Brendan Haywood, Flip Saunders and Ben Wallace: A cautionary tale, or nothing to worry about? SB Nation Bullets Forever

"That said, Flip doesn't have the best history himself in appreciating and maximizing defensive-oriented big men who may not possess superior offensive skill. He coached Ben Wallace for a year in Detroit, and let's just say it was not a match made in heaven. The two sparred during the year because Wallace didn't think Saunders appreciated Wallace's defensive contributions. It all boiled over when Saunders sat Wallace during the entire fourth quarter of the Pistons' season-ending playoff loss to Miami, and Wallace promptly left the Pistons for the Bulls in large part because he couldn't stand Saunders.

Did he like playing for Flip?

"No. I just didn't like the way we handled things," Wallace said. "We got away from our bread and butter, and that's on the defensive end. I hear him saying now that I'm gone he can open up his playbook. I laugh at it. Everyone's looking for something, and for him to say that, he's fishing for getting a reaction out of me. It's funny to me, real comical. I never thought you could win when you've got five guys on the floor looking for the ball and no one out there doing the little things. So that's on him. If he feels like that, go ahead."

Wallace mentioned Jim Lynam, Doc Rivers, Rick Carlisle and Larry Brown as the favorite coaches he has played for, going on to say Skiles reminds him of Brown because he does not play favorites and sees himself as a teacher at both ends of the floor.

Saunders did not make the list.

"I have no relationship with him. He's coach and I'm a player, and that's as far as it went. If you say your door is always open and we can always talk about things and you'll be willing to listen, and when I come to him to talk about something that's bothering me that I think is hurting the team, if you don't do anything to change it, then that's the last time I need to talk to you."

Brendan Haywood, Flip Saunders and Ben Wallace: A cautionary tale, or nothing to worry%about? - Bullets Forever




10 Best Piston Dunkers In 21st Century
Toasterhands LifeOnDumars

"I know this century is still in the infancy stage, but here’s my list of the 10 best Pistons dunkers not named Jason Maxiell from 01 to 09.
I tried to base this list on specific dunks these players made as Pistons and not just what other fine slams they had with other teams.

#10
Mikki Moore- I remember Mikki throwing down the hammer a few times with Detroit. Mikki always played with insatiable hunger.

#9
Ronald Dupree- Ron didn’t get to shoot a lot, much less dunk. But the sole reason he made a decent career out of playing basketball was, without a doubt, his explosive hops."

10 Best Pistons Dunkers in 21st Century | Life On Dumars | A Detroit Pistons Blog




Not Hall-Worthy, But Pistons Heralded Nonetheless
Jimmy Trombley Bleachers Report

"the NBA Hall of Fame welcomed five new members—Michael Jordan, David Robinson, John Stockton, C. Vivian Stringer, and Jerry Sloan—into the halls of Springfield, Mass.

No Detroit Pistons were inducted, but the Motor City has seen its fair share of cagers enshrined over the team's 51-year history (61 if you count the Ft. Wayne Pistons from 1948-1957.)

Bob Lanier, Dave Bing, George Yardley, Isaiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, and Chuck Daly are a few of the names the Hall selection committee remembered, and names no Detroiter will ever forget.

But there are others. Not Hall-of-Fame worthy, but nonetheless beloved in the hearts of Pistons fans and critical to the rise of the team from "respectable opponent" to one of the NBA's most successful franchises."

Not Hall-Worthy, But Pistons Heralded Nonetheless | Bleacher Report




Classic Pistons editorial cartoons
Skull N. Ball PistonsNationBlog.com

"I’ve always been obsessive about my Pistons. When I was younger I couldn’t wait to get the Detroit Free Press every morning so I could cut out anything pertaining to the Bad Boys and add the clippings to my collection. Well, I recently came across some of those clippings (I kinda save everything).

