“(Dumars is) great at taking a team from nothing to something over time.”
The development of the 2000 (Atkins-Stackhouse-Wallace) Pistons, being built into the 2004 team is Joe Dumars' claim to fame. Without question, Dumars made several brilliant moves during this juncture. Notably:
-Signing Chauncey Billups as a free agent
-Trading Jerry Stackhouse for Rip Hamilton
-Drafting Mehmet Okhur and Tay Prince with low picks
-Getting Rasheed Wallace without giving anything up
-The Carslile/Brown coaching hires
Two things should be noted before you crown Joe the king of rebuilding: intent and fortune. As I’ve said before, Dumars actually intended to resign Grant Hill. What actually happened was Plan B, a fortunate accident. Also, all of those moves worked out better than even Joe would have imagined, an incredible streak of good luck.
Dumars has done this exactly once. He himself talks about how difficult (and unlikely) it is to do again, openly expressing a reluctance to do so. This is the problem.
Dumars’ refusal to acknowledge the reality (a team-of-nothing) is the root of the current problems. Dumars is not only unproven as a franchise re-builder, but he seems unwilling to take the task on. Dumars is the wrong guy for the job precisely because he isn’t taking the team up from nothing, but steadily digging it deeper into a pit.
When the Pistons fire Joe Dumars he will (and should be) rehired by another organization. He deserves a 2nd chance to build a title contender. But for now, he is the wrong guy for the Pistons, because hes not the man for the job of rebuilding the team. Fire Joe Dumars!
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
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2 comments:
Also, all of those moves worked out better than even Joe would have imagined, an incredible streak of good luck.
is dumars on record as saying this? most of your issue with him probably has to do with his ability to evaluate talent. perhaps that first go-round he correctly misevaluated is options, you know. as far as he was concerned they were brilliant moves.
He has said Ben worked out better than he hoped. I doubt he thought Chauncey would be the best PG in basketball (which for a short stretch between Kidd's decline and Paul's entry, he was). But you're right, his success could be distorting his present decisions.
I don't question Dumars ability to evaluate talent (at least past the lottery). I question his vision and ability to think objectively.
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