The Detroit Pistons are currently at the lower half portion of the Eastern Conference, trailing way behind the Cleveland Cavaliers, Toronto Raptors, and Chicago Bulls. Despite the likes of NBA All-Star Andre Drummond in their roster, the Reggie Jackson squad has yet to figure out how to work their assets. However, this might change soon as the Detroit Pistons are reportedly seeking ways to utilize every member of the basketball team.
One of the rumors circulating is the possibility of moving Marcus Morris. The star moved to the Detroit Pistons in what could only be described as one of the most dramatic ways possible. Before Morris' move to the Brandon Jennings club, Morris was with the Phoenix Suns alongside twin brother Markieff Morris. The relationship between the basketball team and the NBA stars eventually turned sour when the Tyson Chandler squad sealed a trade with the Detroit Pistons without informing any of the Morris twins.
Things escalated quickly when Markieff started to voice out his displeasure over the manner by which the Phoenix Suns handled the negotiations. His aggressive demands of an NBA trade was met with sanctions from the league. Markieff, later on, halted his verbal attacks against the Phoenix Suns. Regardless of the peace that presumably settled between the two parties, the NBA team is still reportedly shopping Markieff.
As for Marcus, the Detroit Pistons star is voicing out his opinion on the current posts assigned to the members of their team. According to the former Houston Rockets player, he might be more effective if he plays as a power forward more instead of a small forward. Marcus expressed his desire to bring in more to the team as opposed to staying out of the paint.
"I would like to play the 4 some more," shared Marcus via MLive. He added, "Just because I not be in the corner as much. At the 3, I stay spread and not get in the paint. (I want to) get involved, mix it up, and being able to create for other players."
Marcus is referring to the rarely utilized lineup of the Detroit Pistons which places him at the power forward post and puts Ersan Ilyasova and Anthony Tolliver in different posts. The team used this lineup in their 110-97 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. The Detroit Pistons took a leaf out of the Golden State Warriors' handbook and played small ball - a move that proved to be effective.
"Playing the 4, I'm stretching the floor out, being able to get past those guys. Being able to create for other players. Being able to switch, too. That's what we do a lot at the 4 - we switch 1 through 4, so I can guard some of the perimeters," he said.
However, it looks like Stan Van Gundy might be opposed to the idea. The Detroit Pistons head coach feels that the suggestion will be moving too many players on the roster. That is, agreeing to Marcus' opinions would mean sidelining some of the best stars of the NBA team.
"If we're going to play Marcus more at the 4, then we're going to have to play another perimeter guy rather than one of the 4s," noted Van Gundy.
He added, "And right now, I think the nine guys we're playing are our best nine guys. I don't want to go down the list to move Marcus. If I'm going to play him there, either Ersan or A.T. has to sit out. I have confidence in Darrun (Hilliard), it's not that. I just don't think at this point Darren is as good a player as Anthony Tolliver or Ersan Ilyasova. I don't want to be spending Marcus with a lot of minutes at the 4. I don't."
With conflicting interests and the possibility of twin brother Markieff moving to the Cleveland Cavaliers, rumors are now circulating that the Detroit Pistons star might be heading in the same direction.
Moreover, Van Gundy's decision to dismiss Marcus' suggestion led to the Detroit Pistons deploying their usual lineup in the match against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The face off against the LeBron James squad saw the Jackson team end up with an 114-106 loss. Moreover, it reportedly reinforced Marcus' belief in the unsuitability of their current lineup as opposed to the one they used against the Philadelphia 76ers.
"They had a good game. Love did a great job knocking down open shots, so they won. Kyrie did a good job staying aggressive in transition. I think he broke our defense a lot of times," shared Marcus following their defeat in the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
