The Pistons finally got the piece of the puzzle they have been looking for, a seven-footer and real big man who can play center.
Despite looking at a couple of big guys from North Carolina, the Pistons couldn't pass on Andre Drummond.
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No way did Pistons president Joe Dumars think Drummond, the Connecticut center, would be there when they picked ninth in the NBA Draft on Thursday night.
Drummond, who just played one season in college, has loads of talent, according to scouts.
Still, there are some questions. He is not a finished product and must be developed. Still, the hardest position to fill in the NBA is a true center. There just aren't that many big guys around. And most of the ones that are around, just aren't usually any good.
"A couple of days ago, all the chatter with other GMs was there's a possibility he could be there at 9," said Dumars to the media after the pick. "I thought, there's no way he can fall to 9. Very bright kid, very intelligent, handles himself very well. Such a huge guy and you think a grown man's body but he's an 18-year-old kid."
This will give the Pistons a nice young trio to build around. Drummond joins guard Brandon Knight and forward Greg Monroe. Ironically, all three players dropped from their projected draft spots and the Pistons were able to select them.
"If you didn't see my reaction, I cried when I heard my name being called," Drummond told reporters. "It's just a great feeling knowing that I am going to a great organization and a great family."
Lions To Blame
The latest Lion to be arrested this offseason was cornerback Aaron Berry.
According to police, Berry drove his car into two parked cars at 4:32 am in Harrisburg, Pa, his hometown. A witness told police that Berry parked his car after the incident and entered a hotel. Berry, 24, refused a breathalyzer test. There's no court date yet for Berry's misdemeanor DUI charge.
Sure, Berry issued an apology and said he wouldn't do it again.
We've been hear this all offseason from Lions players. Berry is now the sixth player to arrested in the last five months.
What a disgrace.
The Lions are to blame.
Obviously, the Lions don't do the best background checks and have drafted flawed players when it comes to character. That can't be dismissed.
Lions coach Jim Schwartz can frown all he wants and GM Martin Mayhew can say the organization is disappointed.
But at some point, the team must make a statement and let players known in no uncertain terms that this reckless behavior won't be tolerated by any player on the team -- from star player to last man.
You can't keep making threats of punishment and not carry through. The Lions said this in a statement: ``This is not the standard of behavior we expect from any member of our organization. We have strongly and repeatedly emphasized the need to be accountable on and off the field, which makes this incident with Aaron all the more disappointing.''
At some point, the Lions will have to cut someone. The Dallas Cowboys did it in 2004 with starting quarterback Quincy Carter after a failed drug test. Go look it up.
Panic For Tigers
The announcement that Toby Harrah will work with hitting coach Lloyd McClendon is a panic move by the Tigers.
If the Tigers don't feel McClendon isn't getting the job done, they should have just fired him. This makes no sense to have two hitting coaches. There have been a few examples of this, but not many.
This is clearly a case of where too many cooks can spoil a broth.
Yes, the Tigers' offense was brutal in Pittsburgh recently. Still, just a few days ago, they were fifth in the league in batting average and sixth in the AL in runs.
You just don't want your players getting confused listening to too many people when it comes to hitting because everybody has his own way of doing it.
Either way, it's not great for manager Jim Leyland that an outside coach, not one of his guys, is being forced on him this late into the game. Stay tuned.