Ikechukwu Somtochukwu Diogu or, “Ike” Diogu as he’s known has agreed to come to camp with the Pistons and is the 16th man in camp with the team. Ike is a 6’9 250lb power forward who has played for 4 NBA teams (and has been on 5 teams overall) since being selected with the 9th pick in the 2005 NBA Draft.
Last season Ike was a New Orleans Hornet and did not register any time with the team. In 2008-2009 Ike split time between the Portland Trailblazers and the Sacramento Kings. Ike was originally drafted by the Golden State Warriors before being included in a trade that brought Al Harrington and Stephen Jackson to the Warriors from the Indiana Pacers.
Looking at this move makes me believe that either a deal is going to happen soon during training camp or one of the guards or small forwards will be either dealt or released because the roster is so backcourt heavy. Ike is a solid player who, while undersized, doesn’t mind playing in the painted area and using his strength to bang and box out for rebounds.
This is not really a win/win or a win/lose move for the Pistons as Diogu was brought into camp with no guarantees of making the team. Let’s hope he shows flashes of what caused him to become the #9 overall pick from 2005.
Wouldn’t mind having him but dont “love” it persay,hopefully we make a trade soon..I’m keepin my fingers crossed
i dont see a trade being made, specially after joe d’s interview with keith langlois where he said this is an evaluation period first 20 games of the season, i think ike is here to earn a spot if he can. Not a huge fan of his though pretty much all i know about him is that he was part of the big trade back in the day as mentioned in the post. im looking forward to seeing a couple of these preseason games and get a better handle on the team.
I was just looking at this photo from media day today and realized BG is still wearing number 7.. and not 8
http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/ap/27/fullj.569c6d282a091b542a8e72dac06d3e32/543a36c8a6904f72905728ac65b920b2.jpg
Anyone know whats up?
pistonsfan 101
Ben is changing his number next season, not this season
when ike was given the minutes he was averaging a double double, but because of his size, and for the hornets because of a terrible knee injury, he never really got the playing time.
There are a lot of similarities of ike to ben wallace, in that both seem undersized at their position, and if you try to ask them to do what they are not good at, they won’t prosper. Ike has the wingspan and the same wingspan as tim duncan has, which is why he is able to play inside.
Ike needs to step it up defensively, he still doesn’t have a high enough basketball iq, and his offensive moves are limited. He is a bit old to be learning anything new, but I think this is more because there is such a shortage of big men in the NBA that anyone decent will not be given much time to develop in the D league they’ll be put on an NBA roster and not get enough minutes.
With such a weak front court, Ike could see 20+ minutes for the pistons, which is a great thing if we can give Ben Wallace more rest than last year.
One more thing. I really believe that there are quite a few travel insurance web-sites of respectable companies that allow you enter your trip details and get you the rates. You can also purchase the actual international travel cover policy on the net by using your current credit card. All you need to do will be to enter your current travel details and you can see the plans side-by-side. Merely find the program that suits your budget and needs after which use your bank credit card to buy that. Travel insurance online is a good way to start looking for a reputable company pertaining to international travel cover. Thanks for expressing your ideas.