Having versatile players on your roster is crucial in today's NBA.

It seems the best players all do several things well.

LeBron James can get you a triple-double on any given night. Kevin Durant, who can get you 40 any time, has improved his rebounding numbers each year he's been in the League.

Very few teams have players like this, but they can be franchise changers (James, Dwayne Wade, Brandon Roy) or saviors (Durant, Sacramento's Tyreke Evans).

Another player who exhibits this versatility who may be available when the Pistons are on the clock in this summer's NBA Draft is Ohio State junior guard Evan Turner. Turner, who has two triple-doubles this season, is a 6'7," 205-pound swingman who can shoot the ball from anywhere on the court - Turner averages 17.5 ppg on 59-percent from the field. He's extremely aggressive on the boards for a player his size, a la Jason Kidd and Gerald Wallace, shown by his 10.3 rebounds/game average. He's makes solid decisions when he has the ball (5.9 apg), and he has the ball a lot, serving as the Buckeyes' primary ball handler.

Turner suffered a back injury Dec. 12 in a loss to Butler. With Turner, Ohio State was 7-1 and ranked in the top 15. Without him, the Buckeyes went 3-3, 0-3 on the road. Turner's injury was supposed to keep him sidelined for about eight weeks. He was back half that. He started slow, playing 20 minutes and scoring 8 points in a win over Indiana. Turner amped it up in a 73-62 loss to Minnesota, showing his all-around skills by pouring in 19, 8 rebounds and 7 assists.

Turner showed he was back in a huge 70-66 win at No. 6 Purdue tonight, giving Ohio State its first true road win of the 2009-10 season. He started off slow, going 5-12 in a first half that saw Purdue forward Robbie Hummel steal the show with a 29-point performance, which included hitting 8 three-pointers, on his way to a game-high 35. But Turner picked it up in the second half, going 7-9 and finishing with a career-high 32 points, along with 9 boards.

Watching how smooth and composed Turner stays on the court reminds me of Portland do-everything guard Brandon Roy. They play the exact same way, except Turner is more aggressive on the boards. Pistons fans take note, Roy fell to No. 6 in the 2006 Draft. So far, Roy's the lone all-star from that draft class.

Right now, Detroit, at 12-25, is tied with Indiana and Philadelphia for the fourth-worst record in the NBA. If that holds true to form, and the Pistons land what (right now) would be the sixth pick in the draft, Detroit should take a long, hard look at Turner. His versatility would give the Pistons something they haven't had since Grant Hill.

Some people worry about Turner's back issue. I would, too, if he hadn't come back in half the time doctors said he was supposed to. Bringing in Turner may not sell tickets at first, but it would solve a couple of Detroit's (many) problems. It would relieve Rodney Stuckey of some of his ball-handling duties, which I'm sure every Pistons' fan would love. Adding to that, Turner would give Detroit that versatile athlete teams covet.

The Pistons will have to build through the draft, seeing as Detroit has never been a free agent destination. Sure, they may be able to get some second-tier free agents; but even then, the Pistons will most likely have to overpay them. Detroit needs to draft and cultivate players who will make up their core for the next decade. Turner should be a part of that. He's been the type of player the last two seasons who makes the guys around him better. I believe he can take that intangible with him to the next level.

I think it's safe to say the Pistons won't catch New Jersey in the race for the League's worst record, which basically takes them out of the John Wall sweepstakes. There will be big men on the board with Detroit makes its selection, but they'll all be projects. I KNOW Pistons fans don't want President Joe Dumars to draft anymore "projects," do they?

Based on his track record when it comes to drafts, Dumars will screw this pick up. He can improve that record by drafting Turner if he's staring Dumars in the face on draft night.