Introduction

2003 NBA Draft

GM: Curtis Hill, NBA Disaster Consultant

Wow. For the first time in a while I get to work with a team that is a whole lot closer to a NBA title than the first spot in the lottery. I do feel badly that Jerry West was oh-so-close to a dream come true, but Detroit fans have to be happy that the stars might align in the next year or two in such a way that the Pistons might be called "NBA Champions" again.

While the #2 pick for the Pistons isn't much of a challenge this year, this will be a very active and important off season for the Pistons. There is going to be several roster moves and the picks at #25 and #58 are likely not to be throwaways.

Detroit started making waves pre-draft, firing Rick Carlisle in favor of Larry Brown. While it was a tough move, getting the Hall of Famer is going to be a good move for the Pistons. He's a great teacher, works well with younger players, and is hungry for his first NBA Championship.

Detroit needs a quality inside player and some help at backup guard and wing. With picks at #2, #25, and #58, they have a good chance of filling two of those needs.

Current Team Roster/Status

2002-03 Roster 
 
No Name                 Po   Ht   Wt  DOB      College 
7  Atkins, Chucky       G    5-11 160 8/14/74  South Florida 
20 Barry, Jon           G    6-5  210 7/25/69  Georgia Tech 
1  Billups, Chauncey    G    6-3  202 9/25/76  Colorado 
12 Curry, Michael       G    6-5  227 8/22/68  Georgia Southern 
24 Davis, Hubert        G    6-5  183 5/13970  North Carolina 
32 Hamilton, Richard    G/F  6-7  193 2/14/78  Connecticut 
5  Manning, Danny       F    6-10 241 5/17/66  Kansas 
31 Okur, Mehmet         C    6-11 249 5/26/79  Turkey 
22 Prince, Tayshaun     F    6-9  215 2/28/80  Kentucky 
39 Rebraca, Zeljko      C    7-0  257 4/9/72   Serbia-Montenegro 
52 Reid, Don            F    6-8  255 12/30/73 Georgetown 
30 Robinson, Clifford   F    6-10 225 12/16/66 Connecticut 
14 Sanchez, Pepe        G    6-4  195 5/8/77   Temple 
3  Wallace, Ben         F    6-9  240 9/10/74  Virginia Union 
35 Williamson, Corliss  F    6-5  245 12/4/73  Arkansas 

2002-03  Detroit Pistons Stats

Player      G  GS  MPG   PPG  RPG   APG  FGPT   FTPT   TPPT   PF  TO   DQ  HI

HAMILTON   82  82  32.2  19.7  3.9  2.5  0.443  0.833  0.269  249  200  1  34
BILLUPS    74  74  31.5  16.2  3.7  3.9  0.421  0.878  0.392  136  134  1  33
ROBINSON   81  69  34.9  12.2  3.9  3.3  0.398  0.676  0.336  258  158  4  25
WILLIAMSON 82   1  25.1  12    4.4  1.3  0.453  0.79   0.2    238  126  0  22
ATKINS     65   7  21.5   7.1  1.5  2.7  0.361  0.816  0.355  108   77  0  21
BARRY      80   0  18.4   6.9  2.2  2.6  0.45   0.86   0.407  104   81  0  19
WALLACE    73  73  39.3   6.9 15.4  1.6  0.481  0.45   0.167  178   87  0  17
OKUR       72   9  19     6.9  4.7  1    0.426  0.733  0.343  167   66  0  22
REBRACA    30  12  16.3   6.6  3.1  0.3  0.552  0.792  0       79   29  0  21
PRINCE     42   5  10.4   3.3  1.1  0.6  0.449  0.647  0.435   25   21  0  13
CURRY      78  77  19.9   3    1.6  1.3  0.402  0.8    0.296  163   43  0  11
MANNING    13   0  6.8    2.6  1.4  0.5  0.406  0.833  0.375   11    7  0  18
DAVIS      43   1  7.6    1.8  0.8  0.7  0.392  0.833  0.333   23   11  0  11
REID        1   0  10     1    0    0    0      0.5    0        4    0  0   1
SANCHEZ     9   0  4.1    0    0.7  0.9  0      0      0        3    2  0   0
Total       -   - 24.1    9.1  4    2    0.43   0.771  0.359 1746 1042  6   -
Opponent    -   - 24.3    8.8  4.1  1.8  0.438  0.746  0.346 1902 1098  9   -

