Bynum’s agent, Mark Bartelstein told Marc Stein of ESPN the deal is worth $10.5 million for three years. Chris Iott of MLive.com insists it’s a $9.75 million contract. (UPDATE: Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News also says it’s a $9.75 million contract.)* As long as that difference doesn’t cause a rift that delays the signing, I’m happy.

*All three of those reporters are usually credible. And I’d typically just take the word of two against one. But my guess is Iott and Goodwill got their info from the Pistons. The numbers the Pistons initially leaked for the Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva signings were lower than the actual contracts, so I don’t completely trust the team with this. I don’t have any reason not to trust Bartelstein, who told Stein $10.5 million. I’m curious what the Free Press reports, because its reporters have been in contact with Bartelstein and have Pistons contacts.

Bynum, 27, is a good backup point guard. I’ve said for a while that if he was a first-round pick and Rodney Stuckey was someone Detroit signed from Maccabi Tel Aviv, Bynum would start. I’m not sure I still believe that, but the case could be made.

Since coming to Detroit, Bynum has shown an ability to drive to the basket. At the beginning of last year, he looked much improved as a distributor, rebounder and on-ball defender.

But ankle injuries – yes, both ankles – derailed his season. When he returned, his all-around game had reverted to past-season form. His ability to drive was still there, at least.

I have serious questions about his ability to fight through screens, an essential skill in today’s game. And maybe his play at the beginning of last season was a fluke.

But a little more than $3 million per season is almost worth his ability to drive to the basket alone. If everything else comes together, Bynum is a steal. Heck, even if only some other parts of his game come together, he’s probably a steal.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – The Detroit Pistons announced today that Greg Monroe underwent a successful out-patient surgical procedure on his right foot performed by Dr. Arthur Manoli. The procedure was performed at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Pontiac, MI.

Rehabilitation will begin immediately and he is expected to resume full basketball activities in three to four weeks.

The 6-foot-11 forward/center appeared in five games for the Pistons during the Vegas Summer League and averaged 14.6 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.8 steals in 30.3 minutes per game.  The Georgetown product was drafted by Detroit with the seventh pick in the 2010 NBA Draft.

The purpose of this article is not to tell you what I want to happen, it is to tell you what I think could happen.

The Pistons moving to Nevada could be a viable possibility.

This whole thing basically started with David Stern’s press conference the other day, when he was asked about the Pistons’ future in Detroit. He gave a very Stern-like response:

“We like to stay where we are, but if you judge us by our past we haven’t been entirely successful,” Stern said. “But our first choice is always to have the team sold to somebody that will keep it in the market.”

Now because he’s David Stern, this caused the, “Oh my God, the Pistons are totally moving,” bandwagon to get started again. This, coupled with the fact that the Las Vegas Sun reported that an anonymous team was already under contract to move to Vegas, provided public funding for a new arena could be delivered, meant that the Pistons were totally out of here.

Hysteria ensued, causing the Pistons to release a statement denying all of this:

“While there is no substantive news to report regarding the sale of the Detroit Pistons, our ownership group has absolutely nothing to do with any proposal that would move the team to Las Vegas. As stated since the beginning of this process, the preference is to find an ownership group that is committed to Detroit and the surrounding area.”

But hey, the team has to deny this, right? I mean, even if this were true, they’re still going to be in Detroit for a while at least, and probably want to avoid the embarrassing lame-duck status the Thunder Sonics went through in their last season in Seattle. Well, if that’s not enough of a denial, there was this report from Vince Ellis of the Free Press:

“We categorically deny that there is an NBA team under contract (to move to Vegas),” NBA spokesman Tim Frank told the Free Press today.

Teams with much richer histories than the Pistons have moved. But they are far from the only NBA franchise with a not-so-great financial situation going in their home city. Vegas has long been a desired NBA market, and only recently has Stern become more amenable to going against those pesky moral stands on gambling he’s taken in the past. So of the handful of teams that may have an interest in moving, why are the Pistons automatically the most logical choice?

The ownership situation is obviously a factor. But teams get sold fairly often, and in the last 30 years, only five franchises have moved. What other cities should be worried about their team moving to Vegas? I’d say these teams all would have at least tepid interest: New Orleans, Charlotte, Memphis and let’s throw Sacramento in just because of that whole Maloof connection, even though they are denying. These franchises all have as many, if not more, uncertainties than the Pistons, with the added bonus of not really doing well attendance-wise.

