Denverpost.com: Nuggets blowing up 3 times in fans faces

Still remember that colossal f up by Dumars. What the hell was he thinking?

 

That Melo was going to unbalance the offense with his high volume shooting and that they had a bigger need at the 4.

It's more bewildering that he took Darko over Bosh.

 

I don't know if I would consider Carmelo 'luck'. If Dumars took him, they could have taken Wade or Bosh.

 

...don't forget Wade as well. He went #5.

 

Not really. I think, heading into the 2003 NBA Draft, most of the league had Lebron #1 and then Darko and Melo #2 and #3 in either order. Bosh, Wade, Kaman, Hinrich and Ford were the next tier (with Bosh and Wade probably viewed as the players with the most upside).

It's just that the entire league miscalculated on Darko.

 

Maybe it was a ''mistake'' by Dumars, choosing Milicic but they still won the championship that year.

 

That he had a young Tayshaun Prince at the SF position. That he could sacrifice some development time on Darko because he had the Wallace boys and Okur, and Darko would be a star when those two started declining.

 

Yeah. It's funny, Bill Simmons once wrote that the Pistons actually won that championship, in part, BECAUSE they took Darko over Melo.

Had Melo been the pick, there would have been a clash between him and Tayshawn Prince over playing time at the SF spot. Larry Brown would have been pushing management to trade one of them. Melo's defense (especially as a rookie) would have been far inferior to Prince's, and that Pistons D needed Prince, since Hamilton wasn't much of a defender.

Obviously, Darko was a bust and Melo is a star. But it's funny how things work out.

 

It was the difference between 1 hit wonder and dynasty. A pick that could have shifted power to the east single handedly. The mistake was huge.

 

I don't think the upgrade from Prince to Melo turns Detroit into a dynasty and forever shifts the balance of power. I actually agree with Bima's post just above yours.

 

Maybe they don't win that championship. But in the long run I think a lineup with Melo, Billups, and the rest of the Pistons core would win a championship or two. It's an obvious screwup.

 

Eh . . . I'm not so sure about that. The Pistons "Eastern Conference Near-Dynasty" (6 straight seasons in the Eastern Conference Finals. Amazing.) was based on great TEAM DEFENSE. Prince was a major part of that.

Frankly, I think the Pistons will take their championship. Plus, they were just 6 MINUTES away from repeating in 2005.