What they need to do this summer: Indiana Pacers

An unusually high number of teams in the League have maneuvered themselves so most of their contracts expire in after this year. Unfortunately for the Pacers, their contracts don't expire until 2011. As a lottery team without expiring contracts, Indiana is in a tough position. In Danny Granger, they have just enough talent to avoid the bottom of the standings. But you don't get better getting late lottery picks.

The Pacers have been rebuilding for what seems like a lot of years now. It feels like the process is taking longer than it should because the team is afraid of some of the personality issues that have plagued the team in years past. Larry Bird seems a little gun shy and would rather get decent guys who might make the playoffs instead of more volatile guys who might compete for a title. Other than Danny Granger, there isn't much in Indiana that can be called a building block for a championship. Pacers fans don't want nice pieces though, they want difference-makers. Here's how Indiana can get back in the thick of things quickly:

1) Trade Jeff Foster. Contending teams would love to have a veteran big man like Jeff Foster. He's smart and defends the post pretty well, which is critical in the playoffs. When he can't defend, he uses his fouls early and in a way that he doesn't give up many and-one's. Well, the Pacers aren't really close to making the playoffs or winning a series even if they do sneak in. So the smart move would be to trade Jeff Foster for some young developing talent who might be able to help Indiana improve its talent. A team like Washington has committed to its current core and could use Foster to anchor its defense. With two young bigs like Andray Blatche and Javale McGee not ready to contribute consistently, the Wizards might be willing to trade Blatche and DeShawn Stevenson for Foster, who would help them a lot immediately. Golden State is another team who could use some veteran help on its frontline, and may be willing to part with some promising younger players like Brandan Wright and Kelenna Azubuike. The point is that Indiana should see what it can get for Foster now while teams are trying to top one another in the summer and before Foster's play declines.

2) Package some of the younger players for a more talented, riskier talent. Indiana is pretty much stuck in the middle of the pack because they can't get enough talent to change their fortunes. While the Pacers got lucky with Granger, the odds of duplicating that type of pickup with late lottery draft picks and no money under the salary cap are not good. Indiana just signed Dahntay Jones, who should fit in nicely next to Danny Granger and as a compliment to Mike Dunleavy if and when he comes back. That should also make Brandon Rush expendable. Rush should be expendable either way because even at his ceiling he's not talented enough to really change Indiana's standing in the League. With a modest salary and sweet shooting stroke, Rush should have some value and could return a player with more upside if the Pacers are willing to give up the known for something more risky. Bill Walker and JR Giddens come to mind, for example. The same things could be said about Roy Hibbert.

I am not sure if there is a market for players like TJ Ford or Troy Murphy, but they aren't going to turn Indiana into anything more than a first-round loser in the playoffs at best. If one could be packaged, Indiana needs to go for it.

3) Play Granger at point forward.There aren't many suggestions for Indiana because they are stuck with big salaries for guys who won't make that big of a difference. Ford, Tinsley, Murphy and Dunleavy all could help some teams around the League. But none of them can carry the load, and all are under contract until 2011. In the meantime while they wait to put the right pieces around Granger, the Pacers should try to develop him into an elite player at the 3. Granger can obviously score the ball, but he can't lead a team yet. He isn't the best at creating for others. While they are stuck in this limbo for another year, Indiana should see if they can't groom Granger to be more versatile so they can increase the number of players who would fit well around him. If he's healthy, the Pacers need to try to do the same thing with Mike Dunleavy. Other than Granger Indiana doesn't have the talent to create mismatches, so they have to try to move players to new positions to create the same effect. A 6'10" point guard would cause teams to match up to you, and not have you always matching up with other teams. Usually, the team who creates the most matchup problems wins.

Unfortunately for Pacers fans, there aren't a lot of answers on the short term horizon. Indiana does not have the talent to make a big leap or the contract situation to improve their talent. Until 2011 when they do, the Pacers need to work on the one building block they have in Granger and take more risks. You can't live afraid of getting another Ron Artest or Jermaine O'Neal forever.

Is Shawn Marion Still Worth This Much?