Even with a miserable season, the Pistons still ranked eighth in the league in attendance last year. They were first in 2009, first in 2008, second in 2007, first in 2006 and first in 2005. Compare:

• Kings: 29th; 30th; 27th; 16th; 14th; 13th
• Hornets: 28th; 19th; 26th; 15th; 11th (aided by playing games in Oklahoma City); 30th
• Bobcats: 22nd; 26th; 24th; 27th; 22nd; 28th
• Grizzlies: 23rd; 29th; 29th; 30th; 26th; 19th

Typically, when a franchise wants to move, it has to prove to the league that it’s not in a market where it can viably succeed, either because of facilities or lack of a fanbase. The Pistons still have one of the best facilities in the NBA at the Palace of Auburn Hills. And as the attendance suggests over the last six years, they can routinely fill the building.

When the Sonics left Seattle, there were issues with the arena and the team had been in the 20s in attendance for several seasons. Some of the above teams, to me, would have much better cases to leave a city than the Pistons, even if new ownership did want to move the team. The Kings, even in the early 2000s when they were a title contender, couldn’t crack the top 10 in attendance. The Grizzlies were a playoff team before they gave away Pau Gasol, and yet only made it into the top 20 once in six years. The Hornets have one of the five best players in the league and only made it into the top 15 once, and that was when they were playing a significant portion of their home games in Oklahoma City. The Bobcats made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history and were purchased by the biggest star in NBA history last year, yet couldn’t get into the top 20.

So yeah, when people like Otto write that it “could be a viable possibility,” they are kind of right I guess. But it’s not particularly easy to move a franchise, let alone one with a great building and a strong history of filling it every year. To say that the Pistons are anything more than a very remote possibility to move seems like a pretty big stretch.

Most people thought it was just another entry in the annual “topic Bill Simmons will write about way too much” a year or so ago when he launched his “Minnesota should hire me as general manager” campaign. Then the T-Wolves  went out and hired a man who makes actually seem like the more sensible choice.

Anyway, most Pistons fans reacted with a collected LOLZ when David Kahn handed Darko Milicic four years/$20 million this offseason. Then this week, he gave away Al Jefferson for basically nothing to clear a starting spot for Darko. And, as his appearance during a Summer League game on NBA TV shows, he’d like everyone to think he’s a genius for it.

Former Piston Chris Webber was being a sport at first, trying to hide his chuckles. Then Kahn compared Darko to C-Webb’s former Sacramento teammate (and good friend) Vlade Divac. C-Webb didn’t like that. Then Kahn went one step further and tried to compare Darko to C-Webb himself. Needless to say, Webber had to end the conversation.

I watch this video, and no matter how bad the Pistons roster gets, it makes me happy that David Kahn is not running my favorite team. How sad for T-Wolves fans.

(Hat-tip, Ball Don’t Lie)

Like Sebastian Pruiti, I’m looking forward to the Austin Daye-Omri Casspi matchup. Daye has been much more aggressive in Las Vegas, but part of me thinks that’s only because he knows he should own this lesser competition. That wasn’t the case against Casspi last time.

If Daye has his way with Casspi tonight, I’ll have a lot more faith Daye deserves a spot in the rotation next season.

Contract extension not happening for Rodney Stuckey, meaning he will be restricted free agent after next season – if there is a season.

At first glance, this seems like a lack of faith in Rodney Stuckey on the Pistons’ part. But maybe it’s just a shrewd business move.

In all likelihood, the new Collective Bargaining Agreement will reduce the amount of money Stuckey can make when his contract expires.

Of course, an extension now could allow the Pistons to sign him cheaply before he has a good season. But it would probably take a monster season from Stuckey to override the benefits of the new CBA.

Obviously, situations like this are fluid. Stuckey can sign an extension until Oct. 31, according to Larry Coon’s NBA Salary Cap FAQ.

Ben Wallace told The AP today he will sign a 2-year deal soon with the Pistons. He will make $1.9 million per season.

And in case you think Ben Wallace is lying, Joe Dumars confirmed, according to Chris Iott of MLive.com.

