Detroit Pistons Off-Season Review And Grades

May 3, 2013; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks small forward Josh Smith (5) grabs a rebound over Indiana Pacers shooting guard Lance Stephenson (1) during the first half in game six of the first round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Free Agent Signings  B-

Josh Smith

The Pistons made the biggest splash in free agency by landing forward Josh Smith.  Josh Smith played his entire career with the Altanta Hawks previous to signing with the Pistons and was a big scoring presence for them.  The knock on Smith is that he never saw a shot he didn’t like and didn’t get teammates involved in the offense.  He shouldn’t have to worry about distribution much with the Pistons.  They acquired him for one purpose.  Shooting and scoring.  Smith can do that with the best of them and his 17.5 points per game will be a welcome on a team that had difficulty scoring last season.

Chauncey Billups

The Pistons needed a floor general and passer and found that when they reacquired Chauncey Billups in the off-season.  Chauncey originally brought in to mentor Brandon Knight at the point but will likely assume the role of starter when the Pistons take the floor in the season opener.

Luigi Datome

The former Italian league MVP will bring his scoring touch to the Detroit Pistons in 2013.  Datome is considered one of the top players in the Italian league and was brought here for the purpose of boosting the Pistons anemic offense.  He will add depth behind Josh Smith and add three-point scoring prowess off the bench.

Will Bynum

Dumars brought Bynum back to add depth to the point especially since the Pistons probably won’t have Rodney Stuckey on the roster for long.

Josh Harrellson

The most recent signing made the Pistons, Josh Harrellson will serve as an insurance for Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe.

The Pistons were one of the teams with the most cap space entering the off-season.  With it, Joe Dumars landed the biggest free agent available on the market other than Dwight Howard.  He then filled out the roster with solid players and the Pistons have more depth entering the 2013-14 season.

On the negative side, Joe Dumars gave new head coach Maurice Cheeks a potential controversy to handle.  Chauncey Billups was brought in the mentor Knight and when that plan suddenly changed, Billups role changed as well. How Mo Cheeks will handle the controversy will be a big part of evaluating this Pistons offseason.

 Continue for Coaching and Overall Grades