Player MIN PTS FGM-FGA FTM-FTA TPM-TPA ORB DRB TRB AST STL BLK

HAMILTON   2639 1612  570-1286  440-528   32-119   88  230  318  208  64  13
BILLUPS    2328 1199  366-870   318-362  149-380   38  235  273  287  63  15
ROBINSON   2824  992  372-935   161-238   87-259   81  237  318  268  87  95
WILLIAMSON 2061  987  374-826   237-300    2-10   147  211  358  104  44  25
ATKINS     1398  462  168-465    40-49    86-242   21   75   96  175  27   4
BARRY      1473  555  191-424    86-100   85-209   33  147  180  206  63  14
WALLACE    2872  506  210-437    85-189    1-6    293  833 1126  120 104 230
OKUR       1367  494  180-423    96-131   37-108  117  218  335   71  25  39
REBRACA     488  198   80-145    38-48     0-0     27   65   92    9   6  14
PRINCE      435  137   53-118    11-17    20-46     5   40   45   24  10  15
CURRY      1556  236   92-229    36-45    16-54    16  111  127  104  44   3
MANNING      89   34   13-32      5-6      3-8      7   11   18    7   9   3
DAVIS       328   79   31-79      5-6     12-36     7   29   36   29   5   0
REID         10    1    0-3       1-2      0-0      0    0    0    0   0   0
SANCHEZ      37    0    0-5       0-0      0-0      4    2    6    8   5   0
Total     19905 7492 2700-6277 1559-2021 530-1477 884 2444 3328 1620 556 470
Opp       19905 7190 2744-6269 1413-1895 289-835  859 2529 3388 1500 567 356

Salaries

As usual, I'd like to give credit to Patricia Bender and her excellent NBA resource site at http://www.dfw.net/~patricia

Detroit Pistons           Date    # of      total 
Player                   signed   years     salary     misc          FA
Jon Barry .............  8/10/00    3     $9 million                '03
Michael Curry .........   8/2/99    5    $12 million          p-opt '03
Richard Hamilton ......   9/7/99    4     $8,603,543    rc    t-opt '03
Danny Manning .........   2/5/03    1      minimum                  '03
Don Reid ..............  7/25/01    2    $2.1 million               '03
Hubert Davis ..........   8/1/00    4    $10 million                '04
Zeljko Rebraca ........  7/24/01    3    $11,550,000    t-opt '03 & '04
Mehmet Okur ...........  8/21/02    2    $2.1 million               '04
Pepe Sanchez ..........  9/18/02    2      minimum                  '04
Chucky Atkins .........   8/3/00    6    $22.5 million              '06
Tayshaun Prince .......   9/2/02    4     $4,541,153    rc    t-opt '06
Clifford Robinson ..... 8/1/99,3/11/03  4+3  $29+$15.4 mill   t-opt '06
Ben Wallace ...........   8/3/00    6    $30 million                '06
Corliss Williamson ....  7/24/01    6    $31,500,000                '07
Chauncey Billups ......  7/17/02    6    $33.7 million              '08

rc = rookie contract, 1st round picks from 1995 and on are signed to 3 year contracts at a set range, with for picks from 1998 and on with a 4th year at the team's option

t-opt = team option year(s) (if team chooses, player will be under contract for another year)

FA = year player becomes a free agent (year = summer of) [Note: For players who have less than 3 years of experience (most noteably, rookies), the players are restricted free agents - their team can match any offer made to the player. 1st round draft picks who have completed the 4th year of their rookie contract are also restricted free agents.]

The NBA salary cap is about 41 million dollars. The salary cap next season will probably be between 41 and 43 million.