Getting straight to the point, I have no idea what the hell Dallas is doing in this sign-and-trade for Shawn Marion. I don't think Marion has five productive years left, and if he does I think they are more than likely at the 4. That's Dirk Nowitzki's position, in case the Mavs forgot. I also thought Jerry Stackhouse's contract was much more valuable than overpaying Marion. Not to mention Dallas threw in Antoine Wright? I absolutely hate this trade for the Mavericks. In more detail, here is exactly why:

Dallas is built around Nowitzki, Josh Howard and Jason Terry, whether Terry starts or not. While Kidd is an important piece to their puzzle, those are the three players who make the Mavs run. Dirk eats up most of the minutes at the 4, Howard at the 3, and Terry at the 2. Dirk is Dallas' primary option because he's such a difficult matchup. He's 7 feet tall, which makes him big even for the 4 position. But he's also a threat all the way out to the three-point line and off the dribble, which means he has the ability to take most 4's far away from their comfort zones on the defensive end. He can post, he can spot up, he can beat slower defenders with his handle. He is a matchup nightmare for most teams. Dallas usually goes to Howard early and often in the first and third quarters, and then he fades and tends to float as the game progresses. When Howard disappears, Terry often steps up and takes his place as one of the Mavs' primary options next to Dirk.

How does Marion help any of Dallas' strengths or take away from its weaknesses? I have no clue. He doesn't really help Terry or Dirk much. He could help Howard some by moving him to the 2, but there's not much about the way Howard plays that would be all that much more effective at the 2 than it is at the 3. Howard attacks for five minutes at a time, then disappears. That's not going to change by getting someone else to play off the ball, it will only change by adding someone else who can play on the ball and distribute the ball to keep Howard engaged. Not exactly what you get Shawn Marion for.

Marion's best position in his career has been the 4 because he rebounds extremely well and has huge athletic advantages over most 4's. The advantages Marion had over most 3's were much greater than the size advantages he gave up. But where is Marion going to play for Dallas? After signing Marcin Gortat to play the 5, most of Marion's minutes will have to come at the 3 where I don't think Marion holds much of an advantage anymore. He's never been all that proficient off the dribble, and at 6'8" isn't really all that imposing anyway. So you have a player in Marion whose career success has been predicated on his incredible athleticism. You trade for him to play a position where he doesn't have the same athletic advantages, and you sign him for 5 years when his athleticism seems to be waning? Doesn't make sense.

The only way playing Marion at the 3 makes the Mavs any better is if you pay Howard more minutes at the 2. Howard can probably give you spot minutes in the backcourt, but isn't exactly scary there and means that either Kidd or Terry has to sit a little more. Howard is not aggressive or consistent enough for that move to make a lot of sense.

A lineup with Howard and Marion on the wings does allow for Dallas to match up better against the changes made by the Lakers and Spurs. The Mavs are right in that Howard and Wright would not have fared well against Manu Ginobli and Richard Jefferson, or Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest. But Dallas overpaid by a lot for an aging player whose best position isn't where he's now going to be playing. The Mavs gave up an extremely valuable piece in Jerry Stackhouse's contract just for the right to sign a player who will not be effective for five years to a five-year deal. In a League where everyone seems to be trying to cut costs, Stackhouse had one of the more attractive contracts available. And the value of Stackhouse's contract is that he was attractive to every team looking to cut payroll for next year or to balance out their roster. Teams like Charlotte (Gerald Wallace or Raja Bell), Chicago (John Salmons), New Orleans (James Posey), and Washington (DeShawn Stevenson and Andray Blatche combo) all become viable.

While Marion is still an above-average player, that's at the 4 and not the 3. At the 3, he's pretty much middle of the pack. I don't think this makes Dallas all that much better in the short term. It doesn't seem to add up.

What they need to do this summer: Detroit Pistons

Less than a week into free agency, the Pistons have already done a lot this summer. They added Austin Daye in the draft, then agreed to terms with Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva on the first day free agents were allowed to talk to teams. A lot of people are confused about what exactly Joe Dumars and Detroit are trying to do. The Pistons now have Gordon, Daye, Rodney Stuckey, Rip Hamilton, Will Bynum, and Tayshaun Prince under contract for their perimeter positions, but only Villanueva, Jason Maxiell and Kwame Brown to fill minutes as their bigs. Whether you can see Dumars' vision yet or not, what is clear is that the Pistons are changing their image and style of play.

Most former players who become GM's try to build a team in their own image. Of course that makes sense. People draw on their own experiences and characteristics that helped them become successful to map out what should make a successful team. John Paxson and Larry Bird tried to build teams around heady, high IQ players and put less emphasis on physical talent. Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng, Troy Murphy, Jeff Foster, Travis Diener, and even Jamal Tinsley to a certain extent are all examples of this. Isiah Thomas and Michael Jordan tried to build teams around physical talent with the hopes that they could teach those players how to play. This is why Thomas brought in Zach Randolph when he had Eddy Curry in New York, and why Jordan traded Rip Hamilton for Jerry Stackhouse.

