Who wins the next championship between the Pistons, Tigers, Red Wings, and Lions?
I have
1. Tigers: Good but not great team that can never seem to get over the hump. Questionable managing but has as much talent as anyone in the country.
2. Pistons: Have a great player in Andre Drummond locked up but need more talent at other positions. SVG is the best coach currently residing in Detroit.
3. Red Wings: Have an aging roster but are still good enough to make the playoffs every year. Larkin is a nice piece to build around but Holland can't seem to bring in any top players since the last championship.
4. Lions: Absolute mess of an organization. Making the playoffs seems like a tall order.
because of excellent resource allocation.
- They could get Rasheed Wallace because they had the roster flexibility to pull it off. Yes, they were lucky, but Dumars had them in a position that most teams were not in.
- Ben Wallace was super cheap because he was signed to a multi-year deal and outplayed expectations
- Billups and Hamilton were enormous bargains acquired after their stardom potential was gone.
- Prince and Okur were on rookie contracts.
- Campbell, James and Hunter were cheap veterans on bargain contracts.
Nearly everyone on the roster was a massive bargain. Williamson (and Wallace) were the only rotation players getting paid close to their market value.
The 2017 and 18 pistons don't have many bargains and could not pull off a Wallace-type trade. The guys who COULD be bargains are Drummond (if he is a legit top 10 player), Johnson (while he is still on his rookie deal), and Harris (who could end up a Hamilton/Billups type bargain in the best case scenario.) The current Pistons roster has about 5 Corllis Williamsons and not nearly enough Princes, Okurs, and Wallaces.
Depends on the sport they are playing
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Pistons also have a ton of cap space to bring in some real talent to compliment Drummond.
They made some good signings. Shored up their bench with a good backup PG and Leuer is a great fit for SVG's system.
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Big Markets? The NBA has moved in the opposite direction. The big markets are a mess right now. NY/LA/Boston/Chicago/Philly have been a mess for awhile now. Players care less about playing in these cities right now than ever.
ALL THE REST SUCK. SO WINGS
ALL CAPS comments suck.
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. Why not?
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nothing but doom for those 4 franchises for at least a decade. no sign of actual life in the lions. wings on a downward spiral, as are the tigers - not terrible, but losing altitude. and when we lose ilitch, then some real vision and mojo will go too. pistons, meh, one great player (who shoots FT's as well as a 3rd grader, what an embarrassment), and a lot of meh after that.
so a decade of doom x4 at least.
When Yzerman comes back in the next few years, they will win at least one Cup.
The Lions will be last. They're a fucking mess, and until the Fords sell the team, they're not going anywhere.
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1. Lions - I know most of you don't have much faith in the Lions, but words around the NFL is they think they have one of the most talented roster in the league. If the Lions can pick up where they left off from last season, playoff is the expectation. Stafford played like a top 5 QB in the last 8 games and has weapons on offense in Ameer Abdullah, Theo Riddick, Golden Tate, Marvin Jones and Eric Ebron. The defense is still loaded with playmakers like Ziggy Ansah, Darius Slay and DeAndre Levy.
2. Pistons - It's amazing at how quickly SVG has turned around in such a short amount of time. The roster has been overhauled. The young core are all 26 or younger and made the playoff this season. They're primed to make the next step.
3. Red Wings - They have made the playoff every year, but right now, they're stuck in puragatory where they're good enough to make the playoff but not quite good enough to make a deep run.
4. Tigers - The rosters are on the older side and the window has already closed IMO. It's time for them to try to rebuild on the fly. You can make an argument that you can switch both Wings and Tigers around and still be a good list.
I believe it'll be that local 33rd NFL team...
Pistons. Basketball is easier to have a quick turn around due to smaller rosters. Yes, it will be hard to topple Cleveland, but fewer player pieces need to be assembled to make a great team.
Not while the Fords own the team.
Lions, and Tigers, and Pistons, oh my!
The Red Wings it is.
It will take some time to play out, but just wait.
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1. Tigers
2. Red Wings
Other teams have zero chance.
For a long time. None of them are in a good position.
Tigers: Oppurtunity has closed. There's a chance they could get in and surprise people, but it's not likely. They aren't consistent enough.
