Pistons.com writer Ryan Pretzer hosted a great Media Day live blog yesterday, including several step-ins from Pistons that felt like joining the chat.
A few memorable quotes from yesterday’s chat (in order of appearance, [some] have no particular relevance):
•Jonas Jerebko on why he chose the number 33: “because my 3 other numbers where not available.. first 11..then 32…the 21.. so i went with 33.. looks good and larry had it..”
•Deron Washington on his free throw ability: “Its much better now summer league was a bump in the road”
•On the same boat, …

Well, I’m finally back – and from what I’ve seen in the news lately, I should have just hibernated until someone is actually forced to play basketball.
When the most exciting news of the past month (besides some no-name team giving AI 2mil above the vet minimum) has been Brian Skinner getting moved around like Quentin Richardson, it’s never a good sign.
Sooo…uh, I’m back. You probably won’t need to check back for a while.

Even bloggers need a break sometimes!
Sincerest apologies for the lack of posts as of late, I’m out of town for a few weeks. Don’t lose hope though! “Business as usual” will resume on September 5th.
See you then!

As most of the summer’s free agents have been signed and a handful of less-than-stellar NBA players are now calling new cities their home, I can look at the Pistons and say (knock on wood) that they aren’t as far from contending as most would guess.
Fans of other teams can point to Detroit and chuckle, catapulting comments regarding Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva and how that combination will rarely improve a team’s championship odds.
Perhaps, in that aspect, they would be right.
However, as the 2009 postseason action comes to a close, …

Don’t get me wrong, I liked the Pistons’ signing of Charlie Villanueva, but I still think that five years was too long.
This time, when I heard that they had signed Chris Wilcox Saturday night, I didn’t have much to complain about.
The main reason was the contract length. Detroit inked Wilcox for two years at $3 million per season. Not only is this a bargain for a big man of his caliber, but if Wilcox can’t pick up his quality of play, he’ll be gone faster than a Pistons’ coach. What …

It’s been an extremely busy weekend for me, but do not lose hope…there will be a Wilcox piece up tonight.
Until then, here’s an open thread for everything Wilcox. Consider it a test run of my new “thumbs up thumbs down” comment rating system.
Respect.
PS – If you’re the RSS update type (which I highly recommend), add our live feed here.

This better not involve Greg Oden:
Portland is still trying to pry Tayshaun Prince out of Detroit in a three-way deal with Utah, but Pistons president Joe Dumars hasn’t shown an inclination to move Prince and extend Boozer’s contract, league sources say. Several league executives are dubious of Boozer as a $14 million-a-year player, which his agent, Rob Pelinka, has told teams it will take to sign him to an extension. Miami could be the suitor willing to pay it.
-Yahoo Sports

If there’s one thing that Joe Dumars needs to learn how to do, it’s be patient.
The Denver Post reported Sunday that the Nuggets and Pistons were arranging a deal that would send the Pistons’ Arron Afflalo to Denver to clear cap space, which brings me to my first point.
Afflalo’s paycheck this coming season would total all of $1.09 million. In the sports world, that’s pocket change. Not even pocket change. Walter Sharpe nearly gets paid that much, and the only time fans usually see him is during timeouts, where he …

From HoopsHype:
It sounded like, “All day! All day!” as a fan screamed from the stands at the Thomas & Mack Center in the first game of the second day of action at the NBA Summer League on Saturday.
He was really yelling, “All Daye!” as in Austin Daye, Detroit’s first-round draft pick. The “e” in his name may be silent, but his game certainly is not.
It literally was all Daye as the 6-foot-11 forward selected No. 15 out of Gonzaga played all 40 minutes for the Pistons (after playing just …

I’m not a fan of making posts solely based on the actions of other teams, but this time I couldn’t tame the demons.
When I went online yesterday to find that Cleveland had given Anderson Varejao a $50 million contract, I said to myself, “That better be for at least 10 years, because anything over mid-level is absolutely ridiculous for this guy.” I knew, however, that would not be the case.
Instead, I was utterly sickened to see that it was for nearly half that long. $50 million for six years. Six …