Wallace re-signing should come as no surprise. But the terms of the contract do slightly – namely the years (although there’s a decent chance that second season is eaten by a lockout).

But the amount of money Wallace is slated to get is also a little perplexing.

Why the numbers sell Ben Wallace short

The minimum salary for a player of more than 10 years experience is $1,352,181 and $1,399,507 the following season ($2,751,688 total), according to Larry Coon’s NBA Salary Cap FAQ. So, Wallace has likely signed using the Bi-Annual exception.

The Bi-Annual Exception is $2.08 million this year, and the maximum raise the exception allows is eight percent, according to Coon. That means Wallace could’ve made $4,326,400 during the two-year contract.

Instead, he will make $3.8 million total.

So why the difference?

Wallace will earn between $1,826,924 and $1,979,167 next season. The Bi-Annual Exception exception can be split between two players, so my first thought was Wallace’s contract was designed to give Detroit room to sign another player.

But at most, his contract leaves $253,976 of the exception left this summer. That’s less than a minimum contract, so Wallace’s deal won’t help Detroit sign anyone under the Collective Bargaining Agreement rules.

Obviously, the Pistons are wary of paying the luxury tax (or more accurately, wary of not receiving the check teams under the tax receive). So, maybe Wallace’s contract will help them remain under the luxury tax. But given the salary cap is higher than expected, I doubt it.

I don’t know. Maybe there are trades in the works that would add to the Pistons’ salaries for next season and put them over the luxury-tax line. (Again, I doubt it.)

Wallace obviously could’ve gotten a bigger contract than this on the free market. He returned to Detroit because he’s comfortable here.

I think getting more than a minimum contract was important to Wallace. He’s a proud guy. So, maybe $1.9 million per season is all he truly wanted. No need to pay a guy more than he expects.

I hope that’s the case.

I would not be pleased if the Pistons low-balled Wallace because they knew he’d return. The wear and tear he put on his body for a team doomed for the lottery last season was incredible, considering his age. He is the heart of the team, and he attracts fans.

The Bi-Annual Exception was the perfect price for Wallace. He probably should’ve received it in full.

I think Austin Daye’s length will allow him to be successful in the midpost area, along the baseline.  Daye’s arms are so long that he makes it so easy to enter the ball into him in that position.  Daye can then face up, keeping the ball high and either penetrate or hit attempt a step back jumper (something Austin Daye seems pretty effective at doing).  The problem with playing in this area (and while playing with his back to the basket) is that it invites contact.  This is one of the reasons why he didn’t work the midpost area too much last year.

Check out the entire post, which includes video analysis. Pruiti gets this stuff, and it’s always a treat when he writes about the Pistons.

Surya Fernandez of Hot Hot Hoops provided this write-up for a Detroit MLE Dreams post that will never see the light of day:

Strengths – Was much better this past season than people gave him credit for after sustaining an injury near the end of the regular season and apparently not ready to come back from it as he was horrible in the Celtics series. Worked hard last summer and regained enough jump off his knees to get his jumper back. Wasn’t afraid to take charges and buy into the Heat defensive system. Was very effective as the first offensive option with the second unit while Dwyane Wade rested. Good passing skills for a big man.

Weaknesses – How much more does he left and how many years do you want to lock him down given his injury history. Can be foul prone against the younger guys. Still gets hot-headed at times. Frequently runs out of gas in the fourth quarter and will come up short on his shots. Sometimes thinks he can still do the same things on offense that he could do in his prime.

Last year’s highest paid player in the NBA alongside Tracy McGrady and Kobe Bryant should now settle with getting midlevel exception type of money. He may have a hard time convincing a GM after that Celtics series as to how much he has left in the tank but eventually should get a decent contract considering how many teams have money to spend and you can’t teach size.

• Mid-level exception: $5,765,000
• Salary cap: $58,044,000
• Luxury tax: $70,307,000

The mid-level exception came out $33,000 less than I projected a month ago. That means Detroit can offer a free agent up to $33,437,000 for a five-year contract.

A luxury tax that high should give Detroit plenty of room to use the full MLE and re-sign Will Bynum and Ben Wallace.

The salary cap is pretty irrelevant for the Pistons, because they will still be above it.