Former Pistons coach Michael Curry couldn't find the answers Joe Dumars was looking for. (Clarence Tabb Jr./The Detroit News)
When Pistons president Joe Dumars traded Chauncey Billups for chemistry-buster Allen Iverson, he made the job for his coach impossible.
Michael Curry became a dead man walking. And Dumars was the man who shot the electricity through his coach.
Once that trade was made, Curry had no chance. In fact, nobody outside, say, Phil Jackson could have made it work.
It's nothing new.
Dumars is the NBA's grim reaper when it comes to coaches. He fires them win, lose or draw. He fires them when they don't get along with the front office or players.
Dumars added Curry to the list, firing him after one season.
"Any time it doesn't work out, it is a mistake," Dumars said. "Some of the things we want to do in bringing in some of the veterans is probably a little too much for a first-time head coach.
"It is clear to everybody that we need a more experienced guy to get through this."
But it isn't really about coaching, is it?
Shouldn't Dumars be held accountable?
After all, it was Dumars who put this team together through drafts, free-agent signings and trades -- especially a bad one.
Dumars actually did a good job of building the Pistons into a contender. They won a title in 2004 and reached the Finals in 2005, losing in seven games.
But even when the Pistons were successful -- included in the two-year Finals run was a stretch of six consecutive Eastern Conference finals appearances -- this organization was in decline.
What hasn't worked
Dumars made one huge mistake he can't escape:
He selected Darko Milicic with the No. 2 overall pick in 2003, hoping the youngster would be his star of the future.
Milicic was supposed to be an athletic big man who could defend the post, score from the post and pop 15-foot jumpers. The Pistons were prepared to build around him.
Oops.
He turned into a bust.
So now, Dumars is building around another kid, Rodney Stuckey, whom he selected 15th in the 2007 draft.
Stuckey's a nice player, but he won't become the leader -- or the player -- the Pistons are hoping for.
And since the Milicic disaster, Dumars has been unable to get things straightened out.
Consider:
Neither filled the void.
Stuckey can be an impact player, but the others are career backups.
Still, while Dumars' drafts have been suspect, at best, this isn't a call for his head. He has the right to rebuild this team.
He's had a bad run.
You don't do what he did to Curry.
It's up to Dumars
Now, it wasn't a bad idea to fire Curry -- he wasn't the guy to coach this team.
It simply was a bad idea to fire another coach after being on the job for such a short time.
Dumars is about to hire his sixthcoach since taking over as president in 2000.
Three of the five had winning records -- Rick Carlisle (100-64), Larry Brown (108-56) and Flip Saunders (176-70).
So why were they fired?
The same thing happened to Curry.
Now, Dumars must make sure his next coach can handle everything -- the owner, front office, Dumars himself, and especially the players.
And whether it's Doug Collins, Avery Johnson, John Kuester, or anyone else, for that matter, Dumars promises he'll be in place for the Summer League in Las Vegas next week.
Joe, it's your show.
Run it.
terry.foster@detnews.com">terry.foster@detnews.com (313) 222-1494
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