Antonio McDyess has agreed to sign with the San Antonio Spurs, according to HoopsWorld. It’s likely to be a three-year deal, which is pretty hefty for Dice’s condition, but good for him because I’m sure he was looking for someone who would sign him for at least two years. Guess this is Dice’s final push for a ring.
This could also open the door to signing the Mavs’ forward Brandon Bass.
It’s a shame we had to lose another veteran to another team that I absolutely hate. At this point, however, I …

By Chris Mannix, SI.com
The Detroit Pistons have agreed to terms with Cavaliers assistant coach John Kuester to be their new head coach, a source with knowledge of the negotiations told SI.com.
Another league source said the contract was for two seasons with a team option for a third year.
The Pistons zeroed in on Kuester on Monday after contract negotiations with ESPN analyst and former Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson broke down over the weekend. Kuester, a former Pistons assistant coach under Larry Brown from 2004-06 and an NBA assistant coach since …

Pretty disappointing, to say the least. I felt Johnson was the best candidate for the job, especially because of his ability to whip players into shape and maintain a team’s conduct. I still don’t think Cuban should have let him go from the Mavs.
Can’t really put this one on Joe Dumars either, if Avery was really demanding a long-term contract at $4-5 million a year, it doesn’t really fit into the rebuilding equation.
It looks like the position will now be between Cavs’ assistant coach John Kuester and Celtics’ assistant Tom …

After many successful, frustrating years with Detroit, Rasheed Wallace has committed to the Boston Celtics. As a Sheed fan since his early Blazer days, the move to the rival Celtics stings. San Antonio and Orlando wouldn’t have been much better, but the Celtics may be the worst place he could have landed from a Pistons fan’s point of view.
I’m actually pretty surprised he signed with Boston, considering his playing time will be considerably lower compared to signing with the Magic or Spurs. The Celtics will likely use their mid-level exception …

Arguably, Tayshaun Prince remains the Pistons’ most valuable trade asset. His length, defense, and ability to play almost every position have made him a reasonable prospect for almost any style of basketball.
However, there is a problem with Tayshaun Prince. His progression is completely stagnant.
Prince was 24 when the Pistons won the 2004 championship. He was on top of the world, and the only place he could go was up. The following year, his averages improved considerably. Since then, his stats have done nothing but hover.
Now that the Pistons have morphed …

The signing of Ben Gordon was almost immediately followed by news that the Pistons were signing Bucks forward Charlie Villanueva to a 5-year contract worth $35 million, according to ESPN.com.
It’s a good thing this happened after the Gordon signing, because this move give Joe Dumars a smidgen if his reputability back. I have always liked Villanueva and believe he is grossly underrated. $7 million a season is fair for Chuck’s talent level and will be a bargain when he continues to improve. Really, the guy’s a potential all-star.
But Ben Gordon, …

I am in denial. Apparently, Joe didn’t read my heart-warming letter. One year is one thing, but signing this guy for five years? Plan on five more seasons just like the last one (or until the Pistons can unload that massive contract).
From Yahoo! Sports:
The Detroit Pistons have reached agreement with free-agent guard Ben Gordon(notes) on a five-year contract worth around $55 million, a source with knowledge of the talks told Yahoo! Sports Wednesday evening.
The Pistons are continuing to negotiate with forward Charlie Villanueva(notes).
July 8 is the first day free agents …

If I was cool enough to be able to reach Joe Dumars, I would write him a letter.
I like to keep things brief, so the letter would look something like this:
Mr. Dumars,
I am a loyal Pistons fan. Look, I even have a Pistons blog. But knowing Ben Gordon is at the Palace right now makes me a bit queezy.
Remember how Allen Iverson did with Detroit? Imagine having a player who takes double as many shots, only half of them were ill-advised threes from five feet beyond the arc. Sounds bad, …

This is what Joe D. needed to do- it was the right move, and one that I didn’t think Joe could make this season. Could this be opening the door for Bill Laimbeer?
From mlive.com:
AUBURN HILLS – The never-ending carousel of coaches for the Detroit Pistons continues with the announcement that head coach Michael Curry has been fired.
“This was a difficult decision to make,” said Joe Dumars, Detroit’s president of basketball operations. “I want to thank Michael for his hard work and dedication to the organization. However, at this time, I …

Thanks to Rockin’ Steady for the amazing find. This truly is the best keyboard cat ever.
This is [very] mildly “not safe for work.” You have been warned.

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