The clippings that I found most interesting, being an art loving kind of guy, were the editorial cartoons. So, I thought I’d share them with the Pistons Nation while we count down the days until the season starts."

PistonsNationBlog.com » Blog Archive » Classic Pistons editorial cartoons

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"Evolution does not necessarily reward intelligence. With no natural predators to thin the herd, it began to simply reward those who reproduced the most and left the intelligent to become an endangered species." Idiocracy

Pistons Mailbag
Keith Langlois True Blue Pistons

"Moses (Alpena, Mich.): Your thoughts on the Iverson to Memphis deal?

Langlois: Mostly like everyone else’s: Iverson and Zach Randolph
together could be … hmmm. Troubling? Iverson, Randolph, Mayo and Gay … lots of firepower, but good luck fitting the parts together. Iverson said this year was going to be “very personal” for him. That might worry me a little if I were Memphis management or coaching. He said the tank is no longer overflowing, it’s merely full. I don’t think he gets back the quickness that enabled him to not just beat his man, but to beat help defense to the rim. He still makes as many tough shots as anyone; the problem is he almost never takes anything but a tough shot.

Jason (Algonac, Mich.): I’m curious because you’ve said I before and I just wanted to know why you say Magic is the best player ever. What puts him above Michael in your eyes?

Langlois: The five titles Johnson won all came during the era I consider the most competitive in NBA history. By the time Jordan’s Bulls were dominating the ’90s, there wasn’t another team I considered on a par with the Celtics, Lakers or Pistons of the ’80s. If the best teams Magic’s Lakers had to face in the ’80s were the likes of Utah or Houston or Phoenix that Michael’s Bulls had to beat in the ’90s for their titles, the Lakers might have won eight or nine out of 10. I also include their college careers when considering their greatness, and Magic Johnson was a dominant college player from the moment he stepped on the court as a freshman. I think it’s possible that LeBron James could challenge Magic and Michael before his career is over, but he’s going to have to win multiple titles in order to work his way into serious conversation among the masses.

http://www.nba.com/pistons/chat_mailbox/mailbag_090914.html




New Crew
Keith Langlois True Blue Pistons

"But no fewer than five other players are capable of giving John Kuester minutes at power forward. Tayshaun Prince will slide over when Kuester wants to go small, which they’ll probably do late in games in which they’re trailing. Jerebko’s fellow rookies, Austin Daye and DaJuan Summers, are both equipped to play either forward position. And veteran free agents Chris Wilcox and Ben Wallace are both capable of playing either power spot.

Villanueva, 25, holds the key. A gifted and versatile scorer, Villanueva moved into Milwaukee’s starting lineup last season when injuries to Michael Redd and Andrew Bogut left the Bucks with a scoring deficiency. Villanueva flourished, averaging 16.2 points and 6.7 rebounds in 27 minutes a game.

While Villanueva isn’t as prolific from the 3-point line as Wallace – Wallace took 319 to Villanueva’s 258 last year – Villanueva is far ahead of Wallace’s pace at a similar stage of their careers and his .345 percentage of last season was a career best. He can also score around the basket, using his length at 6-foot-11 to shoot over smaller power forwards, and his most underrated trait is his ability to put the ball on the floor.

“I’ve watched Charlie since he was a high school kid,” Pistons vice president Scott Perry said, “and the one thing that’s always stood out with him is he’s got a natural ability to score the basketball. He’s a guy at 6-11 that can handle the ball. He’s very underrated at that. That ability allows him to be that much more of an effective scorer

“He’s very capable of shooting the NBA 3-pointer. You’ve got to respect and honor that, but also know if you get out there and crowd that he’s good enough to get around you and get inside.”

Villanueva comes to Detroit with the reputation as a mediocre defender, but the Pistons believe he has the physical gifts to hold his own within the framework of a stout team defense for a team that plans to emphasize that end of the floor.

