Antonio McDyess just seems to be out of his comfort zone as a starter. He came here to be the sixth man and has always contested that he much rather play on the second unit. Remember his take from Media Day on his new starter role?
“I don’t think I really had a choice, to be honest,” McDyess said, with his usual chuckle. “Joe (Dumars) talked to me about it and said he wanted me to start. There wasn’t anything I could really have said about it. I know they want the five best players on the court to start; they feel that’s the best way to help the team and I feel the same way. If me starting helps get us to where we want to be, then I am willing.”
McDyess, 33, hasn’t started since the 2001-02 season. He admits having some anxiety about it.
“I have to get myself in a different mental state,” McDyess said. “I am so used to coming off the bench. I had pretty much prepared myself that I would be coming off the bench the rest of my career. I guess I am going to have to go out and set the tone instead of watching how the tone is set. I just have to restart my motor.”
That doesn’t sound like a guy gun-ho on starting. It sounds like a guy who feels he can best contribute as the team’s sixth man.
He’s averaging 6.8 points a game through the first 4 games which includes a couple of 4 point performances. Last season he averaged 8.1 ppg while getting almost 7 less minutes a game. He’s just not being as aggressive attempting 6 or fewer shots in 3 out of the 4 games played. McDyess has also only been to the free throw line in one game.
Why not let McDyess come off the bench and start Maxiell? What better way to commit to a youth movement than to have one of our young high energy guys right there in the first five. Unleash the beast right from the outset. I envision Maxy out there mixing it up and getting the opposition in foul trouble with his relentless assualts on the rim. He’s also gives you another finisher in the transition game.
It’s a smaller line up, I know. McDyess is much better on the defensive boards and that’s been one bright spot for him so far averaging 7.25 rpg. Defensive rebounds are something Maxiell would really have to commit to, but I get the impression that Jason Maxiell doesn’t have a problem with working on his game. We are talking about the guy who volunteered to play on the summer league team.
This is not a reaction to just to the loss to Chicago, more a cumulative observation to each of the first four games. To me it just makes sense for the Pistons and at some point would be worth looking into.
