Preseason is the time for eternal optimism... just reading the national rags you'd think there will be 20+ finalist this year... the team officials lob out all sorts of positive spin to sell more tickets and the media runs with it like a bass on a hook...cause they want to be on the teams good side for future stories...and we fall into the same hype trap (to a lesser extent) as every other hopeful fan in the country.

That's one of the true value in these forums... we can be free thinkers and chose not to follow the machine.

This thread is about concerns I have with the current roster/system.

Areas of concern:

• Our guards allow too much dribble pen.
• Ben is less effective defending heavy centers. Especially if they have a decent hook shot.
• Young untested bench.
• Lack of defense from Delfino & Arroyo
• Lack of a consistent post game.
• Our starting SG & SF are light in the pants, (can be pushed around)
• Can we be as lucky with injuries as last year
• New less disciplined system

Most would probably agree that our bench will be more productive this year (how can it not?)… The question I have is will the points differential improve during the time the bench is replacing the vets. By adding just one more point difference this could easily translate into 5 more wins this year...
This year defensive stops by the bench vs, stops by the starters in the same time (last year) should be watched closely.
Will the defense be as effective during the time that the starters used to occupy?

If we don’t win more games it could easily be directed at the starters for lack of production… however less PT could easily translate to less offensive production.
Some might argue that the starters will be more productive due to the extra rest.
Just another intriguing mystery to monitor this year.

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With politicians the future lies ahead

Here I go with the diapersucking again.

I'm not sold on "more offense" until I see that it doesn't compromise the defense. It would be great to average another 1.5 PPG, as long as that increases our differential, rather than creating a parallel slide with our defensive points allowed.

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Nov 13 LW Milan Lucic had an active night. He scored his first goal in eight games since his Oct. 25 hat trick and also pounded Michael Komisarek in a third-period fight. Lucic cut his hand in a fight with Michael Komisarek. "I'll be fine," he said. "(X-rays are) negative, but there's so many broken bones in there from before you can't really tell."

It seems that our defense still has to give other teams that 'locked-down' feeling in order for us to succeed. Teams who were locked down, especially the year before last, became unglued, quite often. There is no feeling like the feeling you get when you are denied everything you are trying to do .

If we lose that, even though we score more points, we will lose ground in the overall scheme of things. We need for teams to feel frustrated for them to know that they are playing the Pistons.

Off the top of my head, I don't remember many teams getting that same feeling last year !!

I have never had more satisfaction watching basketball than when the Pistons were holding teams in the 60's on a regular basis. It was so ugly that it was a thing of beauty. Adding to the mystique was the way that the NBA hated it. The ultimate compliment is when they have to change the rules to stop you. Like when they "Tiger-proof" a golf course.

Our starters haven't played as many minutes together in the preseason as most other teams, who are now playing their starters regular minutes in these last few preseason games.

This wouldn't be a concern except that I don't feel like they've really got Flip's system down yet. I hope this doesn't result in a sluggish start.

Areas of concern:


Our guards allow too much dribble pen.
I believe that this will be minimized by using nore of a "Matchup Zone" rather than a pure zone. I am hoping this is what Flip means when he tells the team that, if you're doing it right, a zone can be close to man-man.

Ben is less effective defending heavy centers. Especially if they have a decent hook shot. -
Play Dale Davis or etter yet give Darko more minutes. Darko may be light in the pants, but he always brings a "block" party with him.

Young untested bench.
They will make mistakes early on, but watch out down the stretch.

Lack of defense from Delfino & Arroyo
I'm only concerned about this in the playoffs. It shouldn't hurt us that much while we attempt to compile the best record in the east.

Lack of a consistent post game.
Yeah, we'll have to wait and see on this one.

Our starting SG & SF are light in the pants, (can be pushed around)
Big concern! Especially with Artest balooning up to HULK proportions.

Can we be as lucky with injuries as last year
I'm beginning to believe it's a bit more than luck, but even good luck can run out.

New less disciplined system
Another wait and see proposition. It all depends on the players, if they remember their roots, we're ok. If not....

AREAS OF CONCERN:

Our guards allow too much dribble pen.
Always have, but I think they will be able to be more aggressive if the back up 1 and 2 can produce. Faster guards (TJ, Earl, Iverson) give us the fits but if the first line of defence can play them closer it will make things easier for the second line to swat (Tay, Dice, Ben, Sheed, Max and Darko - let the block party begin).

Ben is less effective defending heavy centers. Especially if they have a decent hook shot.
True. But how many have a decent hook shot? Also, three things seem to always work in his favor: he's strong, in better condition then most centers and they are tired towards the end when the game is one the line.

Young untested bench
Yeah, but if this preseason is any indication of what we can do, we'll be fine. The youngsters are hungry and seem to almost all have a chip on their shoulder.

Lack of defense from Delfino & Arroyo
Bench: (offensive 1/2) Arroyo and Delfino (defensive 1/2) Hunter and Evans. Play Arroyo with Evans and Hunter with Delfino. Balance.

Lack of a consistent post game
Yeah, we'll have to wait and see on this one. (I couldn't come up with an better answer.)

Our starting SG & SF are light in the pants, (can be pushed around)
Never seems to bother us before.

Can we be as lucky with injuries as last year
In Arnnie and Mike we trust.

New less disciplined system
As long as w don't hang ourselves with that rope, we'll be fine. More options opens up the creative juices and keeps the other team guessing. We'll just have to all keep our heads in the game and not take any plays off.

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Struggle...Strive...Survive.

Funny, last season one huuuuuge thing about this team was MAKE THE EXTRA!!!! PASS!! LB stressed it big time.

Flip's ideal is, "If you're open shoot" Flip feels that if you're open then the guy you pass to isn't, basically, 2 guys aren't open on the same posession. Talk about contrast.

LB's system worked, we have clear tangible results of 1 ring & 2 finals to show that making the extra pass works. But Flips idea may work too, but it'll mean alot of J's going up, which is cool if they go in.

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Play hard, Play smart, Play together, share the ball, have fun....Play the right way!!!!!!

Pistons' weakness in that #2 guard i.e. Hamilton is not a good ball handler so when Bowen was guarding Billups to stop his shot he was also shutting down the offense by stopping Billups. As opposed to SA, during the finals I was more worried when Ginobili was doing the ball handling because he was so dangerous. Maybe Delfino can provide that.

I hear that! The bench is exciting to talk about but I wouldn't want to rely so heavily on them. Anyway, the wait is almost over.

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