Dupree to be cut

As much as it would pain me to do so, Amir Johnson is the odd man out for me. I know he has an "upside", but if Prince went down, what then? I would rather have Dupree as my starter then Delfino or Evans. Nothing against the two, but I'd rather have someone who knows Piston Hustle and still not need to score to be effective. Can't we waive the 18 year old? Who'd pick him up off waiver? Keep Dupree and Acker and resign Johnson next year.

This is a solid rumor.

MOLA is a trusted friend of mine, and he is confident in his source.

http://s2.phpbbforfree.com/forums/wtfdetroit-about72.html

Thanks Glen,
I know Mola's source has been right before... although Joe did say he still doesn't know which way it's going.

I was surprised to see that Hunter retiring is not an option... how many teams are going to claim a guy recovering from surgery ... with no return date scheduled?

History

Do any of you remember Joe's last year as a player? He wanted to come back for one more year (lockout shortened season). And to make room, management had to move the guy they had just drafted that year (Bonzi Wells). They drafted him while there was still some uncertainty regarding whether Joe would return. We gave Wells to Portland for nothing.

How does this apply to the current situation? The team had to make a decision between being loyal to a veteran (who was only going to give them one more year) and keeping a talented young player who would be an asset for several years. Sound familiar? (Acker v Hunter)

Being loyal to Joe has paid off for the franchise - but on a pure basketball talent basis, I think management made the wrong decision. I think once Joe got into management, he probably wished he still had Bonzi on his roster.

If Joe really thinks Acker will be difficult to replace next year, then he's got to keep him. However, as good as Acker may be, I think he can be replaced - despite the fact that we don't have a first round draft pick.

I can't see taking up valuable roster space

with an injured player who is at the age where his recovery cannot be flat out guaranteed. But even if it can be justified, how to you cut a good veteran player who is still very young, agile, a real team player, and good in so many aspects for a rookie who probably has a real upside but needs a couple of years to mature?

We cannot keep everyone and we already have a very young team that has been successful but is still on the rise. We just cannot keep all the young players who show good upside when we have players who are much more experienced and still show upside from there.

When you look at it from Ron's point of view however, maybe he would be better served to go to a team where he could play. He will not get much PT here, even if he stays. His mouth should be watering at the possibility of someone signing him at a good salary to a team where he could actually contribute and still draw the money from the Pistons, in addition. But he would probably give that up to be able to stay here.

It is a great problem to have. I hope the solution does not involve Ron going to SA. That would hurt !!!

If Joe would have known that Dupree would be hitting his jumpers like this he may not have signed Evans (although Evans has better range).
The reality is that Dupree may only be a borowed player for a year anyways... he should get an offer next year from a team that will promise him more PT.... how can he be satisfied spending the year on the inactive list with no chance of showing his abilities?

With no draft choices next year we could be looking at almost the same roster and maybe a trade.
I would be surprised if they spend any of the MLE with Ben & Tay re-signing... we'll still have a problem with too many players on the roster.
You would have to assume Hunter will retire next year... leaving a need for a PG.... all this leads to the logical choice of keeping Acker for insurance.

Ok pony up ... what's your prediction for who will be cut?

I'll say Dupree (even though I don't like the idea).

Cut

I predict it is Lindsay. Even though Dumars hinted against it.

I don't think Flip has the same attachment to Lindsay that LB did.

Nuts

This is crazy. I've never heard of a team having 16 legitimate NBA players on the roster. Often numbers 11 and 12 are a little bit iffy.

If LH were healthy right now, I'd probably keep Dupree and let Acker go. With LH out, an injury to CB or CA leaves us without any depth there.

Realistically, Dupree is the third backup swingman right now, and probably won't play much. And I agree with Merc-we wouldn't be able to keep him beyond this season anyway. He is very capable of being a 15-minute per game backup on a pretty decent team.

If it is Dupree who is released, I wish him all the best and hope he finds a nice fit somewhere, although I would prefer it not be SA.

Acker worth all this?

Come on, is this guy really that good? Is he really the 3rd best point guard on the team (not including LH)?

Couldn't we get by with TP or Delfino bringing the ball up occasionally if Chauncey or CA is unavailable? At least until LH is healthy enough to play.

Couldn't we release Dupree and pick up a free agent point that would be at least as good, if not more experienced than Acker?

Is this that hard?

Dupree = 3rd Swing Man off the Bench?

Is Dupree really the 3rd best swing man off the bench?

I would agree that he is the 3rd highest paid swing man off the bench. He is, however, probably the tallest, probably the fastest, and probably the most athletic swing man off the bench. In other words, I don't think that there is much of a drop off even if he is the 3rd man.

If this is the case, then why not showcase Dupree as trade bait during the first few months of the season? He's not going to hurt the team if he gets more minutes than the other guys. If he can produce for us, then somebody will be willing to part with a second rounder for him. And then we'd have another chip to play in next summer's search for Lindsay's replacement. Heck, Acker might be looking for a job.

I posted in another thread that I am not impressed with Acker at all. He's not a natural PG and Delfino and Tay are much more effective and comfortable at the pt than Acker is. The boy is slow of foot also, I've noticed that he doesn't beat his man off the dribble to draw a rotation, and he was a matador to Terry and Harris last night. Dupree should be the one to stay but............
Dupree is GOOOOD!!!! He deserves to PLAY, and on this team it's not likely that he'll get clock, in a perfect world we'd send him to Chicago with Acker for Janero Pargo. I say keep Acker only because Dupree should be on a team where he can get some clock and get a decent pay-day just like Evans.

those are also the main things i was thinking as to why dupree should stay over acker.

After watching Dupree again last night, I'm afraid I would cut Acker. He may turn out to be a solid NBA player like Bonzi but at this point Dupree can help us this year and you know the effort, the attitude you are going to get from Dupree will help the team....I think sometimes we get hung up on the potential of all these young players and want to dump the solid vets that have paid their dues and deserve a roster spot because the shiny, new untested player has "potential"

Dupree has earned his spot...cut Acker loose.

I agree and have been worried about the lack of experience since the start of the offseason.

I love the potential of these guys, but that doesn't mean much right now, especially to a veteran team like SA.

These guys could be unstoppable in a few years, assuming all of them pan out. But lets face it, how often do you see a team batting 1000% with their draft picks? Chances are 1 or more of these guys are going to fade away.

Even still, I do like their potential and hope that at least half of them can get some quality minutes in the regular season so we aren't left in the same boat as last year come playoff roster decision making time.

Well, maybe Joe IS showcasing Dupree. But if he's going public saying that Dupree is still potentially the guy to get cut, he's not giving himself much leverage to get a good deal.

Besides, Dupree really hasn't played enough for me to think that some "showcasing" is going on.

Point well defended.

I don't think he hurts us if he plays over someone else. In fact, he may be best suited for the job.

Despite his SL showing, one might argue the assertion that he is a "legit" point. Particularly on a championship contender.

Good point again. But the teams that manage their assets the best are generally the most healthy.

I'm just not keen to see him cut, moved yes, but cutting him means not getting good value out of a valuable resource.