Whats up with Rip?
He is by far having his worst season since coming to Detroit (along with Hubert Davis and Bobby Simmons) via a trade in which sent Jerry Stackhouse, Brian Cardinal, and Ratko Varda to Washington in the summer of 2002.
It is well known that he has been hit hard emotionally by the departure of Chauncey Billups. The ink had not even dried on his contract extension and a blockbuster trade was made in which brought in Allen Iverson.
Speculation is would Rip have signed that deal had he known that Billups would be gone? Is Hamilton "tanking"? Is he clearly unable to "get over" the fact his good friend is no longer out there on the floor with him?
His performance doesn't lie. He is having a hard time shooting and is not looking like his former self on the court. This Pistons have counted on him since the day he arrived. He did after all, replace the
franchise player and leading scorer so indeed, there were big shoes to fill… Right now, however, he has been a huge let down and this teams on the court play is showing through his struggles.
Richard "Rip" Hamilton
