Allen Iverson: A Piston; McDyess, Maybe?

0-2. That is what the Pistons are with Allen Iverson.

What does that mean? Absolutely nothing. Basically, it means that a team that has played the same way for about 7 straight years is adjusting. Is anyone surprised? I sure hope not, because if you are, you probably shouldn't be reading my blog.

But here is the question: Couldn't this deal have been done, say, 2 months ago? (Yes, this blog is yet another criticism of Joe Dumars. So, if you would like to have his babies, quit reading now.)

Seriously, what happened in a week, that couldn't have happened over an entire offseason?

Im pretty sure most of the bigger Pistons fans knew that Carmelo wasn't available, but Marcus Camby and Allen Iverson were. A. Sherrod Blakely reported this very fact on WXYT last June.

Look, don't get me wrong, I love this deal. The Pistons are now a front runner for the Lebron James/Dwayne Wade/Chris Bosh sweepstakes in 2010. They also have a legitimate scorer and a superstar face on their team for the first time since Grant Hill. I think this is a good move for this year and a great move for 2010.

In addition, I appreciate the fact that Joe probably exhausted every option to get a player possibly of a higher caliber than Allen Iverson (see Carmelo, T-Mac, Josh Smith).

HOWEVER, the New Jersey Nets had no business beating the Pistons on Friday night, and the Boston Celtics had no business holding the Pistons to under 80 points. Losses like these are a direct result of growing pains; growing pains that could have been avoided by having Iverson on the team BEFORE the preseason.

I mean, seriously, does learning that a team doesn't want to trade you their superstar soak up 4 months of our General Manager's time? None of those players changed teams, the next best choice was Iverson. Seems like this deal could have been done in late July, early August.

I suppose I can't guarantee that the Pistons would be 4-2 (or 6-0 for that matter) if Iverson was on the team during camp and during the preseason, but it seems like some of the really bad plays could have been avoided with a little more familiarity between Iverson and the team.

I know, its a long season, and 2 losses in the grand scheme of 82 games really isn't that big of a deal. I just wanted the raise the question: if Iverson was available in June, why didn't he arrive until November?

McDyess-less second unit looks rough.

The Pistons can get away with playing Kwame Brown against teams like the Bobcats, but McDyess is severely missed against bigger and better teams, like the Celtics.

As stated in many articles, McDyess has a strong mid-range game that has to be respected by post defenders. He thereby draws bigger men away from the basket, allowing slashers, like Iverson and Stuckey to get to the basket and make high percentage shots.

The Pistons need McDyess if they want to get back to the Finals. He can sign with us in 28 days. Let's just hope that the lure of the Celtics recent championship or the enticement of more money (like 3 times more) from Cleveland doesn't prevent him from coming back to Detroit. There are reports that he only wants to play for Detroit. I really hope they are right because McDyess is probably the most valuable bench player.