Snaq DNP in Minnesota with a "sore thumb" and is "questionable" for this game. Is this game "must-win" enough for ESPN to dredge up their Willis Reed footage?

Edit: there is a legitimate injury, though it didn't look like anything many NBA players don't play through all the time.

Watched the Heat game vs Twins, I mean wolves, tonight. Even without Shaq they should have taken this one. They 'appear' to be very scary but I gotta admit Posey and Fattwon do nothing for me! And JWill? HA! I must admit, I want shaq for this one cuz I dont wanna hear no damn changes from them about who didnt play. I expect us to show our butts hard tonight,,,99-84! Bring the noise, my peoples!!!

BTW..yall can check out my jounal at

http://journals.aol.com/oldskoolhq/O...SNEWSANDVIEWS/

IF Micro will let you luv ya

[Ros: Had to fix your link HQ]

Shaq better play. I'm driving from Chicago to the Detroit for my first game at the Palace since game 4 of the Finals. We are sitting next to Bill D. and the Pistons' bench. I'll report back on all the trash talking that goes on.

Shaq will play. Look at the situation. They are playing for virtually nothing right now. They really can't move up or down in the standings. Wouldn't you throw away 1 game against the T-Wolves to have a better chance against the Pistons with a rested Shaq? A chance to gain a "mental edge". That's all it is.

BTW, the "injury" he got happend in the first half against the Knicks. He happend to be healthy enough to come back in the 3rd, and go back in later in the 4th to pad his stats.

As for the game.... There are 2 keys...

1. Ben can't worry about fouls. We've got Dale Davis, Dice, and Sheed (maybe Cato will be activated? He said he was ready). I will vomit if I see Shaq pull one of his usual 12 for 15 jobs against us. MAKE HIM SHOOT FREE THROWS! It's not like Ben does a ton against the Heat anyways. He can't help defend or Shaq has a dunk-fest.

2. Lindsey Hunter or Carlos Delfino should be in the game as much as possible to defend Wade. Those 2 do the best job on him of anyone I've seen.

He'll (shaq) probably play but with playoffs around the corner they may not want to do any further damage to this injury. Just a thought though.I know Miami won the last game but I noticed that even with Shaq at his best Miami was still down.Wade went off and I think it caught Detroit a little off guard that late in the game. So hopefully they'll be better prepared this time around.

His thumb may have swoll up on him late. A win here is just learning for them. A loss for us is a mind check. Starting with Sheed.
100 to 98, Ps

i want to see lindsey play today. he'll make williams turn the ball over a lot. If we keep wade under 35 points it's a win unless he sucks the first 3 quarters, and he has another good fourth quarter. Yhat happens a lot with him, and he'll bring the team back from a double digit deficit, but this mostly happens in miami and not on the road.

We can definitely win this game with or without Shaq playing for the Heat. As long as we play smart and play the entire game instead of 3 quarters only. That's how we lost during the game at Miami. Instead of playing smart basketball, we started jacking up 3s and letting Wade get hot.

Sheed and Tay should play closer to the rim at the offensive end. Both of them can actually get them in foul trouble if they attack the rim more. On the defensive end, both of them should help out on the rebounds or just simply block out.

Do not afraid to foul Shaq if necessary. Big Ben should not save his fouls. Make Shaq earn his points at the foul line. Put Hunter on Wade, put Delfino on Wade, put Tay on Wade, put Hamilton on Wade and he should be worn out by the 4th. Make Wade play on both ends and with the Heat on back to back road games as well as 4 games in 5 nights, Wade should be worn out by the 4th quarter.

As long as we play DETROIT BASKETBALL DEFENSE, we should win this game BIG TIME.

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DETROIT BASKETBALL