What Lawrence Frank must do at the Detroit Pistons? NBA Special Report - Part 6
Use Greg Monroe
The Pistons got more than they would have asked for with Greg Monroe. The kid had talent, they knew that much when they drafted him, but to have such an impact in his rookie season was totally unexpected.
Monroe has shown that he the perfect modern big man of NBA basketball. Athletic, good at rebounding and with a high basketball IQ, Monroe is set for stardom. The question now is can the Pistons make best use of his talents.
Lawrence Frank would do well to notice that the Monroe has a number of talents but the most unique among them, for someone his size, is the players passing. Monroe sees the court very well and has shown in his short time in the
NBA that he can make important plays from the post.
I would suggest Frank make full use of that. Let the offense of the Pistons flow through Monroe every so often. Not burden the guy completely, but let him do his fair share of the work, because he can.
Such a strategy would have a number of advantages, some general and some specific to the Pistons. First off NBA teams are not used to playing against this kind of approach and seem uncomfortable to handle attacks that are routed
through the post.
Using Monroe on most possessions would do a tremendous job of spreading the floor for the Pistons, with Brandon Knight and Austin Daye, another very talented young man, ready to take advantage with some precision shooting.
Slashers will also definitely thrive in such a system and with Monroe sharing the responsibility it will certainly ease the pressure on rookie Brandon Knight, who can then take his time and mature into the game.
Monroe himself is bound to gain loads of confidence and belief in himself if Frank shows the trust in him and this will play a big part in the development of the forward.
There is an underlying theme to this article, in that the veteran players have been left out Detroit proposed plans. This is not a coincidence. The likes of Tracy McGrady, Ben Wallace, Richard Hamilton and even TayShaun Prince
are not going to feature in the Pistons long term plan, and Joe Dumars revealed that Frank was hired with a long term view.
Lawrence therefore is likely to build his side on the shoulders of the younger lot, and the Pistons have quite a talented bunch as well. Greg Monroe, Austin Daye, Brandon Knight, Rodney Stuckey and Ben Gordon all have the potential
to be very good players.
The veterans are going to be dispersed off sooner rather than later. Ben Wallace will retire if not this summer than the next. The other three are likely to be let go or the Pistons will use them as trade bait, although not many
teams are likely to bite. Either way their departure is almost certain and when they do leave the Pistons will have salary room to get hold of important role players, or even a genuine star, that can help them make the step up in quality.
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