people need to stop busting the kids balls. he is a kid after all. i dont know why people expect first round draft pics to become an all-star and the leading scorer once they sign a contract. let the kid learn and grow. he is surrounded by good/smart people.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting SupraJames:</div><div class="quote_post">I think the common thing that we all can agree is that Darko is a bigger project than what everybody thought. He'll take a longer time to develop than they think and he might or might not be good in the future, but he's not going nowhere in the next 2-3 years unless he goes to a shitty team with no real big man.</div>like i said in my first post, the ONLY people who regard Darko as a "bigger project than what everyone thought" are those who are either: short-sighted or let Joe Dumar's words go in one ear and out the other. Dumars AND Brown have been saying he's not going to log heavy minutes this year. they've been saying that all year. furthermore, I'm going to end this "bad attitude" stuff with this: here's the exact article: http://www.detnews.com/2004/pistons/0402/06/h01-57434.htm <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">?There is no confusion between me and Darko. In fact, we talk all the time,? Brown said. ?He came in after lifting weights after practice and said to Dave (assistant coach Dave Hanners), ?What do I need to do to get better??, which I was really happy to hear him say because that to me is like a first-year college freshman asking how he can play more. He knows he needs to get better. ?I?d be worried if he didn?t want to play. He?s getting better, but he?s not ready yet. Joe (Dumars) and I talked about this ? we don?t think he?s going to play.? The stated plan by Brown and Dumars for Milicic has not wavered since he was taken with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2003 draft ? the Pistons want Milicic to serve almost as an intern this season, learning basketball by practicing and observing. </div><div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">?Coaches say, ?You?re young, wait. Be patient,? ? Milicic, 18, said, shrugging his shoulders. ?I am never going to tell them (coaches) that I am ready (to play). If they cannot see, I am not going to tell them. They know better than me.? Milicic has shown dedication, coming early and staying late to work one-on-one with Brown and the other coaches. He also attends to optional workouts to practice more. Milicic?s agent, Marc Cornstein, said his client isn?t having issues with the Pistons. ?He?s not frustrated, he?s just competitive and wants to play,? Cornstein said. ?He?s not satisfied with being the 12th man.? </div>there. i don't see how anyone can say that Darko has a crappy attitude after reading the article.
AND....while we're talking about crappy attitudes and Melo in the same thread. Melo has shown way more of an immature attitude this season. he criticized the Andre Kirilenko making that All-Star team ahead of him. he also refused to come back into the game against the Pistons, and watched his team get blown out. i honestly don't hold that against Melo. he's going to be a good player in the league. i just think if you're going to criticize a rookie for being rash and immature, Melo fits the bill way better than Darko.
I'm surprised that people even think he has an attitude. I didn't hear nothing about any of those incidents. As far as his career goes later down the line is? I don't know how he will do, but I at least expect him to be a solid player. 15 and 9 to 4 years from now at the very least.
I think that was a very bad pick for the Pistons. They could've got Dwayne Wade or Carmelo Anthony. They should've picked someone else or at least give the rookie more playing time so he can show people if he knows how to play the game. Foreigners...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting throwback:</div><div class="quote_post">people need to stop busting the kids balls. he is a kid after all. i dont know why people expect first round draft pics to become an all-star and the leading scorer once they sign a contract. let the kid learn and grow. he is surrounded by good/smart people.</div> Well, pretty much the top 5 picks of this year made a pretty big impact except for Darko. If he's so unready for the NBA then I don't believe he should've been in the draft or at least be picked lower. I'm a big believer that in order for you to grow, you would have to have playing experience. No I'm not talking about playing in garbage time, it doesn't have to be when it's crunch time, but in the middle of a game when they're blowing out the other teams like washington or something. He's not getting any of that in Detroit any time soon. That'll stun his growth greatly and before they know it, he'd be in his 8th year in the league averaging only 15 and 7... to me that's a busted pick. Carmelo, Bosh, Wade, all those players would've been far more ahead than Darko.
totally agree. he does need playing time but he is on a good team with good players infront of him. plus it's only his rookie year, he is learning the system and what coach brown and the pistons org want from him and next year he can make an impact and help the team more. they are good enough to be able to have a pick sit on the bench for a year or two. they are not in a rush to bring him into play nor should they. if they didnt have sheed or okur or ben, then maybe he would get more playing time, but that isnt the case. he is on a winning team and therefore he will learn even more about what it takes to win just being able to watch the team and learn from practices. his time will come, hopefully sooner than later.
