Team page/schedule | Stats: Preseason | Roster
Last year: 32-50, fifth in Central, 10th in conference
Coach/Pres.: Rick Carlisle/Joe Dumars
Arena, first game: Palace of Auburn Hills (22,076); Nov. 5, 1988
All-time franchise record/NBA titles: 1,977-2,177/2
Notable: Stackhouse broke Dave Bing's club record for total points

THE ROTATION
Pos	Player	Key Stat	Skinny
PG	Chucky Atkins	4.1 apg	Can't have point guards shooting .399
SG	Jerry Stackhouse	29.8 ppg	Nearly won scoring title; shooting suffered
SF	Rodney White	rookie	Hoping for 15 and 8, but that's tough
PF	Clifford Robinson	16.4 ppg	Stolen from Phoenix, could have big year
C	Ben Wallace	13.2 rpg	Defensively, a monster; but on offense...
6th	Jon Barry	5.1 ppg	Solid SG can play backup point
7th	Corliss Williamson	.502 FG	Decent scorer, bad rebounder
8th	Dana Barros	44 threes	Capable of lighting it up; defensive liability

		The Pistons are a strange team. They can put points on the board, led by high-scoring Jerry Stackhouse. Cliff Robinson will help them, and Ben Wallace will rebound and block some shots. But Corliss Williamson and Billy Owens are not prototype forwards; Williamson is a 6-foot-7 power forward, and Owens is a 6-9 small forward. While they have a lot of skilled players, they lack a consistent mix. The Pistons have Dana Barros at the point, but ultimately Chucky Atkins should earn the job. Jon Barry is a quality utility player. Mikki Moore is a serviceable backup center. However, I don't see the Pistons moving up into playoff contention.

By Jeffrey Denberg
Special to ESPN.com

The Pistons have a nice bench, not the nicest in the NBA maybe, but they have a nice collection of bench players on their roster. Unfortunately, four of them must join Jerry Stackhouse in the starting lineup every night. There is no recipe for success here after a 32-50 campaign that tested the patience of a once loyal following.

Joe Dumars spent his first year in charge moving John Wallace, Eric Montross, Jerome Williams and Billy Owens, then dumping first-rounder Mateen Cleaves when he decided he wouldn't be good enough. Now that Dumars essentially has the Pistons payroll under control he can try to build a better mouse trip with trades, draft picks and free agents the next two years.

What will that do for first-year head coach Rick Carlisle, finally getting his shot at running a team? Long nights with tape.

Who's Who
Owing Cliff Robinson more than $15 million over two years as he approaches age 36 was incentive enough for the Suns to move him. Needing a guy who can score was incentive enough for Dumars to grab 6-10 Robinson, a career 16-point scorer. On a squad that has more than its share of mediocre multimillionaires, Robinson is a stickout, one guy who can make the defenses look away from Stackhouse for a few moments.

Maybe rookie forward Rodney White will step up after showing so much in his one year at UNC-Charlotte that the Pistons liked him for the ninth pick. But chances are neither White nor any of the assortment of Europeans Dumars added -- try tongue twisters Zeljko Rebraca, Ratko Varda and Mehmet Okur who will challenge new radio analyst Bill Laimbeer as much as the Pistons' frequent losses. Rebraca, 29, was selected by Seattle in the 1994 draft. A solid player in Europe, he was never good enough to make the NBA. That didn't stop three teams from trading him. He can score, but doesn't show the inclination to run the floor or play defense.

Carlisle will test him as he tests the rest of this team. So far, he's shown that he is demanding as a head coach. It was already well known that he is smart enough to do the job.

FANTASY SLEEPER

Clifford Robinson, PF -- Although out of position at center, Robinson will still likely start in the post because he's 6-10, plays good defense and Detroit has few other options. In a starting lineup that features offensive non-factors in Ben Wallace and Michael Curry, Robinson will be relied upon as the second scoring option after Jerry Stackhouse. His average should land in the 18-20 point range, while his increased time in the paint should result in a couple rebounds more than his career average of five.

The Big Question
In a series of problems, the primary is at the point where Chucky Atkins and Dana Barros, both 5-11, provide a one-two slap. They are no match for bigger points and in exhibitions Steve Francis and Jason Kidd dominated them. Dumars is making phone calls, but don't expect much improvement until the summer when he gets a chance to draft from a pool of highly-regarded college players. The Pistons have to be looking at Jason Williams of Duke because their hope for a turnaround depends on landing a player with his skills. After that Carlisle must find another rebounder to help Ben Wallace, only 6-8 but clearly the only player in camp committed to working the boards. A 7-footer who can jump, Mikki Moore can fill that role off the bench. But Moore wants so badly to play small forward he said he practice 200 three-point shots every day. Carlisle counters that he has no plans to try Moore.

Best/Worst Case Scenario
At best the Pistons can expect to match the 32 victories they achieved last season. At worst they will tumble to maybe 20, rivaling Cleveland as the worst team in the East. There simply isn't enough talent here. Stackhouse commands the ball to the point of intimidating his teammates. He scored 29.8 ppg and led the league in points scored (2,330) and free throws made. However, he also led the league in shots attempted (1,927), making only .402 of them, and turnovers with 326. If the Pistons can't spread the wealth, Stackhouse will find himself doubled and tripled out of effectiveness.

OVERRATED	UNDERRATED	TEAM MVP
Chucky Atkins. Should be a backup, might be if he shoots 39 percent again.	Ben Wallace. Nearly led league in boards, and he's only 6-8.	Jerry Stackhouse. Hey, the guy scored nearly a third of their points!