I'll predict the Pistons blow out the Pacers in the rematch... the bench plays well and anxiety will be forgotten.... 40 W's before the all-star break will be a gr8 accomplishment... must be doin' somethin right.

Sorry ski... ther's no doomsday here.

I think this is right on the mark. Starters with 40+ minutes against Philly in a game the bench should have been able to win. It's a bad circle and it came back to bite last night.

Everybody wants to be the mastermind who sees the easy answer. Truth: The team is bored, okay? These guys have been squeezing out wins at an inhuman pace for 40 games, the break is coming, they've got a double-digit lead over a bunch of tomato cans in their conference AND they know that the playoffs are all that really matters. So they're getting sloppy, looking for shortcuts and the quickest way back to the hotel or house. That's just human nature.

Useful tip: When the Pistons make you mad or you think our bench is crap or Flip is a bonehead, go visit some other team forums. See what real problems look like. Nice reality check.

And I'd add: this little "slide" is a repetition of what they've already done twice before this season: in November: L at Dallas, W, then L against Washington (before winning 15 of the next 16) and then end of Dec: L at Cleveland, 2 Ws, then L against Jazz (before winning the next 11). These slips (whether tiredness, or boredom, or some combination of those plus other factors) just don't seem like a big deal to me. It'd be great if the team could play each game as though it were game 7 of the finals, but I just think that's unrealistic over the long haul.

I'm not saying that everything is perfect, and Dallas is charging hard right now in the West, SA is keeping pace so that we're only up a few games in the battle for Finals homecourt, I really agree that there's no doomsday and no cause for panic. If they lose to the Hawks in Atlanta...well, then maybe someone needs to light a fire under their...

flip needs to trust the bench more.

Joe needs to make a trade and get Hunter back into the lineup.

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who do you suppose we trade?

yeah, Lindsey must be grindin' his teeth everytime he sees an offensive player blow by one of our defenders.

Hunter returning would help. I'm not certain AJ and Sarunas could handle the pressure that Lindsey brings, and I certainly don't see Tinsley in the Pacers lineup for any long stretch. But the sky isn't falling, it just seems the bench has fallen and can't get up.

Darko and Arroyo. We just absolutely need a good backup PG.