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Smith, Monroe give Pistons a wallop at power forward

(Editor’s note: Pistons.com today continues a five-part series examining the roster by position as the Pistons prepare for training camp with a look at their power forwards. Coming Friday: centers.)

One thing you’re not likely to hear from players about Stan Van Gundy: “I don’t know where I stand with him.” Throughout his time as an NBA head coach at Miami and Orlando, Van Gundy has fully earned a reputation for unvarnished honesty and direct communication.

A week after taking over as Pistons coach in mid-May, Van Gundy left little room for doubt how he envisioned using big men Andre Drummond, Greg Monroe and Josh Smith: in groups of two – not three – almost exclusively.

“When you play two of those three guys together, the Pistons were a very good team – at least last year,” he said. “When you played all three of them together, they really struggled.”

Van Gundy traveled to Atlanta to meet with Smith soon after signing on and, whatever was said, Smith took the message to heart. Knowing he was fated to spend far more time playing around the basket than he did a year ago as the starting small forward, Smith bulked up to better weather more physical battles at power forward.

POSITION: Power Forward

Depth chart: Greg Monroe/Josh Smith, Jonas Jerebko, Tony Mitchell

Options: Kyle Singler, Gigi Datome

Flexibility: Monroe spent his first three seasons at center and probably still feels more at home there, at least on the defensive end. Smith split time between power forward and small forward last season and often during his nine years in Atlanta. Jerebko has guarded small forwards competitively throughout his NBA career and flashed a consistent 3-point shot last season. Mitchell has the explosive athleticism to allow him to defend near the rim at center.

The skinny: There might be times Van Gundy wants to put four shooters around Andre Drummond or Monroe when he’s at center, which would open a role for Jerebko or, perhaps, Datome. But it’s not likely to be a consistent role given the strengths Monroe and Smith offer and the need to get them their minutes. Smith spent his summer preparing to play in the paint.

“The effort that was put in this summer is going to show the rewards during the season,” Pistons general manager Jeff Bower said of Smith’s work in the weight room. “Every time Coach talked with Josh or observed his workouts or talked to the people around his workouts, it was extremely encouraging to see the progress that was being made and effort being put into developing as a player. Really encouraged and excited with the progress that was made this summer.”

The way the game has shifted in just the last four or five seasons – with more teams playing four players on the perimeter more often – Smith’s defensive versatility will come in handy at power forward, where he might have to guard at the 3-point line nearly as often as he does in the paint.

“It’s evolving into a different type of league with not so much a prototypical four but a four that can stretch the floor and be more versatile,” Smith said. “I think my game does suit that more so. I think I can play some three, but we’ll have to wait and see what happens when the season starts.”

If Van Gundy chooses not to play all three of his premier big men to start games, given Drummond’s rising profile, Van Gundy will have to consider a variety of factors in choosing how to work the three-man rotation at the two power positions and which one of Smith and Monroe to bring off the bench.

That’s a pretty nice problem to have, at least. And if there’s room for anyone else, Jonas Jerebko showed a shooting touch last season that makes him the leading candidate to be the stretch four, while Tony Mitchell remains long on potential given his athleticism and ability to play above the rim.

“The position has a lot of different elements,” Bower said. “It has very good size, good passing ability, good instincts and it has a scoring ability, as well. It’s a versatile position when you look at all four players. We have different strengths from each one that at different times throughout the game or season, Coach will be able to look to and rely on. It’s multidimensional in many ways.”

Monroe likely will split his minutes between center and power forward with Smith primarily at power forward and Drummond exclusively at center. Monroe focused on mid-range shooting the past two off-seasons, knowing it was the key to taking the next step offensively even if Drummond’s presence didn’t move him to power forward, with spotty results to date. Nobody thought that would develop overnight for a player who’s played with his back to the basket since his early AAU days.

The Pistons, to be sure, aren’t going to turn Monroe into a jump shooter at the expense of his diverse scoring ability closer to the rim.

“We have the ability to take advantage of his skills all around the court,” Bower said. “Whether that’s in the paint or facing the basket, where he’s shown outstanding passing instincts and the ability to score the ball from that mid-range game and those spots only adds to those dimensions and the versatility that he has.”

Their ability to pass out of the post is a trait Monroe and Smith share. Van Gundy, in fact, has said passing is the most overlooked and perhaps the most outstanding weapon in Smith’s toolbox. It figures that his playbook will be heavy on sets that use the power forward as the fulcrum for the offense.

Jerebko came to life last season when John Loyer replaced Maurice Cheeks as head coach in February and moved him back into the rotation consistently. He attempted just 74 3-pointers all season, but nearly half of them – 36 – came in his last 14 games, when he shot better than 50 percent from the arc. He logged more hours at the team’s practice facility than anyone over the off-season and moved Van Gundy to consider him part of the core group, he said in the week before the draft.

“Jonas has worked extremely hard throughout the summer,” Bower said, “not only working on his body but also on his game and getting the reps you need to really take steps forward. We’re excited and eager to see how it all comes together.”