People need to realize that Carmelo had the kind of year he did playing for the Nuggets, not the Pistons. He simply wouldn't have had that kind of year player with the Pistons. The Nuggets run n gun. Carmelo wouldn't have even been starting for the Pistons because he doesn't play defense. So you can't just look at his numbers and add that to the Pistons roster. Look at the records of the other teams that had top picks, and where they ended up the season. Would you want the Pistons to trade places with ANY of those teams? I sure wouldn't. The Pistons were in a position where they could take a chance on a project with their eye on the future. That didn't mean the end of this season, or even next season. They are looking 3 or 4 years down the road with Darko - when he'll be the rip old age of 21 or so. If he developes into a KG or JO type players, he'll have been well worth the risk. Carmello is the one with the crap attitude, not Darko. Darko simply wants to play. Dumars is glad he's not happy with his minutes. That just shows his competitiveness. That's a good thing. He shouldn't be happy riding the bench. But he's working his butt off to try and do something about it.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Milicic has put on 15 pounds of muscle, and gained endurance and flexibility. His shoulders and legs look more defined with muscle. He is listed at 7-feet, but the Pistons say he has grown three-quarters of an inch since September. He was manhandled in practice at the start of the season, dominated by the likes of Ben Wallace and Elden Campbell. Wallace threw an elbow into his shoulder during a practice late last year, and Milicic sat out the rest of the workout to coddle his shoulder and bruised ego. Now, when Wallace bangs him in practice, Milicic doesn?t whine. He bangs back. </div> Milicic is still working on game
articles like this make me so excited for our future. no one knows how good Darko will be, but if he turns out to be 7'+ shot blocking, low post scoring threat, the Pistons will be good for a long time. imagine Darko on Ben Wallace's workout regime. scary. a developing Darko will soften the blow of losing Memo (possibly).
Darko Milicic will be good someday after he gets a better attitude and matures more as a player. Darko is still very very young and was the youngest baller ever drafted he was 17 when he entered the NBA and you expect instant impact?? no no no a kid cant do that with knowing the language and maturing as a player.
I can't remember the source but it WAS Dumars' personal sayso that picked Darko over Melo. Brown was said to be "in love" with Anthony and Dumars nixed it because he had faith in Prince for their future at SF.
Hmm Prince over Melo? I don't see what the big hype about Prince is.. even with his solid performance last year in the playoffs I would still bring Melo in just because he looked REAL good in college and at the time, seemed most NBA ready (except Lebron, but even then, I still had my doubts that he would do as well as the hype surrounding him. Mad props to Bronbron for living up to the expectations). I don't know if in the long run, 3-4 years down the line from now, if Darko will be worth the time and effort the Pistons put into him. You never know, the team might not consist of Big Ben, Rasheed, Billups, Rip, all these great players. When Darko is ready, half or more of those players probably won't be around or as good anymore. I still say Melo would've been a better #2 pick. People say Darko is young, let him develop, but Melo is also really young. He can and will still develop too.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting SupraJames:</div><div class="quote_post">I don't know if in the long run, 3-4 years down the line from now, if Darko will be worth the time and effort the Pistons put into him. You never know, the team might not consist of Big Ben, Rasheed, Billups, Rip, all these great players. When Darko is ready, half or more of those players probably won't be around or as good anymore. I still say Melo would've been a better #2 pick. People say Darko is young, let him develop, but Melo is also really young. He can and will still develop too.</div> Melo will still develop and turn into a great player but Darko if he can turn into the player the pistons expect him to be, he could help them win a championship. Championship teams are usually built around a big man. <font size="1">(But there are some exceptions)</font> I still believe it was the right decission to pick Darko over Melo. I'm not saying Melo won't be better than Darko but when you have a rare chance of drafting a center with alot of potential, you should. But we will have to wait and see what Darko can do.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting _EcLiPsE_:</div><div class="quote_post">the Pistons' might be a championship-calibre team but why not take 'Melo to put them over the hump? imagine a starting lineup of Ben, Sheed, 'Melo, Rip and Billups! They would be able to contend against any team and not just for the Eastern Conference Championship If you're good enough, even if you're a rookie, you'll get playing time even on a championship-calibre team </div> I hate when people say if the Pistons had taken Melo they would get over the hump, etc. If the Pistons had drafted Melo he would be playing Darko minutes maybe a few more, but there's no way he'd get over 15 minutes a game. Larry brown does not play rookies and he's proving it with Darko. I think everyone is underestimating Darko's abilities, some Pistons players have said that if he got the playing time he can score.
No, if they got Melo he wouldn't play 15 minutes, he'd play like 25-28 minutes and shar the SF position with Tayshaun. Let's not get crazy here, Larry doesn't play rookies because you don't always get spectacular rookies like Melo, Lebron, Wade, Bosh etc on your team, not because he hates rookies or something. People should stop complaining, the Pistons got a freaking 2nd pick and were 3rd in the east or whatever they were, and you complain about them picking a project?
Why select him when you could of picked Carmelo? Why did Dumars and the Pistons seriously think Prince could replace Carmelo? Wow, now that's absurd at it's finest. It's irritating to see how the media is talking like Darko will become greatest player in history. They keep saying how the future is so damn bright for him, and that the sky's the limit for him. The truth is that Darko will become a good player, but not a superstar, or a franchise player, and he definitely won't be selected to the All-NBA Anniversary team.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Chungster:</div><div class="quote_post">Why select him when you could of picked Carmelo? Why did Dumars and the Pistons seriously think Prince could replace Carmelo? Wow, now that's absurd at it's finest. It's irritating to see how the media is talking like Darko will become greatest player in history. They keep saying how the future is so damn bright for him, and that the sky's the limit for him. The truth is that Darko will become a good player, but not a superstar, or a franchise player, and he definitely won't be selected to the All-NBA Anniversary team.</div> actually, i'd say the majority of people in the media are convinced that Dumars should have taken Melo. no one's talking about Darko becoming the greatest player in history. even if Darko becomes a slightly above average center, it will have been the right choice. good centers are MUCH rarer than small forwards.
