Why are so many people obsessed with the possibility
of bringing back Chris Webber?
There was a good reason why the Pistons didn't re-sign
Webber this summer: They don't want, or need, him.
One of his people floated a rumor to ESPN Thursday
that Webber would be back in a few weeks but that's
baloney. Joe Dumars has no intention of changing his
roster with things humming along at the moment. As
I've said many times, the only way Webber returns is
if McDyess, Sheed or Maxiell suffer a major injury.
Do these people who keep saying Webber's coming back
remember what happened in the playoffs last season?
Chauncey was caught in between running the offense
himself and running it through Webber. Richard
Hamilton got fewer shots and Tayshaun Prince totally
disappeared.
Then Webber did the same. He had two non-scoring
games, which is a major problem when you're a poor
defender. And as the playoffs wore on, Flip benched
Webber in the fourth because he needed his best
defensive unit on the floor.
Really, how would Webber fit in? The frontcourt
rotation of McDyess, Wallace and Maxiell has been
super - they're 18-7, right? They're second in the
league in defense behind the Celtics, who haven't had
a tough road trip all year.
Webber doesn't want to be a 5-10 minute situational
player and his skills won't fit with an increasingly
younger, high-energy bench. When Stuckey (who comes
back soon) runs the point on the second unit with
Afflalo, Hayes and Maxy, you don't drop a 37-year old
center in the middle of that group.
Plus, the Pistons want to see if Primoz Brezec can
take the minutes that Mohammed was playing and then
there's Amir Johnson. So many people want to see him
play more - he wouldn't play at all if Webber comes
back.