What this forces the Pistons to do is change. Change for the better? That’s still up for debate.

The Pistons’ style of play was ugly. Although their hometown fans supported it, the NBA commissioner didn’t. David Stern pushed through a number of changes and emphases in the rules that took away the Pistons’ ability to do what they do best: play physical defense on the perimeter that funneled offensive players into Big Ben’s lair.

“No one was hurt more by the new rules changes and emphases than the Pistons,” one prominent NBA general manager told ESPN Insider. “The league decided they wanted to encourage more scoring and allow quick perimeter players to penetrate at will. It ripped the heart out of what made Detroit so special. Eventually, we knew this would catch up with them.”

The Pistons brass slowly began realizing it, too, during the playoffs. Teams with players such as Dwyane Wade were thriving. The Ben Wallaces of the world were often sitting on the sideline waving towels thanks to foul trouble and bad matchups.

So, the question Pistons officials had to ask themselves July 1 was this: Did they continue down the same road, or did they change direction before it was too late?

Re-signing Wallace meant that the Pistons were locked into the same starting five for the next five years. If their losses in the playoffs for the past two years weren’t a fluke, the team would struggle to regain its championship form.

Choosing not to sign Wallace also has consequences. It makes an already thin Pistons team thinner. The Pistons don’t have the cap room to make a run at a major free agent, meaning they’ll have to piece together replacements with the mid-level exception and the draft. It seems unlikely that the Pistons would get better in the process.

However, a change might do the Pistons good. The best plan might be to move Rasheed Wallace to the five and McDyess into the starting lineup at the four. That makes the Pistons bigger, more athletic and improves their offense significantly. They’ll no longer have to play four-on-five every night on the offensive end of the floor.

A number of teams are succeeding with this lineup. The Mavericks beat the Spurs in the playoffs using a similar configuration, and the Suns have been red hot for two years without a true center.

Saunders isn’t averse to playing this way, and he certainly has the tools to get it done. Chauncey Billups’ instincts are to push the ball. Hamilton, Prince and Rasheed Wallace can stretch the defense with their shooting. McDyess does much of the dirty work that Ben Wallace did. And the Pistons do have players on their bench who can help.

Everyone in Detroit is saying that Carlos Delfino will play a much bigger role next season. He can slash to the basket and is excellent in transition. The Pistons also are expecting a contribution from second-year player Jason Maxiell — a rough, physical, undersized athlete who reminded many scouts of Ben Wallace when he was drafted last season.

And the Pistons still have free agency to add another piece or two to the puzzle. They could still use an athletic scorer in their backcourt who could slash to the basket and get easy buckets or foul shots.

In other words, things may not be as bad for the Pistons as fans may think. There may be life after Big Ben.