Pistons acquire Iverson, send Billups and McDyess to Denver

ESPN --

Joe Dumars said it as loudly as any team executive can say it back in June, memorably warning his own players to brace for a shakeup after the latest in a string of playoff disappointments for the Detroit Pistons.

A mere two games into the new season, Dumars duly gave his roster that shake.

The Pistons and Nuggets on Monday finalized a trade -- which was initially discussed during the summer, sources close to the process told ESPN.com -- that brings guard Allen Iverson to Detroit and sends Pistons mainstays Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess to Denver.

There's a chance McDyess could return to Detroit after a league-mandated wait of 30 days if he can secure his release or negotiate a contract buyout with the Nuggets. Either way, though, Detroit's identity has been radically changed by swapping Billups -- NBA Finals MVP in 2004 and one of the faces synonymous with the Pistons' ensemble-cast approach -- for a high-scoring attention grabber like Iverson.

Iverson's expiring contract, furthermore, will afford Detroit significant financial flexibility as soon as July -- along with Rasheed Wallace's expiring contract -- if Dumars decides it's time for a more thorough makeover. Yet it appears that Pistons guard Richard Hamilton remains a key figure in Detroit's future, with ESPN.com's Chad Ford reporting Monday night that Hamilton and the Pistons have agreed on a three-year contract extension worth an estimated $34 million.