Piston's Owner, Ex-Teammates Not Happy

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Team owner Bill Davidson was among front-office officials bothered by Wallace's negative public reaction to Detroit's offer.

In addition to angering Davidson, Wallace also upset some of his teammates, including one who said he was "shocked" that a contract that would make the 31-year-old Wallace the highest-paid player in franchise history apparently wasn't enough to convince him to return to the team he has been an integral part of for the past six seasons. Others, however, understood his position.

"What can you say?" said Detroit guard Lindsey Hunter, a Pistons free agent who has agreed to a two-year, $4.5 million contract with the team. "That's a once-in-a-lifetime offer he's got right there. I want him to come back, for selfish reasons, but a deal like that ... you can't blame him for not passing up a deal like that."

Several factors, in addition to the money disparity, contributed to Wallace's willingness to go elsewhere:


There were a number of times during last season when the four-time Defensive Player of the Year, grumbled - both publicly and privately - about the Pistons steering too far away from their defensive-minded roots and relying too heavily on their offense.


Wallace and head coach Flip Saunders didn't always see eye-to-eye on things, either. Wallace was also bothered by his steadily diminishing role on offense.

The Pistons now must begin the search for Wallace's replacement, with no comparable options via free agency.

Detroit may look at Nazr Mohammed, who visited the Pistons when he was a free agent in 2001. They might also pursue Joel Przybilla, who played at the University of Minnesota when Pistons coach Flip Saunders was the head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves. There are also several sign-and-trade possibilities Detroit could pursue, the reason several teams contacted Tellem over the weekend.

Joe Dumars, Detroit's president of basketball operations, has declined to comment on the negotiations with Wallace. However, he said prior to the free agency period that the Pistons may have to prepare for life without Wallace.

"You better have contingencies," Dumars said following the NBA draft last Wednesday. "If this were like a restricted free agent, you could sit here and plot out, 'here's (plan) A and here's (plan) B.' But when it's someone else's call at the end of the day, it puts you in a position where you have to have one or two different plans." </div>

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