McDyess was talking about a young Chauncey Billups, whose successor in Detroit, Rodney Stuckey, is going through similar growing pains.

"It just doesn't happen overnight," said McDyess, who also played with Billups in Denver in 1999. Billups was in his second season that year, much like Stuckey this season.

"He (Stuckey) played minutes last year, but not major minutes," McDyess said.

"I still look at him as a rookie that's really starting this year. He'll progress more and more and get better."

That needs to happen soon for the Pistons to have a shot at winning their first-round playoff series against top-seeded Cleveland, which begins today with Game 1 at Cleveland.

The 6-foot-5 guard has been among the NBA's top second-year players this season, averaging 13.4 points and 4.9 assists per game.

But individual success means little to the Pistons.

It is all about winning games, something they did not do enough this season. At 39-43, Detroit suffered the franchise's first losing season since 2001.

While there are many reasons for the team's struggles, Stuckey's inconsistent play this season has been one of the contributing factors.

"This year has been frustrating," Stuckey said. "But me personally, it's just a growing process for me. I'm still young. I still have a lot of Basketball to play. It's been up and down."

Those ups and downs are magnified for a player such as Stuckey, who replaced Billups, a four-time All-Star and NBA Finals MVP.

Billups was part of the

Nov. 3 trade that sent him and McDyess to Denver for All-Star Allen Iverson.

Iverson and the Pistons agreed earlier this month he would not play in the postseason due to soreness in his back.

Filling the void left by Billups is something Stuckey has been dealing with all season.

"That's part of it," Curry said. "He understands that. That doesn't make you grow any faster. You still have to go through things because the guy that you're replacing, he went through a lot of stuff, too.

"In the midst of it, sometimes I think we all forget that. It was a while before Chauncey Billups became the player he was. A lot of people gave up on him before that time."

McDyess remembers Billups' biggest problem early in his career was balancing his ability as a big-time scorer with getting the rest of his teammates involved in the offense.

He has seen Stuckey having similar struggles this season.

"Stuckey right now is such a raw talent," McDyess said. "He's got all these veterans on the court and he's thinking at the same time, 'I can score the ball also, but I still need to get these guys involved.'

"That can hurt a young guy's game. At that point, he's thinking, 'What am I to do?' "

The Pistons and Stuckey both understand it will take time to find that kind of balance.

"I know I'm going to grow. I know I'm going to get better," Stuckey said.

"That's not an issue with me."