“Offensively, he’s very, very talented,” Pistons assistant Pat Sullivan said. “From his days in Toronto and Milwaukee, he’s a very skilled four man, someone who can spread the defense, which is huge in our game today. They really present tough matchups. The biggest charge for all our guys is to make sure that, No. 1, we’re a very, very solid defensive team – what this franchise has always been known for.”

PISTONS: New Crew




First Cup: Monday
ESPN True Hoop

• Scott Cacciola of The Commercial Appeal: "At his press conference, Allen Iverson said he could see himself finishing his career in Memphis. But what was he going to say? I want to prove myself this season so I can sign with an actual contender, and for more money, next summer? Not a chance. To be fair, he did sound sincere -- particularly when he spoke about how difficult moving has been on his family. Iverson married his high school sweetheart in 2001, and the couple has five children. Iverson said he needs stability away from the court, and his family provides that. Memphis is now his home. 'I didn't come here to cause any problems,' he said. 'I didn't come here for any selfish reasons. I came here to win basketball games. I didn't come here for money; I've made enough of that in my lifetime. I came here because it was a good situation for me.' It might be the perfect storm for the Grizzlies: Iverson appears eager to rehabilitate his image, to prove himself once more. According to those closest to him, he has grown weary of hearing that he does not play well with others, that he is a bad teammate, that he can be selfish."

First Cup: Monday - TrueHoop By Henry Abbott - ESPN




On Jordan, Iverson And Gordon
Boyet's NBA Corner

"Former Chicago Bull leading scorer Ben Gordon is one of the top talents in the free agent market this off-season and the Detroit Pistons did not waste time in collaring the 6-3 ex-University of Connecticut stalwart. So what made Gordon leave the Windy City outfit and how does he foresee himself as a Piston this coming NBA wars? Find out more on this one-on-one interview conducted by hoophype.com contributor Jorge Sierra:

How’s been this summer compared to last year’s when you had to deal with all the uncertainty about your future?

Ben Gordon: It’s obviously been a lot more calm and a lot less stressful – just by having clarity with my situation, having signed early in the summer with the Detroit Pistons. Everything in this summer has been about moving forward, making the transition from the city of Chicago to the city of Detroit. That as opposed to last summer, when it was more stressful. There was a whole lot of uncertainty all the way through training camp. This summer has been less stressful.

Did that stress of the summer carry to the regular season?

BG: When the season started, everything was clear. Clarity was brought into the situation: I knew I was going to play on a one-year deal and that was it. The stress I had is the same every basketball player has: To perform well. It was a little bit more hard because it was a one-year deal and I had to worry about being healthy, performing well and trying to get my team to win as many games as possible. There was a little bit more pressure in that aspect, but other than that… The whole thing about the contract… I mean, clarity was there. I knew exactly what I had to do, so it was a little easier because I had the situation cleared up.

Going into free agency, were you expecting to change teams?

BG: After I signed my one-year deal with the Bulls, that same day I knew that could very well be my last year with the team. Or it could be the the start of something new. Going in, I had an attitude that I was going to expect any and everything – whether it be re-signing or moving to a new team and playing with new teammates. I really didn’t believe one thing was going to happen more than the other.

Tell me a little bit about how the free agency process was. Is it true that the Bulls never made an offer?

BG: Yeah, it’s true. You know, I think the level of interest that the Pistons had and they showed was far greater than that of the Bulls. Most teams in that situation, if they want to re-sign a player like myself in the situation I was under, they’d be very clear about it even before free agency started. But as days got closer, I realized the Bulls weren’t interested in re-signing me. Once July 1 came, the feeling I had was true. They didn’t make an offer. I visited Detroit and that evening I pretty much made my mind up that’s where I wanted to be."


BOYET'S NBA CORNER: ON JORDAN, IVERSON AND GORDON

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"Evolution does not necessarily reward intelligence. With no natural predators to thin the herd, it began to simply reward those who reproduced the most and left the intelligent to become an endangered species." Idiocracy