Dallas was indeed hitting some incredible shots last night, but this is the NBA. If you play lousy defense in the first quarter and let a really good team get comfortable, they'll still be making shots in the fourth when you're draped all over them. So that excuse doesn't wash with me.

For four years the Pistons have emphasized "setting a tone," but lately they've gone tone-deaf. It's the trend I'm talking about, not just the most recent game. Our backcourt hasn't looked at all good against more athletic guards from Dallas and Boston. I know we complained about this last year, too, but it's more of an issue now with Lindsey out. Some time in the near future we'll need to augment our long versatile guys with hellishly quick ballhawks ... the kind other teams are going to start using to pressure Chauncey all game long, like the Mavericks did.