowing down (after having a great start to the season while playing alongside Brown, who allowed him to play his true position: power forward), and Rip and Tayshaun are sure to be tired by playoff time as well.

The starters have all seemed to have had trouble with rhythm, something that happens from a) not being on the floor enough, and b) not getting enough shots. In fact, none of the games have seen all five starters in a rhythm. And all of this is happening whilst they blow huge leads and lose the rebound battle by an average of seven per night because of their small ball lineup.

I am proposing that a player be moved to the bench in favor of Johnson or Brown. Rip, Iverson, and Tayshaun are the three possibilities.  Stuckey's success has obviously shown that he is much better as a starter than as a bench player, and the loss of Rasheed would further tip the starting five in favor of guards.

So, without further ado, in order of who should go...

1. Allen Iverson

The downside of this is that Iverson needs his minutes to get into a rhythm.  The upside is evident from the games that the Pistons have played without him.

They were 2-0 before he came to town, with Stuckey replacing Chauncey, and they beat Chicago with only five points from AI. Also, he would give the second unit an astounding player who could play the point and a desperately needed go-to scorer. The Pistons could field a true second unit, instead of substituting one player at a time.

Iverson doesn't play the point well enough to defend against many starting point guards, but he could share perimeter responsibilities with Afflalo, a proven defender, and burn backup point guards. His gambling style of defense would also be more likely to pay off while playing against a backup guard.

2. Rip Hamilton

The problem with putting Rip on the bench is that is doesn't allow the Pistons to have the second unit they could with Iverson coming off the bench.  It doesn't give the second unit a point, other than Bynum.

Rip is not someone who can create his own shot, which could be a problem in an occasionally suspect second unit. It does give them two great defenders on the perimeter, however, three if Will Bynum continues to play well defensively, and someone to play a mean pick and roll with McDyess.

3. Tayshaun Prince

Rip has proven that he can defend elite small forwards, but it is hard to believe that it wouldn't take its toll on him eventually.  I can't see this as much of an option because it makes the starting unit further guard oriented, since it is unlikely that many plays will be made available for Johnson or Brown. 

It does give the second unit someone who can play point forward, however, and create his own shot. Combined with Affalo, Bynum, and Maxiell, defense in the second unit would be capable of defending most starting fives.

Of course, when egos come into play, the list in terms of ease is reversed, with Prince being the least likely to grumble, while moving AI to the bench could cause a mental breakdown.

Bottom line, the starting line is not only weak defensively with Iverson, it is unbalanced enough offensively that it cannot remain consistent over the course of a game. A starting unit of Stuckey, Rip, Prince, Sheed, and a hustle big man could compete with any starting five in the league, and a bench with McDyess and Iverson and contributions from Afflalo and Maxiell would be one of the best, if not the best in the league. 

There is nothing wrong with having the current starting five finish games (after all, Iverson's value to the Pistons is in his ability to take over games in the fourth, and Rip and Tayshaun are both proven clutch performers), but they should not spend a majority of their time on the floor together or something will be squandered and someone will get worn down by their defensive assignment.