Detroit is in a position that they could have a nice salary slot open after this season. A good season and Larry Brown's presence could mean a quality player could join a very good team in 2004.

Detroit Pistons         Total: $47,777,892
  Clifford Robinson ..........  $8,421,875
  Ben Wallace ................  $5,200,000
  Chauncey Billups ...........  $4,546,000
  Corliss Williamson .........  $4,500,000
  Zeljko Rebraca .............  $3,850,000
  Chucky Atkins ..............  $3,600,000
  Jon Barry ..................  $3,175,000
  Hubert Davis ...............  $2,687,500
  Richard Hamilton ...........  $2,681,783
  Michael Curry ..............  $2,600,000
  Mikki Moore ................  $2,412,500  [released]
  Don Reid ...................  $1,100,000
  Mehmet Okur ................  $1,000,000
  Tayshaun Prince ............    $903,360
  Pepe Sanchez ...............    $587,435  [minimum]
  Bobby Simmons ..............    $512,435  [released]

Current Team FA Status

Free agents: Barry, Curry (player option), Hamiton (team option), Manning, Reid

Current Team/Player Breakdown

Guards

Atkins, Chucky G 5-11 160 8/14/74 South Florida

Chucky is a solid player but with his salary and the improving play of Chauncy Billups, most expect Chucky to be traded this offseason. With the recent coaching change, I think this is a very likely scenario as Larry Brown will be looking to find "his type" of players to bring to Detroit.

Billups, Chauncey G 6-3 202 9/25/76 Colorado

Maybe not a break out season for Chauncey, but certainly a very good year -- good enough that the Pistons can move Chucky Brown and look for a solid backup instead.

Curry, Michael G 6-5 227 8/22/68 Georgia Southern 

A player option FA, another player who will likely find himself traded over the offseason.

Davis, Hubert G 6-5 183 5/13970 North Carolina

Hubert has one year left on his contract. I expect given his North Carolina pedigree, Larry will keep Hubert around for the last year of his contract. Hubert can provide some experienced backup at the guard spots and perhaps mentor a guard if Detroit selects one at #25.

Barry, Jon G 6-5 210 7/25/69 Georgia Tech

Jon has game left, but given the current situation with the Pistons, it is unlikely he will return, instead moving on as a FA.

Forwards/Swing Forwards

Hamilton, Richard G/F 6-7 193 2/14/78 Connecticut

Rip really busted out after getting out of Washington. Certainly a player the Pistons expect to build around over the next few years and gives a coach a little flexibility at the 2/3 spot. A FA next year and a key player for the Pistons to re-sign.

Manning, Danny F 6-10 241 5/17/66 Kansas

This should be Danny's last year as a player. He might well return to the bench, or at least the extended bench, as an assistant to Larry Brown, his college coach. There has been a lot of talk that Danny wants to coach and he allegedly lobbied hard for a spot on the KU bench in the wake of Roy Williams' return to Chapel Hill. Working a year or two for Danny would be the best training he could get if he wants to coach in the future.

Prince, Tayshaun F 6-9 215 2/28/80 Kentucky

A quiet regular season was followed by a break out performance in the playoffs. I'm not 100% sold on Tayshaun as a NBA star, but I think he's going to be very good at the least and a valuable offensive weapon. It will be very interesting to see how Larry Brown uses Prince next season.

Centers/Power Forwards

Okur, Mehmet C 6-11 249 5/26/79 Turkey

Okur showed some promise this season. Detroit gets to keep Okur on the cheap for the upcoming season. He'll certainly be playing for a bigger money FA contract whether with Detroit or another team.

Rebraca, Zeljko C 7-0 257 4/9/72 Serbia-Montenegro

Rebraca is another player with plenty of promise. All indications are that Detroit will stick with Rebraca for another season. Certainly his PPM production in the regular season warrants an extended look.

Reid, Don F 6-8 255 12/30/73 Georgetown

A solid, veteran presence -- but a FA as well. I think he will be unlikely to return to the Pistons unless Larry Brown or Joe Dumars has a fondness for Reid.

