Head coach Michael Curry's latest decision with the rotation leaves center Kwame Brown completely out of the mix. Ultimately, it means more playing time for Antonio McDyess.
After power forward Amir Johnson was reinserted into the starting lineup, Curry planned to start Brown against teams with taller, thicker frontcourts. That plan has been scrapped and Johnson will now start, regardless of the opponent. The Pistons, who play Cleveland in a nationally-televised game Sunday, are 13-6 in games that Johnson has started. "We have done away with that experiment," Curry said. "What we're going to do is continue to start with Amir, just because of his activity, even if we have to put Sheed (Rasheed Wallace) on the top-scoring big and put Amir on a bigger guy. We figure his activity has been better. And then if he gets in a situation where it's tough on him, we'll come in earlier with Dice (Antonio McDyess)."
The Pistons have virtually no chance of catching the Cavs in the Central Division, but they need McDyess on the floor more often to improve their overall defense and rebounding. McDyess started the second half against Boston Friday and played a season-high 38 minutes.
Brown signed a two-year, $8 million contract during the offseason with the hope of jump-starting his disappointing career. But he hasn't been as stout defensively as the Pistons anticipated. Curry also didn't want to have to rely on McDyess this much. Curry planned to limit McDyess to around 20 minutes per game but now believes his top frontcourt reserve can play effectively for 30 minutes a pop. When McDyess is paired to Wallace, they can easily switch defensive assignments.
McDyess got a month off after he was traded to Denver, reached a buyout and then waited to be eligible to re-sign with the team that dealt him. He's averaging 7.0 points and a team-best 8.2 rebounds.
"I just don't think we've played good enough to just wait until the second and fourth quarters to bring in Dice," Curry said. "As I talked to him, this is a fine time now to kind of increase his minutes and feel he'll still be fresh down the stretch."
CELTICS 86, PISTONS 78: The Pistons' main inside threats -- Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess -- were a combined 7-for-31 from the field as Boston defeated the Pistons for the third time this season on Friday night. Celtics All-Stars Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce combined for 42 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists in their team's 10th consecutive win. The Celtics got off to strong starts in both halves and kept the Pistons on a string, letting them hang around and then getting a basket any time it was needed.
