Forwards Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson will have important roles as they will need to provide McDyess and Wallace with enough rest to keep them effective all season long. Maxiell played very well in a limited role last season for the Pistons. He played in 67 games (8 starts) for the Pistons last season and he averaged 14.1 minutes, 5.0 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. Amir Johnson was outstanding in the D-League last season so the Pistons rewarded him with a decent contract in the off-season and now they will reward him by giving him some playing time. Johnson played in 8 games (0 starts) for the Pistons last season and he averaged 15.5 minutes, 5.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 1.6 blocks per game. Jarvis Hayes was signed away from the Wizards in the off-season and he can fill in at both small forward and shooting guard. He played in 81 games (17 starts) for the Wizards last season and he averaged 20.1 minutes, 7.2 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. Rookie guards Rodney Stuckey and Arron Affalo were drafted with the idea of adding some athletic ability and scoring punch to the bench. That will have to wait for Stuckey who will miss the next few weeks with an injury. Ronald “Flip” Murray did a decent job as the backup shooting guard last season for the Pistons as he played in 69 games (18 starts) and he averaged 21.4 minutes, 6.7 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. Reserve point guard Lindsay Hunter is a defensive specialist for the Pistons. He played in 52 games (0 starts) for them last season and he averaged 14.3 minutes, 4.9 points, 0.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. Center Nazr Mohammed got in Flip Saunders dog house last season but it’s possible that he could play his way out of it this year. He played in 51 games (33 starts) last season for the Pistons and he averaged 15.2 minutes, 5.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.

The Pistons are getting any younger in the starting lineup and they could start fading at any time. Still, it was smart to re-sign point guard Chauncey Billups who makes the Pistons engine purr. He played in 70 games (all starts) for the Pistons last year and he averaged 36.2 minutes, 17.0 points, 3.4 rebounds, 7.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game. Richard Hamilton is Billups’ running partner and he’s really good at mid-range shooting. Hamilton played in 75 games (all starts) for the Pistons last season and he averaged 36.8 minutes, 19.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. Tayshaun Prince returns at small forward but his defensive reputation took a big hit in the Eastern Conference Finals as LeBron James made him look like a fool quite often as he repeatedly posterized him! Prince played in 82 games (all starts) last season for the Pistons and he averaged 36.6 minutes, 14.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. Rasheed Wallace will try to average more rebounds than technical fouls…but it might be close. His game is starting to slip a little bit and the Pistons can’t afford that to continue. He played in 75 games (72 starts) last season for the Pistons and he averaged 32.3 minutes, 12.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.6 blocked shots per game. Antonio McDyess will start at center this season for the Pistons but they only expect him to play slightly more than half of the game. He played in 82 games (3 starts) last season for the Pistons and he averaged 21.1 minutes, 8.1 points, 6.0 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.

First round pick Rodney Stuckey will miss the next six weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a broken left hand. The Pistons were prepared to go into the season with Stuckey as the #3 guard to open the year. Stuckey played in 8 pre-season games (2 starts) and he averaged 12.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.3 steals in 25.8 minutes per game. The Pistons don’t usually play their young players much so they must really like Stuckey. It will be interesting to see if he will be the first guard off of the bench when he’s ready to return.