Initial Thoughts
Really? These two? That's the best Joe D could come up with? No offense to the former UConn teammates, but they're not the typical Joe Dumars deal. As a Pistons fan, I was rather disappointed that the 19 million or so in cap space was gone on the first day of free agency to these two players. That said, there aren't many quality free agents around but still, maybe wait it out a bit longer.
Ben Gordon
As a basketball fan, you have to love Ben Gordon. He's small, he can get extremely hot, he puts the ball in the hole at a high rate. But for a Pistons fan, he's undersized, he's too streaky and he's a volume shooter. Also, he doesn't really commit on the defensive end. What he does bring to the Pistons undoubtedly is three-point shooting (a department they were sorely missing last season) and a clutch, big-time big-game shooter. The type of guy who has ice running through his veins at the end of close games. And with Stuckey, a big 6-5 point guard, playing alongside him, maybe Gordon's lack of size can be covered on the defensive end. But he'll still have to be indoctrinated to the Pistons way of basketball: hard-nosed, competitive defense that fuels offense. I'm not overly displeased with this signing as I like Ben Gordon, but what does worry me is a similar situation that developed last year. Two very good shooting guards that deserve 34-36 minutes a night. And last season at least Iverson could play the PG, Gordon is most certainly not a PG. Of course Gordon has come off the bench in the past, but you don't sign a guy for 11M a year for 5 years to bring him off the bench. The sad thing about this deal is that it most likely spells the end of Rip Hamilton's tenure as a Detroit Piston.
Charlie Villanueva
I am in the camp that feels Villanueva can develop very well in the right situation. On the face of it, he shoots better, rebounds better and passes better than Rasheed has done in recent years and would do if he were resigned here. But he has a history of being labelled a chucker and a purely offensive talent. Like Gordon, he's going to have to play some D to please Joe D and the Pistons nation. What he is certain when it comes to Villanueva is that he is the new type of hybrid power forward that we saw cause matchup nightmares throughout these most recent playoffs (e.g. Rashard Lewis, Lamar Odom, even Turkoglu). A player with size who is a very potent offensive threat from the perimeter. The worry with Villanueva is that he can fall in love with the 3-pointer, and while he is skilled around the basket, I don't see him giving you a solid 15-20 points from the block. He's going to do it from the perimeter.
Conclusion
These are quick strikes in the offseason, and while it has addressed a weakness of the Pistons (3 point shooting) it has completely failed to address the other: an inside presence on the offensive end. The Pistons interior defense has always been good (this might not be the case with Rasheed and McDyess most probably leaving) but they haven't had a low-post threat in a while. Carlos Boozer was a player that Pistons fans had wanted, but as he was off the market, kudos to Joe D in quickly acquiring two skilled players. One thing is sure: Joe Dumars isn't done yet. Or at least Pistons fans hope he isn't. As there isn't a big man on the free agency market (I'd still like to see Paul Millsap in a Pistons uniform), there are going to have to be trades made. Hamilton will probably be the main trade bait, as the expiring contracts the Pistons have don't amount to much. One rumour has Hamilton going to Utah for Boozer. Many more are likely to come up. One thing remains, Joe D isn't done yet. He can't be.
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