Carmelo Anthony: I would have won two or three NBA titles if Pistons had drafted me
It's the source of great debate and arguable the greatest "what if" in Detroit sports history.
What would have happened if the Detroit Pistons had drafted Carmelo Anthony?
The Pistons, at the start of their six-year stay in the Eastern Conference finals, got the second overall pick in the 2003 NBA draft.
It was correctly assumed that Cleveland would take LeBron James (guess that worked out), but the options for No. 2 were plentiful.
Would the Pistons go with guard Dwyane Wade, who just dazzled in the NCAA tournament? Or maybe freshman big man Chris Bosh? Maybe even Central Michigan senior Chris Kaman in a homecoming?
But the top two contenders were Anthony, who, as a freshman, led Syracuse to its first national title under Jim Boeheim, and Darko Milicic, a 7-footer from Serbia who was drawing comparisons to Dirk Nowitzki.
The Pistons went with Milicic.
Anthony and Wade, who both went on to have Hall-of-Fame careers and Olympic success, talked about a whole host of topics on Instagram Live, including this Pistons "what if."
"I don't know what I would have been if I went to Detroit," Anthony said. "I know I would have had, uh, two, maybe two or three rings."
"You would have definitely had two," Wade added.
OK, so let's play revisionist history. Say the Pistons pick Anthony, then 19. Does new coach Larry Brown play him much, or at all, ahead of surging small forward Tayshaun Prince? Does Anthony's defensive liability fit in with the "Goin' to Work" mantra? Do the Pistons find it still necessary to trade for Rasheed Wallace at the trade deadline in 2004? Is Anthony a part of that deal? How good is he if he's not averaging at least 34 minutes a game, which he did in the first 15 years of his career?
[ Richard Hamilton: I couldn't believe we drafted Darko either ]
Enough scenarios for you? Here are a few more.
Let's say it all works out, and Anthony seamlessly slides in with the Wallaces, Prince, Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton. How far is the Pistons' run extended? Do Wade and the Heat win in 2006? Does the Celtics' Big 3 go on to run the East for a few seasons? And what about James and Cleveland?
Later in the conversation, Wade remembers watching Anthony at Syracuse and, before seeing James play, felt the college freshman would be the top pick in 2003.
"I walked out of there and you got a light 30 on them and it was effortless and it was smooth and I was like, 'that's the No. 1 pick in the draft,'" Wade said. "That was in my mind. Now, not knowing about 'Bron, and definitely not knowing about Darko."
"Who," Anthony asked, getting a laugh out of his friend.
It appears that comment got back to Milicic, who was asked about it by b92.net. His response, translated by Complex magazine, puts the debate and the consternation over the blown draft pick to bed.
"As for these stories, so if my story is not told, thank God they have succeeded — I have not. We are not kids, we are adults," Milicic said. "I hope you are ripe to understand that life is full of ups and downs. ... I consider myself less good guys, it is not necessary to judge and ridicule when, thank God, you have not passed the path that I am. To them, as always, I wish everyone good and every honor in their careers and in further life a lot of success and less condemnation."
Contact Kirkland Crawford: kcrawford@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @HiKirkHere.