Theo Ratliff: Another John Long, Lindsey Hunter For Pistons?

The guard's ranks were depleted, and concerns were raised that, despite their under-30 age, Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars might have to log too many minutes during the regular season. Vinnie Johnson was solid as a reserve, but there was an old favorite wasting away on a bench in Indiana that still had that smooth-as-silk "rock set" jumper, as George Blaha used to say.

Enter John Long, University of Detroit alum, and a Piston from the Dickie Vitale days. He, unlike Thomas and Dumars, was over 30 -- 32 to be exact -- when GM Jack McCloskey called his number once more. Long didn't play much, but was nice to have on the bench. Coach Chuck Daly no doubt felt some relief when he looked down the row of players and saw Long in his warmups. Eventually, Daly would see Long in the Pistons locker room, drenched with champagne, as the team won its first of two straight world titles.

Fifteen years later, the Pistons -- once again nervous about the playing time of their backcourt starters -- brought Lindsey Hunter back into the fold after a brief hiatus. Lindsey Hunter -- one of the team's two first round picks in 1993 (Allan Houston was the other) -- had been a Piston for seven seasons before moving on to Milwaukee, Los Angeles (where he won a championship as a Laker), and Toronto. Now he was back, at age 33, older, wiser, and still with that ball-hawking defensive gene. And again bringing back an oldtimer worked; the Pistons won another championship in 2004.

Earlier this week, the Pistons followed form, but with a big man.

Theo Ratliff, a teal Piston from back in the day, is a red, white, and blue Piston now. Once upon a time, Ratliff was a youthful bundle of energy, running up and down the court and swatting away enemy shots like a seven-foot tall octopus. He could score a little, and there was no telling how much his raw talent could be developed. Sort of like Jason Maxiell is today. Or Amir Johnson.

Dumars, now the Pistons' architect, signed Ratliff away from the dreadful Minnesota T-Wolves, just after Theo got in a few games, returning from injury. Ratliff says he's healthy and ready to go. Of course, who wouldn't feel energized, going from the league's worst to among its best?




There's something that tells me that the Pistons' history of bringing old players back into the fold prior to a championship run might work yet again, in the matter of Theodore Ratliff.

Ratliff, like most players his age (he's 34) -- especially big men -- isn't the same player he once was. The arms are still as long as ever, but the springs might not be as bouncy. Regardless, Dumars figures Ratliff to get into a playoff game now and again, play a few minutes, disrupt some things, and maybe, just maybe, slow down the likes of Ben Wallace, Josh Howard, and Kevin Garnett. Even for a little while. Every little bit helps in May and June.

Ratliff left the Pistons in 1997, traded away to Philadelphia in the deal that brought Jerry Stackhouse to Detroit. He's never been a GREAT rebounder, but he's made up for it at times with his shot-blocking ability, which is spectacular. He's batted away over 1,700 shots in his NBA career -- an average of about 2.6 per game. Even this year, with Minnesota, at age 34, Ratliff blocked 19 shots in 214 minutes -- an outstanding ratio.

The Pistons will need to "get big" in crucial times in the playoffs. They always do. Dale Davis had been that guy in the recent past, but it didn't work. Davis isn't half the shot blocker that Ratliff is. How will Theo's swatting skills play out this spring?

History might be on the Pistons' side.