Josh Smith adds muscle to play PF for Detroit Pistons

When the NBA’s 2013-14 season concluded, Greg Monroe looked to be the Detroit Pistons power forward of the future. All Detroit needed was to re-sign their restricted free agent this offseason and between he and Andre Drummond, Motown would employ one of the best frontcourts in the NBA.

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Of course, few expected the Pistons and Greg Monroe to be without a contract agreement heading into September and there’s a very good chance the former Georgetown product may not be part of Detroit’s long term plan.

If that proves to be the case, Josh Smith appears ready to replace Monroe as he’s added a significant amount of muscle during the offseason in effort to play more power forward this season.

"“I’m ready to play whatever position is asked of me,” said Josh Smith, noticeably thicker in the chest and shoulders, in his first day back at the Pistons practice facility on Tuesday. “But I’m going to play a lot of (power forward) and that was my main focus on being able to get more in the weight room and put some more muscle on my body to be able to withstand that physicality in the paint. I played that position so much, so long in the league that I know how big you have to be in order to be able, night in and night out, to withstand that impact and that physical nature inside the paint.”"

While this is obviously good news for the Detroit Pistons, it wasn’t Smith’s body that was an issue in the past. The forward has struggled with shot selection during his entire career and it grew worse during his first season with the Pistons.

If Josh Smith is to play more power forward, he’s likely to stay in the paint far more often which will hopefully lead to better decision making.

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Josh Smith adds muscle to play power forward for Detroit Pistons

By Bryan Rose | Sep 3, 2014