Comments on: Andre Drummond reportedly would have started for Pistons if not for injury

By: frankie d

frankie d — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 19:38:27 +0000

never said it was meaningless. i simply said that it needed to be spent properly in order for it to mean anything.
and yes, the track record of the individual making decisions is always relevant to any considerations of what that individual will do in the future. it is that way in any facet of business or sports or school or relationships.
of course, it does not preclude the possibility that joe will use the cap space well, but his catastrophic past failure has to be considered. to ignore it or say it doesn’t matter is ridiculous.
my point about daye is simple. assets are the lifeblood of any franchise. treat your assets in a cavalier fashion and you ultimately pay the price. joe d has been treating his assets – players, coaches, draft choices, contracts, cap space – in a cavalier fashion over the last 5 years or so.
the last 5 years have been a disaster. imho, he has to prove that he is simply not continuing along that disastrous path.
burying and then dumping a first round draft choice, one of the most valuable assets franchises possess, is another cavalier move.
trading a first round draft choice – as he did with ben gordon – in order to dump a player you spent extravagantly on is another cavalier move. (if gordon moves this trade deadline, it will be interesting to see what charlotte can get for him.)
and, imho, if daye becomes another delfino-type rotation player – which is very possible, maybe even probable, considering his shooting ability – then dumping him as a throw in to make the numbers work will be another cavalier move.

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 18:04:35 +0000

So having cap space and trade freedom are meaningless because we messed up the last time we had it? Saying “we need to find match ups for him” about Daye is exactly my point. He matches up poorly at his position which makes for a possible role playing shooter but not a starting SF of the future. Even so, you are right you can’t predict exactly what a player will do in their career so even if you are convinced Daye was essential to our progress was he just it? We don’t need to sign anyone or draft anyone we just needed Daye? Our cap space is not meaningless and can mean everything if used correctly. knowing what CAN be done with that king of freedom in the nba and being a pistons fan is encouraging to me. We all know CV and BG were bad signings, I accept that and am not a fan who has forgotten, but I am a fan that realizes you can’t just say “remember when we did that?” As a response to any moves the organization makes from then on. If its impossible that we do anything positive with that “meaningless” cap space we might as well give up being fans because that’s what we’ve got. I guess if Daye becomes the next Kevin Durant I will be pretty upset but if he does forMemphis what Delfino does for Houston and is a solid role player for his team I will feel fine knowing other players like Singler also have potential and that like at Houston (Harden) cap space can be huge.

By: frankie d

frankie d — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 20:05:15 +0000

lol! 30 million dollars in cap space.
so what. means nothing unless it is spent wisely. or didn’t you learn that lesson from the BG/CV fiascos.
you also can’t seem to comprehend the difference between dumping your own first round choice or attempting a reclamation project with someone else’s blown first round choice. if i have to explain that to you…
what amazes me is that detroit fans have such short memories about the team.
it is as though they haven’t seen the same dance before.
delfino.
amir.
afflalo.
same story. same ending.
“oh…he’s garbage…he got his chance and didn’t show me anything….”
yea right.
anyway, i’m happy for the kid and happy that he is with a team that has a decent coach and an idea as to what to do with him.
from the local memphis rag:

However, Daye’s 50-percent shooting overall and from 3-point range suggests there is potential for him to become a fixture in the rotation. Coach Lionel Hollins is enamored with Daye’s tools: shooting, rebounding, length with regard to defense and high basketball IQ.
“He is a shooter,” Hollins said. “We just have to find decent matchups for him. He’s 6-11 and it’s hard to guard some of those really quick threes. But he can move the ball and he can shoot. He’s done that and I like that.”
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2013/feb/11/grizzlies-forward-austin-daye-making-shots-space/
funny, in the 1&1/2 years, i cannot recall frank saying anything of the sort. can’t recall him taking note of daye as a player in that way. gee…the guy does bring some positives to the floor, even if he still needs lots of work on other things.
is daye the next tim thomas? the next eddie johnson? the next larry nash? the next darren daye?
who knows. no one does. and the idea that any fan or observer here could discern what daye’s potential is in the nba is ridiculous.
what is absolutely certain is that the pistons have tossed another first round choice on the trash heap, after not giving that player a legit shot and now we’ll see whether that was a mistake or not.
for the reasons that lionel hollins noted, i’d bet that detroit fans will ultimately and finally recognize – in a couple of years – that the team’s approach and mishandling was as significant a part in daye’s failed tenure here as was daye’s own individual failings.

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 17:04:45 +0000

I don’t care what his draft number was or what he was supposed to do, he didn’t. He may not have been given a starting role during his time at Detroit but he averaged 15-20 min and didn’t show me anything. Darko was drafted pretty high and obviously was a mistake, should we have kept him just because of how high we wasted a pick on him? This fan knows that both Jonny Flyn and Terence Williams were signed with detroit at the beginning of the season and were both in the same draft as Austin Daye and both were picked above him (Flynn all the way at 6). Should I be upset about not extending their contracts because of where they were drafted? Did they have potential and just need the right players to make them great? Doubtful, I would understand lamenting the loss of Daye if there wasn’t an obvious purpose to the trade. Tayshaun’s contract was inflated and needed to go, that being said Memphis obviously wanted more than just him and since they are trying to save space were probably intrigued by adding Austin Daye’s expiring contract. This is not a lateral move we have up to 30 mil in cap space to facilitate a trade or free agent signing for a player who’s worth is measured by more than what pick is spent on them. This means adding real talent to players like Monroe Drummond and Knight that are actually showing they can play.

By: Dan Feldman

Dan Feldman — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 13:08:12 +0000

I’m sure there’s a source. Goodwill is a good reporter who doesn’t make stuff up. Fair to question who his source is and what agenda the source has? Absolutely. But to think there’s no source is a mistake.

By: Mrshourite

Mrshourite — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 05:06:19 +0000

I feel you on that.

By: frankie d

frankie d — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 23:16:33 +0000

gee…goodwill writes something that sounds sketchy…who would have ever thought it…

By: frankie d

frankie d — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 23:12:41 +0000

we also know that we used a premium, just out of the lottery first round draft choice on him.
good franchises don’t waste assets like first round draft choices. and no matter how daye ends up playing from this point forward, he counts, now, as another wasted draft choice. an asset that joe dumars simply rolled up and tossed away like a piece of used toilet paper.
this fan thinks it is doubly ironic that daye was traded just when his opportunity to play has been opened up by the trade of tay, who, if fans didn’t have such short memories, daye was drafted to ultimately replace.
playing time, a real point guard who knows how to feed a catch a shoot player like daye…gee…wonder how that might turn out. i guess we will find out.
a shame it didn’t happen in detroit.

By: Mark

Mark — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 22:56:22 +0000

haha, good analogy, though this case not quite as extreme

By: Brian

Brian — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 22:40:13 +0000

I don’t think it is easier to say that now. It is easier to say that to the fans, but not to Maxiell.