Pistons: They have a good team but I think making Drummond the star player will ultimately be a massive mistake. He's a liability on free throws(End of game), his low post game is below average and his defense is wildly inconsistent. He's a poor man's Dwight Howard(The Magic version). The only thing he is really good at is rebounding. They have other solid pieces but the NBA is a league of three or four teams. The Pistons will never be that again unless they pull off some insane trades(04') or draft picks.
Red Wings: This is my pick. The only reason is because of the young players they have coming through the ranks and some guys that are already there. The next step is firing Ken Holland. He has become one of the worst GM's in hockey. He just added another mediocre offseason to his record book yet somehow he's still around.
Lions: F.t.s.
Seriously though, what the hell happened to Detroit sports teams.
I would have to go with the Wings only because a hot goalie can carry a team to the Cup. But wouldn't it be a hoot if it were to be the Lions that pull it off?
Red Wings to answer your question. think the Red Wings can ride a hot goalie into a championship within the next 5-10 years.
Tigers lost the window. Need to sell off stars and rebuild. ~10 year project
Pistons are just good enough to never get a number 1 overall pick. Still need to arise to the mediocrity of a second round defeat to the Cavs every year and then blow up and sell off and suck historical ass. Then build up with a superstar (hopefully) ~10-15 year project
Lions. ~ infinite year project
Either way if you are a pro sports fan in Michigan say good bye to winning for the next decade most likely. Unfortunate.
The Tigers have an aging roster and only two, maybe three years max to win a World Series with Cabrera and Verlander.
The Red Wings have a GM that is average at best in the salary cap era. Their salary cap is tied up in bad long-term contracts.
The Pistons are screwed because Detroit/Auburn Hills is not a free agent destination. BTW, they just gave a max contract to a guy who they're afraid to play in the last few minutes of the game.
The Lions are improved enough to where a couple breaks can get them into the playoffs. From there, they just need to win four games for the title. It's not easy, but I don't see their competition in the NFC as that superior, except for Seattle in Seattle.
It'll probably be the Pistons, but it will take some time. I assume that in 10 years one of the teams will break through. But the Wings and Tigers are trending down, the Pistons are fine but need a lot of luck/player growth, and the Lions maybe could but need a ton of luck in the draft and get lucky with a couple of cheap players.
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I don't think any of them are close and the Lions are probably the furthest away at the moment. However, the NFL is the league where you can turnaround and build a contender in the shortest amount of time. If Quinn can bring that NE magic to Detroit, they could turn into a contender sooner rather than later.
Overall thoughts:
1. Lions- As noted above, they don't seem close but there are several recent examples of teams being terrible for extended periods of time and quickly jumping into contention: the 49ers pre-Harbaugh, the Seahawks pre-Caroll, the Saints pre-Payton, etc. You get the right front office and the right coach and you can contend pretty quickly. Not sure the Lions have either, but it could happen.
2. Wings- Historically good front office, some good prospects at GR, new arena coming up. However, they seem to be in neutral. Core players like Zetterberg and Kronwall are rapidly aging. They've had some young players come into the lineup but other than Larkin and maybe Mrazek, not sure anyone looks like a star. DeKeyser, Shehan, Nyquist, Smith don't seem to be developing much. Also, they can't get any game changing FAs to look at them.
3. Pistons- They have a good young core, but not I'm sure there's enough upside to get them into the top 4 into the East. I can see them becoming another version of the Chicago Bulls team from the last couple of years. Consistent, contending but never able to break though, never able to draft high enough and then everyone gets old, expensive and/or injured and all of a sudden your window closes.
4. Tigers- Probably the most talented team in Detroit right now, but they don't seem to have enough consistency to get it done this year. Most of their star players are on the wrong side of 30, the Cabrera and Verlander contracts are unlikely to age well and the farm system is bad. I could see them contending this year, maybe next, but also wouldn't be surprised to see them fall into a Phillies-like cliff with all the old players/poor farm system.
so it's difficult to say. The Wings are on their way down and won't be a winner for some time. Larkin alone won't win a title and they have nothing on D. The Tigers' window is also shut now. The Lions are the Lions and the Pistons seem to attempt the rarely successful NBA rebuild without tanking for a superstar draftee.
I think it will be a long run without a title. It's now been 8 years. It wouldn't surprise me if that turned into 30 years.