Lions/Pats Preview & some Pistons Blow It UP fake trades

Last week the Lions were facing a backup QB with a sub-50 completion percentage and managed to get out-scored, never reaching the end zone. I predicted that the offense would find itself vs. AZ and put up 27 points. Whoops. This offense may never find itself. Caldwell has tried to put a positive spin on it (the offense has moved the ball successfully for short periods of time!), but the reality is that for some reason, it sucks.

The main problem is with the offensive line. Several times on 3rd and short they were unable to get the push to gain the yard they needed vs. Arizona. Some of that is playcalling, but a lot is on the O line too. Stafford hasn't had much time to throw. Some of that is on his inability to move outside the pocket to avoid a sack & extend a play, but it's also on the O line. The way things have gone (and with Warford looking like he'll miss at least another week), this isn't likely to improve anytime soon.

Sunday's matchup is against the hottest team in the NFL, New England, and they have the #2 scoring offense in football. Their defense has improved week by week, and they are currently riding a 6-game winning streak. The winning streak isn't hollow either, with wins over Cincinatti, Denver and Indianapolis. The average margin of victory in this streak is 19.1 points... Basically, the Patriots are the biggest monster on the Lions' schedule this season. After last Sunday's 6 point performance and playing in Foxboro, nobody is picking Detroit to beat New England.

Yep, that's a 7 point line favoring New England. Were I a betting man, I might take NE and the points. Things favoring the Pats - the #5 offensive line on the run & #6 on the pass, Brady & Gronk, Revis Island, and Jonas Gray. They're on a huge roll and look unbeatable right now.

Things favoring the Lions - still the #1 defense (3rd vs the pass, 1st vs the run), and this offense has to come around sometime, right? RIGHT??? Also favoring the Lions, the Pats are on a huge roll, look unbeatable, and everyone is picking them. Wait, what? Yeah, I kinda think being the underdogs here helps them a little. Not much, but I like it better than when everyone was picking Detroit over the Cardinals.

I'm not real optimistic about this one, to tell the truth. Detroit doesn't look for real yet. The offense doesn't scare anybody, and the defense had some lapses in the last game. I expect Detroit to hold New England to something in the low 20's, but Detroit's offense will struggle to move the ball unless Joique Bell & Reggie Bush can tear up the Pats' bad run D. Call it 13-24, Pats.

***

The Pistons keep losing, which is frustrating but understandable. They're still poorly constructed, and the 2 players SVG brought in to balance out the offense have yet to dress for a game. Their only wins have come over the Knicks, the Bucks, and OKC (missing nearly all their regular starters). They're shooting .413% on the season, above only Philadelphia (who are actively tanking). At this point, SVG has 3 options: ride it out and hope he can craft this team into a winner, try and trade his way into a winner, or blow it up with no sacred cows (like Drummond or... ok, Drummond is the only sacred cow). I still think this team can be traded into a winner (by winner I mean "make the playoffs as a low-to-mid-level seed"), but during an online conversation, I investigated how the team might be improved by a couple major trades.

Trade #1: Jennings & Drummond to OKC for Serge Ibaka
 

Drummond cannot coexist with either Josh Smith OR Greg Monroe. Greg Monroe can barely coexist with Smith, at least offensively. Ibaka would fit best with Monroe, providing some mid-range offense and rim protection. Jennings helps the VERY injured OKC out at the PG spot and probably eventually gets bought out, while Drummond finds a home as the athletic, floor running C OKC has been looking for.

Trade #2: Pistons get Stoudemire from NYK & Greek Freak from MIL, Bucks get Smith & Drummond from DET, and the Knicks get Sanders from MIL and Jennings from DET
 

This one is a doozy. The Knicks get some PG help (JR Smith is leading the team in assists!), and some interior defense with Sanders. Milwaukee gets an upgrade & hopefully future star at C with Drummond, and maintains some of that interior D with Smith. Detroit takes on Stoudemire's expiring and loses some defense while slightly upgrading the offense, and they get a solid swingman of the future in Greek Freak (I'm not going to try to pronounce that unless he actually comes to Detroit).

Trade #3: J-Smoove & Singler to SAC for Derrick Williams, Jason Thompson & Ben McLemore
 

This trade is built on the concept of netting some risk/reward players in exchange for Josh Smith's contract. The Kings wanted Smith over the summer to pair with Boogie (why, I don't know), but for whatever reason, they couldn't get a trade worked out. It costs Detroit Singler to get rid of J-Smoove, but in return they get a semi-busted #2 overall pick from 2011 (Williams), a washed out 2008 #12 overall pick (Thompson), and a 2013 #7 overall pick performing below expectations (McLemore).

The worst case scenario of this last trade is Detroit acquires 2 bench players and an average rotation player in exchange for dumping Smith and a below average starter in Singler. The best case is 1 or 2 of the 3 guys Detroit gets in this trade pan out (my money's on McLemore), and they finally have a viable perimeter scorer. KCP might do it too, but I always liked McLemore (currently shooting .443/.408/.867).

I couldn't work out a trade for Monroe on the Trade Machine, either because he's got a trade exemption due to accepting his QO or because he isn't eligible yet. Anybody got a better one? Post it!