Robinson, Clifford F 6-10 225 12/16/66 Connecticut

Another solid, veteran presence and, to me, the player the Pistons would most like to trade solely for salary cap purposes. Easier said than done. Clifford can still play a lot of minutes and if LB believes he can bust it on both ends of the court I think he can get a lot of run next season.

Wallace, Ben F 6-9 240 9/10/74 Virginia Union

How can you not love Ben Wallace's game? What a great throwback player. LB loves great defensive players and Ben Wallace should be a player LB will enjoy coaching. A steadily improving offensive game is making Big Ben even more dangerous.

Williamson, Corliss F 6-5 245 12/4/73 Arkansas

Corliss has certainly had a longer and more impressive NBA career than I expected when he left college for The League. He changed his game to suit the NBA style and has become a valuable and effective performer. Expect Corliss to get plenty of opportunities next season to maximize his effectiveness.

Team Needs

Detroit primarily needs more scoring options on the court, ideally in the post as a compliment to Ben Wallace. Detroit is solid in the backcourt with Billups and Hamilton. Wallace is solid whether he is at 4 or 5. Prince is an emerging presence on the wing, though more help is be needed there.

Other needs depend on the roster moves the Pistons make over the summer. However, it is likely that help will be needed in the backcourt in a reserve roll and the #25 pick will focus on this need, though if an interesting wing player is available that is a possibility.

Future Direction

There are many directions the Pistons can go in the future. Clearly, Larry Brown is here to win "his" championship. However, this will not mean that the Pistons will rely solely on veteran players. Look for Brown to bring in one or two of "his" players -- players like Eric Snow and Derrick Coleman are obvious, but don't forget someone like George Lynch. There will be plenty of new names on the roster next season.

The Pistons, if they are smart and have a little bit of luck, will also clear enough cap room to sign a "big name" FA in 2004. A solid 2003 campaign and Larry Brown will make Detroit an attractive franchise for the 04 FA crop.

Detroit is also on the verge of having a good, solid young nucleus to build around for the future and can be a legitimate NBA title contender for the next several years. Heady times indeed for Joe Dumars and Larry Brown.

Draft Options

Unless someone unexpectedly falls in the draft or the Pistons have an unexpected player they love available, the Pistons will likely be looking to supplement their backcourt with the #25 pick. There are a host of players, American and international, who could be the pick here. The following is certainly not a complete list of possibilities.

Marcus Banks, 6'1", UNLV -- Well thought of PG

Leandrinho Barbosa, 6'4", Brazil -- Not available in this mock draft, might be in the real deal.

Troy Bell, 6'1", Boston College -- a scoring guard with some PG potential; another possible fit for the Pistons

Brian Cook, 6'10", Illinois -- available in the mock; might be very tempting if Detroit expects backcourt help from trade/FA

Carlos Delfino, 6'7', Brazil -- solid 2 guard with point potential. Could be defensive menace.

Ndudi Ebi, 6'9", Westbury Christian HS, Houston -- available in this mock; doubt Pistons would pick

Carl English, 6'5", Hawaii -- a player I like better than the pick many point to for this pick, Travis Hansen

Travis Hansen, 6'5", BYU -- great Portsmouth tournament has Hansen moving up the draft charts

Maurice Williams, 6'1", Alabama -- scoring point guard who would be tempting for the Pistons if he is available

Draft Pick

Carlos Delfino, SG, 6'7", Argentina

I think will all available information, the Pistons will be looking for a guard with size at this pick. I think Delfino is the best choice available for Detroit at this posiiton, providing a player with size who will likely be able to play shooting guard, some point guard, and some wing. He also has the potential to be an excellent defender. Very tough call over Brian Cook, who is almost certainly not going to be on the board at #25 on Thursday night.

What will the Pistons do?

This is not totally clear. If the Pistons think they can address their guard needs through trades or FA signings, they will take the best player available. If not, they will take the best guard available. This year, it is pointless to read the future this deep into the draft.