NBA’s rule of thumb, try not to trade within your own conference and whatever you do, do not trade without your own division. That’s usually how trading is mapped out for NBA teams. Although it wasn’t via trade, the Pistons took players from the Bulls and Bucks and a coach from the Cavaliers to begin reshaping their franchise. What do those teams all have in common? Each one of them resides in the Central Division in the Eastern Conference. Shortly after players were allowed to verbally commit to sign contract sheets, the Pistons landed Ben Gordon (from the Bulls) and Charlie Villanueva (from the Bucks) via free agency. The former Uconn Huskie teammates will join another Uconn Huskie in Richard Hamilton to try help restore some pride in the Pistons franchise and fan base. It wasn’t long ago (try a couple of seasons) when the Pistons were the dominant team in the Eastern Conference and all roads to the Finals in the East went through Detroit.

When Michael Curry was fired after just one season of being a head coach, the Pistons needed to find a coach who could get the job done. Their first choice was Avery Johnson, but after a disagreement with the money, they opted to look elsewhere and had their sites set on two of the better assistant coaches from two of the best teams in the league a season ago. In the end, Cavaliers assistant coach John Kuester won over Joe Dumars and the Pistons front office. Kuester is credited with being the guy who helped the Cavaliers offense take off last season.