Monroe for #1
biggest knock on it from a gm perspective is that monroe will be entering his 3rd season and the first 4 seasons of a rookies contract are pretty much bargain bin price level. So he will have 2 years till he hits the free market and demands the max while keeping the number 1 pick gives a team 4 years before they have to open their check book. Thats a TON of dough to cough up for a guy who MIGHT be better then any of this years prospects.
That's definitely a very valid point. Monroe is on a fantastic contract for his level of production and seems like a guy that would be happy sticking around Detroit for a long time.
I guess it gets to the crux of my argument, which is: What value can we expect, on average, from a number one pick year to year? In the last 10 years we've seen more perennial all-stars picked at #1 (LeBron, Dwight, Rose, Irving) than either average starters (Wall, Bogut, Bargnani) or straight busts (Greg Oden). Which category does McLemore fit into? With a lack of quality depth at SG across the NBA I believe McLemore will quickly become a top-5 two-guard in the NBA, which would make this trade a no-brainer.
Greg Monroe is criminally underrated he has been on fire lately
January(13 games) 33.8mpg. 17.2 ppg, 9.8rpg, 3.3apg, 0.6 bpg, 1.1spg 53% FG
February(7 games) 36.0 mpg. 18.7ppg, 12.6 rpg, 3.3 apg, 1.6bpg, 1.4 spg 54% FG
there is little to no chance the pistons would be able to get somebody in this draft that could replicate those stats.
I agree wholeheartedly that Monroe is entirely underrated... His exclusion from the US Olympic Practice Squad in favor of guys like Dejuan Blair was a slap in the face to Monroe.
I guess maybe I'm being a bit too optimistic about McLemore's prospects but where does Monroe fit on a championship squad? Can he be the 2nd-best player on a team that goes all the way?
It's possible he could be traded for the #1 pick. I think it would only be to certain teams though - maybe if a team in the 10-14 worst record range gets the #1 pick by fluke, they'd entertain the offer, seeing as they're on the cusp of the playoffs and possibly feel they can't wait. Portland could be a good example... if they finished 18th or worse (retaining their pick) then maybe they'd trade for Monroe. The argument would be McLemore or whoever is consensus #1 would be too young for their core. Lillard / Matthews / Batum / Aldridge / Monroe + $10m to improve the bench would seem like a good start.
I think the potential of a Monroe/Drummond front court is too inticing to throw away. The post seems to be the thing Detroit has going for them. It certainly isn't the bevy of combo guards that fill the rest of their roster. In a draft where there are some really good guard prospects that will be availabel throughout the top 10, why not cut Stucky and or Bynum loose and put a young shooting guard next to them.
I understand the rookie scale, but if your going to committ to anyone on that roster, it should be Monroe. They foolishly threw money at Stuckey when they aquired Knight and they're really similar players.
Marcus Smart ( at 6'4'' 200 +, could play next to Knight and help with the disribution )
Shabazz ( a SG/SF who can create his own shot )
McLemore ( a great pure shooter who can really benefit from Monroe's great post passing of kick outs )
MCW ( a very tall PG that, again could play next to Knight because of his great length and ability to guard many NBA 2;s)
Those 4 guys are not necessarily the 1st pick, and will most likley one or more will be avaibale from 2-9.
They should definetly keep Monroe and Drummond together. They compliment each other very well and Monroe is maybe the best passing big in the game today.
The Pistons should try to get someone like Porter or Smart within the top ten. If they don't hold a top ten pick what about trading up to get someone like Bazz. I really can see some teams trading down their picks if they don't fill a need and talent alone isn't to overwhelming with let's say the 5th pick.
This is obviously a hypothetical, and I haven't looked at cap considerations in this scenario. Basically, would you guys trade Greg Monroe for the #1 pick?
Relevant questions that could change the outlook on this scenario:
Has Monroe reached his ceiling? Have we seen enough of the Monroe/Drummond pairing to accurately evaluate their future success together? Is it worth trading a known commodity, a borderline all-star, for an undeveloped rook? Who will be available for the Pistons second pick? Would completing this trade make the Pistons bad enough next year that they wouldn't have to trade away their pick (I believe it's top 3 protected)?
Monroe has proven that he's a very good player, but maybe not a good enough athlete to be a perennial All-Star big. I feel that if the Pistons could get McLemore first overall and a player like Isaiah Austin/Cody Zeller with their following pick I would be interested in the trade.