I am in Dallas tonight scouting the Mavs, I mean on business, at a hotel that doesn't have NBA TV. Of course so my DVR will do it's job back at home so I will watch the Pistons-Heat game on Thursday. In the mean time I will watch the Tigers in action toninght on FOX and pop into the chat room to see how the Pistons are looking.

JMax eating up the Heat's fouls to give.

I really like this kid. He might never be anything special, but he's just fun to watch and cheer for...

Sloppy game tonight? 45 turnovers total. Glad to see Delfino got a lot of burn. Hopefully, it'll translate into some regular-season time.

Nazr- B+ (considering who he had to check)
Delfino B (would have been better if he didn't stray off his assignment)
Flip- C+ (everything as advertised)
Jmax- B- (decent ft % would have improved this)
Amir D (disapeared)
Blalock C- (nice moves little results)
Starters incomplete (we know what they bring)


Overall the Heat had a hard time getting inside.. the lanes were quickly closed.
Nazr looked active on the boards and made Shaq move his feet.
Flip has a nice cross over this should help us get more inside ops.

As expected sloppy play by both sides... nothing more than a chance to see new/young players in RW&B

Tonights Box score

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http://img207.imageshack.us/img207/6137/iverson2ue0.jpg

Holy crap! I can't believe I forgot about this game!!

I was planning on watching and chatting when I got home from work and then got completely side tracked with family stuff.


Edit to add:
Was Dupree really a DNP - Coach's Decision?

They played everyone else, including Rickert and some dude I've never heard of before but not Super Dupe? Sup with that? Is he already in Flip's dog house?

Yeah Delfino is obviously holding him back

Just enjoying the irony... my guess is they'll rotate the bench guys so they can get decent minutes when they do play

The game was a little sloppy, but not careless. Both teams tried pretty hard for the first preseason game. Most of the turnovers came when the guards threw passes to players who weren't expecting it.

The starters were fine. Dyess wasn't looking for his shot much.

Nazr seemed a little hesitant at first, but he got it going quickly. He has good fundamentals and gives a lot of effort. I am now convinced that given financial considerations, it was the right move to go with him.

Brahma- he should have been working on his FT's all summer long. He needs to convert if he is going to be valuable, b/c he really does get fouled every time he makes a move.

Delfino- Appeared very comfortable. I feel like he has a bit of a swagger from the playing time he got in the FIBA games. To me, he is the true 7th Piston as this point.

Flip Murray- as advertised. I think that he provides a little bit of what Delk did when he was playing well. It is hard to tell if his D is effective from this game.

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"Defense fuels your offense. No mystery about that." AA

Where is he having that sign from? Is it true or is somebody really good with photoshop? Do I witness the first "official" nickname that was given by a member from this forum and that translated into the stadium? Will he be the Brahma in the Palace as well?

It was a good start. Rust on both sides and the Starters on both sides did not look to do much. Notable exception for Mohammed who appeared determined to get off to a good start. If his religious diet is a problem at this time of year then he certainly did not show it. I liked everything about him except for a few dropped passes in the post. I can see how this was a problem in SAN. Comming from SAN he did play in a pretty good program and you can see that in his D. Very smart defender, not a great one but an opportunistic one. Good at deflections and forcing TO's.

I also liked how Sheed is playing closer to the basket. Kelser said something about that he is expecting to see Sheed play closer since Ben is no longer here to grab his missed 3's. The entire team seemed more focused on the glass so thats a good sign.

It was a battle of the bench for the most part and the Pistons easily won it. Maxiel/Murry provided the spark. Maxiel started off great and tailed off in the 4th quarter. I would definetly stick with the guy as he will get better as the season goes on. Maxiel may even be giving us more than McDyess eventually. He always looks to go inside which is what we need. Points in the paint were always a problem last season.

I am not convinced on Murry being a big part of the rotation. He was able to take advantage this game and is quick on the drive but he never saw a shot that he does not like. This could be a problem. Delfino is the smarter player and can give us everything Murry can plus some added D.

Thought we would see more of Johnson. Not sure why Flip went with that hack over Johnson in the 4th. One thing about the pre-seaon. I would rather see guys who need the time get it than giving chances to players you know do not have a shot in heck of making the team. Just wasting everyones time.

Not a great game by Miami so its tough to tell from this. Miami kind of mucked it up with some sloppy physical play.

The second unit looked good which is more than you can say about last year when there was no second unit.