Quiet Reformations in San Antonio, Detroit - FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/08/24/quiet-reformations-in-san-antonio-detroit/)


San Antonio and Detroit, though -- both teams have seriously retooled on the down low. Both can claim to be among the older teams in the league. Chauncey Billups and Rasheed Wallace are no spring ducks; Tim Duncan is likewise aging. In today's NBA, it's a challenge to live forever. (Just ask Geoff Petrie, Pat Riley and Mitch Kupchak.) Towns die from too much living; you almost have to hit the bottom to spring back up. 'Rebuilding on the fly' is denial.
But leave it to R.C. Buford (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/tag/%selectedClean%/) and Joe Dumars (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/tag/%selectedClean%/). The Spurs added Tiago Splitter (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/tag/%selectedClean%/) to the program and Ian Mahinmi to the roster (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/08/24/san-antonios-french-population-just-doubled/). They achieved fiscal solvency by unloading salary in the muted Houston deal. They somehow got a one-time lottery kid (Arizona's Marcus Williams) in the second round, and pulled a Shane Battier clone (in Ime Udoka (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/08/13/udoka-to-spurs-who-is-portlands-sf/)) to back up Bruce Bowen. Never mind these are the champions. I wouldn't call them set through 2015... but the Spurs are on their way.

Detroit got younger without doing anything, really. Chris Webber (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/tag/%selectedClean%/) doesn't seem all that likely to return. Dumars re-signed two of the team's elder statesmen (Billups (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/07/07/billups-will-continue-being-the-straw-that-stirs-the-pistons-dri/) and Antonio McDyess (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/07/23/pistons-give-mcdyess-two-year-extension/)), traded away a young gun (http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/06/15/pistons-trade-carlos-delfino-to-the-raptors/).. and promoted Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson. Then he drafted a ready-right-now Rodney Stuckey and a potentially useful Arron Afflalo, and signed a solid rotation player (http://www.detroitbadboys.com/archives/2007-08-16/surprise-the-pistons-sign-jarvis-hayes/) in Jarvis Hayes. Middle of last season, people'd say Detroit's window was closing. That 2010 roster doesn't look so terrible now, does it?

Building a team is a long-term prospect -- don't let Riley's 2006 Heat fool you. Big splashes can work, and hell -- one of this year's roster explosions probably will due to sheer mathematics. But Buford and Dumars are showing the league every single summer how to build a winning program... and no one's biting. More power to them.

Very true...although Dumars lost Ben Wallace and suffered some criticism for it...it all falls into the master plan.

Buford, of course has done a good job maintaing a steady group around Duncan..but he lucked into Duncan after the Spurs tanked (and he was just a scout at the time)..so a lot of his success isn't the result of his own efforts.

Joe D. has done a better job.

interesting how some people can look at that and say we didn't do anything.

interesting how some people can look at that and say we didn't do anything.
We didn't do anything "sexy". In the off season, that's what gets all the attention.

Very true...although Dumars lost Ben Wallace and suffered some criticism for it...it all falls into the master plan.

Buford, of course has done a good job maintaing a steady group around Duncan..but he lucked into Duncan after the Spurs tanked (and he was just a scout at the time)..so a lot of his success isn't the result of his own efforts.

Joe D. has done a better job.
Didn't Buford get Parker and Ginobili though?

interesting how some people can look at that and say we didn't do anything.
Because people though anything other than big names ain't no nothing at all.

Just another blog that wants to get in good with the Pistons.
We here have known this all along.
Now if we could just convince some of the Win Now Club, it would be bliss.
However there could be conflict with his "ready right now" comment about Stuckey.
Rookies ride the pine here.