01-14-2008, 02:18 PM
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 | Contributor | | Last Online: 12-20-2008 02:06 AM Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Santa Clara, CA
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| Re: Articles worth mentioning II
Here's a look from outside: Quote:
Now there are two real powers in the East, the Celtics and Detroit Pistons, sharpening their swords to resume their old rivalry after all these years.
The Pistons, attitudinal as usual, have a solid operation under Joe Dumars, who reinvigorated his cranky old team with an entire young platoon: Jason Maxiell, Jarvis Hayes, Rodney Stuckey, Arron Afflalo and Amir Johnson.
However, they still don't get many easy baskets, especially against good defensive teams -- like Boston -- and they still have Rasheed Wallace.
Only Philadelphia fans can challenge Detroit fans' belief that everyone and everything is arrayed against them, which resonates through the Pistons.
As tough defensively as the Pistons always are (No. 2 in the league), they get relatively few fouls (No. 19) because they move their feet instead of hacking.
Not that they appreciate the officials' discernment. The Pistons are always among the leaders in technical fouls -- last season they had 73 to No. 2 Indiana's 58 -- with a team-wide commitment to complaining about everything.
Wallace can go off at the mere sight of an authority figure (as Stern once sighed when asked about Wallace's latest conspiracy rant, "If it's Friday, it must be Rasheed Wallace.")
Of course, not everyone can get 23 points and 15 rebounds against Tim Duncan as Wallace did in the Pistons' win in San Antonio last week.
Rasheed is actually mellowing with age. Unfortunately, he has a long way to go and he can't play until he's 70.
Late in the pivotal Game 5 of last spring's East finals when LeBron James scored his memorable 48 points, Rasheed called off Coach Flip Saunders' defense leaving a timeout huddle, telling his teammates to play man-to-man.
In the confusion, James drove in for an uncontested layup.
It shouldn't be surprising that after winning the first meeting in Boston, the Pistons weren't happy after the Celtics shut them down in the rematch in Auburn Hills.
A Detroit Free Press headline asserted: "Celtic mocks Detroit fans; Piston says: 'They're acting like they won the title' "
It was awful. Several Celtics popped their jerseys. James Posey chanted "Deee-troit basketball!"
"They're a little more happy than I know we were when we won our game out there," Chauncey Billups said.
"It was just like a regular game for us with two good teams playing. They were kind of playing like it's the Super Bowl, man."
Actually, the Celtics, who are assuredly edgy on the floor but humble off it, were respectful.
Paul Pierce called the Pistons "a great team," noting, "We're still learning from them what it's like to be in these type of games."
Wallace did one of his patented head-back, eye-rolling despair numbers, left without showering, noting later it was "just a lot of stuff I ain't going to mention."
He meant Saunders' small lineup, which he hates, and the guards not throwing him the ball.
The Pistons moldered after Larry Brown left in 2005, basking in self-congratulation while blaming shortfalls on Saunders, so the Celtics are the wake-up call they needed.
| Who knows what's going to happen? - Los Angeles Times |