"Last season, Charlie Villanueva struggled with injuries and inconsistency for the Detroit Pistons. He missed the team plane on the way to one game and earned a DNP-Coach's Decision in another.

Fans disappointed with the struggles of a proud franchise took out their frustrations on Villanueva. They vilified him and accused him of being soft, unengaged and overpaid.

Those days are in the past, or soon will be, if Villanueva keeps playing the way he has this season. He clearly is healthy, active and engaged.

And when you consider his annual rate is within a million of the average NBA salary, Villanueva really never has been overpaid.

Villanueva is a different player this season than he was in 2009-10. His numbers are up in almost every category. He is averaging 13.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 0.9 blocks, up from 11.9, 4.7 and 0.7 last season. He openly has accepted his role coming off the bench and is making more than 40 percent of his 3-point shots.

Plus/minus rating in basketball can be deceiving if misused, but it can tell a story over the long haul.

Last season, Villanueva was 13th among 14 Pistons players in plus-minus. The Pistons were outscored by 285 points in 2009-10 when Villanueva was on the floor. For comparison sake, Ben Wallace had the best cumulative total of any Detroit player at minus-17.

Through 17 games this season, only two Pistons players are on the positive side: Villanueva is one of them. Chris Wilcox, who has played fewer than eight minutes, is the other. Everyone else is on the minus side.

But it goes beyond the numbers. Anyone who has been paying attention can see a difference in the way Villanueva is playing. He is battling for rebounds and playing with more energy. He seems more comfortable and more focused."