It's still the early days of camp and the exhibition schedule. But one thing is clear: Antonio McDyess will come off the bench.
The biggest issue coming into camp was determining who would start alongside Rasheed Wallace up front. Amir Johnson has emerged as the clear favorite.
McDyess has more opportunities to score with the second unit. Moreover, his skill set complements high-energy banger Jason Maxiell. That was apparent in the Pistons' opening-night, overtime victory at Miami. McDyess had 10 points and Maxiell added 13, including the first four points of OF.
"One of the reasons why we're bringing McDyess off the bench is he can be in there in the fourth quarter," coach Michael Curry said. "He made of a lot of big baskets down the strength and he took a lot of pressure off Max from being the primary scorer on that unit. Maxiell flowed really well in that game. That was good to see and good for the guys."