Like most former players, Dumars is trying to build the Pistons around his strengths as a player. By signing Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva, it seems that Detroit will be built on its versatility. While neither are primary ball handlers, both can handle the ball well enough to cause matchup problems and can score off the dribble. Just like Dumars and Thomas and Mark Aguirre. The question the Pistons have to answer has less to do with how their new players fit in and everything to do with how its two remaining starters from the 2004 championship team mesh with the current plans. So here is what Detroit can do to make their vision clearer and return to contender status as quickly as possible:

1) Trade Tayshaun Prince. There have been some rumors about Detroit shopping Rip Hamilton, but it seems like Prince is a worse fit for the Pistons' new core. Stuckey can play the point and the 2. Gordon can play the 2 and give very limited minutes as a backup 1. When Stuckey and Gordon are in the backcourt, Hamilton can swing over to the 3. Villanueva can play spot minutes at the 3 in addition to his minutes at the 4. Prince is the only key perimeter player Detroit has who is sort of stuck playing one position. And the Pistons will have to capitalize on their versatility to keep up with more talented players like LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. The NBA is about creating matchup advantages, then having players who can take advantage of the opportunities from those mismatches. Without an elite superstar talent, Detroit has to have players who can play multiple positions to create and capitalize on their opponents' weaknesses, much like Orlando did against Cleveland by playing two perimeter forwards at the same time.

Detroit should see what they can get for Prince now before they run into a situation like last year where there aren't enough minutes to go around for their perimeter players. A couple of trades that work and may make sense include Prince to the Clippers for Chris Kaman or Marcus Camby, to Portland for some combination of its young talent like Channing Frye and Nicolas Batum, or to Utah for Carlos Boozer. Another interesting trade option for Prince would be to the Suns for Ben Wallace. Giving up Prince for a player who is thinking about retirement would be tough for Detroit fans to swallow, but it would make the Pistons players in next year's free agent market again and drastically speed up the rebuilding process.

2) Trade Aaron Afflalo. Under normal circumstances, Afflalo wouldn't have the same value that he does now. But with the salary cap decreasing and teams more reluctant than ever to go over the luxury tax threshold, players on their rookie contract who can contribute to the rotation are more valuable than ever. With the Pistons' backcourt depth and frontcourt holes, Afflalo is a luxury Detroit cannot afford. Teams like Toronto, Denver and New Orleans all have obvious financial needs that may cause them to give up players or future assets that they wouldn't otherwise part with. If they can get back a big man, the Pistons may also be able to trade Kwame Brown way above his normal market value due to his expiring contract.

3) Target Amar'e Stoudemire. It's no secret that Stoudemire is going to be one of the big-name targets for a lot of teams next year. What's also not a secret is that Stoudemire wants to be the franchise player wherever he goes. That's where a team like Detroit fits in. Most other teams with cap space next summer will not have the backcourt pieces in place the Pistons have. The other teams also will likely be vying for other free agents, which will not feed into Stoudemire's ego the way that Detroit can. And Stoudemire would be a better fit in Detroit than almost any other team he could go to. The Knicks still need a playmaker to make Mike D'Antoni's offense go, Chicago will likely alienate Stoudemire to some extent by rumors of concerns about his character. Miami should have enough cap space to go after Stoudemire, but has Michael Beasley at the 4 as well, and Stoudemire will likely not want to think he is a 5. If Detroit can get under the cap, they may be the best option for Amar'e. Assuming the Pistons are able to trade Prince for expiring contracts, their 2010-2011 lineup could look something like:

• Rodney Stuckey
• Ben Gordon
• Rip Hamilton
• Charlie Villanueva
  
• Amar'e Stoudemire

Detroit would still have players like Jason Maxiell and Austin Daye to round out its bench. That's a young, exciting and versatile lineup that fits Stoudemire's style of play and would make him the focus that he craves. Every night, someone should have a matchup advantage to make the team competitive against just about everyone.

Joe Dumars has a decent vision for the Pistons' future. He doesn't have a star playmaker, so he is creating a lineup based on creating more mismatches than anyone else. But Dumars cannot stop there. He has to be bold and creative in order to keep the Pistons moving in the right direction. If he can take a temporary hit this year and clear some salary cap space, Detroit just might get Amar'e and be in a position to make another long run at the top of the Eastern Conference.