7. Greg Monroe Becomes a Free Agent
Greg Monroe’s decision in 2015 to test free agency after not coming to a long term contract agreement with Detroit signaled the end of an era. He had been the best player on the Pistons from 2010 – 2013, leading the team in Win Shares all 3 years.
Here’s Monroe explaining his decision to the New Orleans Advocate in 2015, “Stan had smaller teams in Orlando (Magic) years ago. Dre is like Dwight Howard. So Stan wants to put good players around him. The team has different plans, and I respect that. I don’t want to be anywhere I’m not wanted.”
Thus began the Andre Drummond era in Detroit, who would go onto lead the team in Win Shares for 6 of the next 7 years.
The year before, Monroe had signed a 1-year qualifying offer. Rumors swirled about failed contract negotiations, teams targeting Monroe, the possibility of a sign and trade but at the time it seemed like only one outcome was realistic: Monroe was leaving the Pistons.
The Monroe era in Detroit was an even darker time than this current iteration of the Pistons. Led by a mediocre core of Rodney Stuckey, Monroe and a hodge-podge of terrible contracts like Ben Gordon and Charlie Villaneuva the team struggled to win 30 games, even though they were attempting to be competitive.
The team existed in a no man’s land, where they couldn’t secure a draft pick higher than 8th but couldn’t make the playoffs. Monroe’s departure and Stan Van Gundy’s arrival felt like a fresh start, a legitimate optimism surrounded the team for maybe the first time of the 2010 decade.