Wassup all

This is my first time posting to this form but I have looked over some of the threads.. seemed interesting so I decided to post something.

Here are what I think my top 5 goals would be if I were Flip During training Camp.

1. Build a solid relationship with my key guys.. Wallace, Wallace, Prince, Hamiltion, Bullips, Hunter, Mcdyess, Davis, oh yeah, and Darko.. god knows this kid dosen't need another year of starting off in the coaches doghouse.. plus you need these guys in your corner if you are going to have a long and productive coaching relationship

2. Lay out the expectations for everyone on the team... Starting with the young guys and bench players... Carlos A and Carlos D, and Darko would have to stay longer and work harder than anyone... but telling them that would let them know that he is counting on them to contribute and get beter as the season progresses.. which in turn will only make us better and deeper in the playoffs

3. Stress the importance of getting off to a great start with the end of season goal to win 60+ games.. Since I think it will take probably between 57 and 60 wins to have home court in the east the Pistons need to lead the league in wins so 60-65 should do the trick.. and there will be no stopping us at the Palace in the playoffs....
3.1. Never lose 2 games in a row. losses are a part of the game and even the greastest teams get beat on any given nite.. but this team is too good and the rest of the league is too bad to lose 2 games in a row.. so we need to avoid losing streaks at all cost.
3.2. Beat the teams you are supposed to beat and beat them bad... this sends a message to the rest of the league that there is no let up or let down them sorry teams are the opponet.. they should fear the Pistons.. on the list of teams that we should not have a loss to are Charlotte, Toronto, Atlanta, Clippers, Lakers, Boston, Orlando, Golden State, Minnesotta, New York, Portland, Utah, and Washington

4. Go in with the mindset that we are the team to beat in the east... I would flat out tell my players that because its true yeah teams have made some moves but we have the best starting 5 in the league and are the 2 time Eastern Conf. champs

5. Find creative ways to score transition baskets.. we are one of the fastest teams in the league with both of our big guys ability to run the break...so running should be part of our offensive makeup.. every chance we get we need to run.. I think we are a deep enough team to keep that mindset even when we go to the bench there is not that much fall off in athletes when we go to the bench so we should be abe to play that style all game if we wanted to.. this approach is going to have to start with the point guards.. CB, CA, LH, pushing the ball at every opportunity

i agree with pretty much everything you said. i'll add.

6. up the defensive intensity. not just the 4th quarters of game. we have the bodies we can run trap and rotate all game. block every shot and lay some hard fouls on people. no more free layups for ginobli, wade, parker, nash etc.

MSU Spartan,
You're hired!
You qualify as a diehard bball nut worthy of posting on this here fine forum.l

I think Flip needs to stress that just because LB is gone we're not just becoming a loosy goosy jack it up team... shot selection is one of the primary reasons for our success.
Can't think of any better shot selection than getting out in transition....
which is easier said than done... gotta get the boards and release early enough (but not too soon to leave your man open).
We really missed Mike James putting pressure on the ball and causing T.O.'s...

One of Flips biggest challanges will be getting his bench to play as a team vs individuals.... they're going to have to rely on each other to help on "D" and distribute the rock.


Welcome MSU Spartan... don't be a stranger.

__________________
With politicians the future lies ahead

I agree with most of your goals, but I think the most important goal would be to clearly communicate with the players relative expectations and roles. I know this might be changed once the season begins, but if players have clearly defined goals and roles, than there will be much more productive Practices, which will lead to a much better start than last year. Besides all the drama at the begining of last year, I think that the players--especially the bench--did not know what was expected of them. Not only was this capitulated in sporadic dispersion of minutes, but when a player like delfino was on the court I dont think he knew exactly what he should do--and that is use his excellent athletic ability to score points. I think many of the bench guys were so concerned with playing defense (since they would get yanked) that their tentative offensive play made them look JV.

7. Play like men. When you get a bad call against you on defence, or a non call against you on offence, just keep playing. No whinning like a little baby. All that does is piss of the refs more and make you look like a bunch of babies to the fans.

i like the part about beating teams we should beat. How many wins would we have if we beat those teams? A lot, we lost 2 games against Memphis, 1 against Toronto, 2 agaist Charlotte, 1 against Atlanta, 2 against Milwukee, and 1 against Orlando. Thats not even the end of the list probably.

Great post. I agree with everything...however I don't know how key Dale Davis will be this year except for in the playoffs versus Shaq and from a mentoring standpoint to Darko.

MSU- Great first post. Hey, great anytime post. Agree a bunch.

Jammertime- I really agree. Sometimes things got downright embarrassing. I think if our guys could handle the bad calls like Rip and Ben, we would be in good shape. Of course, you are going to disagree on some calls, but keep it real.

I think baseball umps have a great way of handling it. They pretty much let the guys talk if they do it without trying to show up the ump. If a batter just backs off the plate and dusts his hands while talking, it is good. But if he gestures and causes a disruption, he is punished for it. I have seen Ben and especially Rip talking pretty seriously with refs and they seem to accept it. But how could any self-respecting ref accept the wild antics of some of the guys. It HAS to color the later calls in the game and even into future games.


One that I always liked happened when a batter objected to a called strike and threw his bat high into the air. The ump told him right away, "If that bat comes back down, you're outta here".

Quote:

Originally Posted by jammertime 7. Play like men. When you get a bad call against you on defence, or a non call against you on offence, just keep playing. No whinning like a little baby. All that does is piss of the refs more and make you look like a bunch of babies to the fans.

I think that this one needs to really get emphasized. I understand that refs make mistakes but just let them know that they screwed up and most times there is a make up call. In a close game there is nothing I dread more than one of our key guys getting in a refs face. Refs have reps too so just back off the ones who throw people out, but let them know without losing your cool.

I don’t want the pistons to be labeled cry babies, but I don’t want them to back down from another player either. I guess I just don’t want the pistons to lead the league in techs

I second that. The whinning was starting to bother me a little bit. Shut up and paly the game. Arguing every single call is insane!!!