http://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/team/MIA_799.gif http://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/team/at.gifhttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/team/DET_3079.gif

Series 0-1 Miami

Thursday May 25rd, 2006
8:00 PM

Palace of Auburn Hills, Mi

TV: ESPN
Radio: WDFN 1130 AM

Your Detroit Pistons

Ben WallaceRasheed WallaceTayshaun PrinceRip HamiltonChauncey Billupshttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/ben_wallace.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/rasheed_wallace.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/tayshaun_prince.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/richard_hamilton.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/chauncey_billups.jpg

The Miami Heat (boo, hiss)

Shaquille O'NealUdonis HaslemAntoine WalkerDwyane WadeJason Williamshttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/shaquille_oneal.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/udonis_haslem.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/antoine_walker.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/dwyane_wade.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/jason_williams.jpg

Comments?
~~

Lets get this going. I am sick of thinking and talking about game 1. Its over.

Hopefully the team can continue to get Wade and Shaq in foul trouble and can continue a nice FG margin and can actually hit some this game. Key is to break 40%.

I am thinking positive. Pistons will win Thursday. Deep down inside I still strongly feel that the Pistons are the best team in the East if they can get their act together. Being a fan of this team can drive one crazy.

GOOOOO PISTONS!!

You heard it here first, folks - by popular demand, Flip has decided to bench Rasheed Wallace and Chauncey Billups in favor of DD and Delfino.

Also, Zo sprained his shoulder flexing in shootaround and is listed as day-to-day. Dwyane Wade was sent flying into the third row during the incident, but will "try to give it a go".

Pistons 95-87.

Watching the Suns dismantle Dampier inspired me to think about what Ben could do... and did often when playing Shaq's Lakers... get out and leave the fat man in the dust...
He wouldn't be fouled as much if uncontested on a 3 on 2 break.
Rebound and go.... wear the Diesel out running.

losing one game was very much expected. The guys could not do anything about it. I tell you, i would have been shocked if we won that game. We had no legs to keep going with the fresh Miami.

however, Detroid has always proven to have longer breath. We need to send this series to seven games. This is the only way we can beat Miami. For this reason, we need to win this game and one more game in Miami.

Now one thing I ask you guys here. Don't start getting negative in the comments. I repeat, there was no way we could have won game one. the importance of home court advantage shows in game 7.

Go Pistons.

The Mavs dropped their home game. Not sure what it has to do with the Pistons but it made me feel better :)

losing one game was very much expected. The guys could not do anything about it. I tell you, i would have been shocked if we won that game. We had no legs to keep going with the fresh Miami.

however, Detroid has always proven to have longer breath. We need to send this series to seven games. This is the only way we can beat Miami. For this reason, we need to win this game and one more game in Miami.

Now one thing I ask you guys here. Don't start getting negative in the comments. I repeat, there was no way we could have won game one. the importance of home court advantage shows in game 7.

Go Pistons.

Yes losing one game or more was expected, however I personally would have prefered it not be the first game. Miami is playing the best ball of they year at the moment and to give them any confidence at all could be dangerous.

They are still upset about losing game 7 at home to the Pistons last year and they would like nothing more than to dispose of Detroit ASAP!

There ceratiny was a way game one could have been won, by hitting a few more shots, better shot selection, and bench points. To me all of the above hed nothing to do with fatigue.

Detroit will still win this series, however a loss tonight would really hurt.

I heard McDyess on ESPN saying the team doesn't seem to start playing until their backs are up against the wall. Same old story that we all know too often. Finally, a reporter asked, "Why?" McDyess just laughed and said, "I don't know." This team needs to learn that you can only go to the well so often. The Pistons' nine lives are evaporating quickly. I think tonight is a must win. Well, duh. :doh:

The Pistons are what they are, we want them to change because it makes it easier on the hearts. True Pistons fan know that this team has a certain pattern, and for some reason they prevail in though situations. I for one still thinks that this series will get worse before we see the real Pistons stand up, being down 1-0 in a series does not put this team in trouble because these guys can win anywhere on the road. I believe the Pistons will win this series but will play from behind until its over.

I oringinally had this series going 6 games to the Pistons, but I like alot of fans get lost sometimes think that the Pistons will do things the easy way. They will play from behind until their backs are agians't the wall and pull this one out in 7 games.

With that being said don't be to suprised if the struggle tonight. GO PISTONS!!!!

JUZ GO TO WORK & KICK THE HEAT'S AZZ!!!

DEFENSE!!! BRING THE ENERGY!!!

DETROIT BASKETBALL!!!

There is a lot of talk about if the Pistons just make a few more shots, then we will easily win. Let's not forget that Miami was only able to play Snaq and Wade for 50% of the game. Most likely, they will be more dominant tonight.

Very positive post AHB. congrats
As with the last 4 games I don't have any idea what kind of game will be played.
Ps ?
Hs -?

Chauncey needs to have a big(efficient)game tonight.Stop pressing and get it going on offense getting easy assists and good shot selections.Get it going early and get the cast invovled.Pretty much no-brainer stuff just got to execute it.I agree must win tonight at home then ya gotta take one in Miami in game 3 or 4,ok game 4.Good point TaShawn if it's a closer type game then unless foul trouble with Wade and Shaq are a problem they will be in alot longer than game 1.I don't think Maimi's bench shoots like they did in game 1 but Walker having confidence in his play isn't good and Haslem will not likely goose egg again.

If fatigue is a factor which I don't think it is, one day between games isn't going to get us any more rest the remainder of the series.

There is a lot of talk about if the Pistons just make a few more shots, then we will easily win. Let's not forget that Miami was only able to play Snaq and Wade for 50% of the game. Most likely, they will be more dominant tonight.

True, but the Heat were even more effective with those guys on the bench: I think they were +10 for the game when both of them were sitting down! So even if they both play more--and it's pretty certain that at least Wade will--they'd both probably have to be in peak form throughout all that extra court time to match the effective advantage that Miami got from their other guys in Game 1 when those two were sitting.

No matter what the Pistons say, today is a must win. Get down 0-2 and the series is over. Miami will not surrender the advantage.

I don't think 0-2 would be insurmountable. It is not easy to put the Pistons out as they have proved time and time again. Don't ever count out a team that has Ben Wallace on it.

To keep myself from going angry about this game I think of it as a sign.

-Pistons beat the Milwaukee Bucks in 5 in the 04 Playoffs.
-Pistons beat the Bucks in 5 this year.

-Pistons lose 3 straight after being up 2-0 to New Jersey, but still win the series 4-3.
-Pistons lose 3 straight after being up 2-0 on Cleveland, but still win the series 4-3.

-Pistons lose Game 1 to Indy but win the series in 6.
-Pistons lose Game 1 to Miami...:fingerscr

I don't think 0-2 would be insurmountable. It is not easy to put the Pistons out as they have proved time and time again. Don't ever count out a team that has Ben Wallace on it.

I have not seen anything over the last 6 games that gives me confidence that this seasons Pistons have gotten their act together. They barely squeaked by the Cavs in game 6, a rookie playoff team. The Heat are a solid team and I don't see them losing 4 in row. Maybe Game 2 will be the beginning of a change. But until then I will stick to my story. Call me pessimistic.

I don't think 0-2 would be insurmountable

Oh my God! After all this time, Lee 357's comment makes sense!

"Tashawn (Micro), technically you are correct. But in a common sense way you are very very wrong".

Shoot me now. Understanding a Leeism is a natural place to end my existence, as it seems to afford the most naturally smooth transition between life and death. :rolleyes::clock::dizzy::twitch::yield::doh:

I don't think 0-2 would be insurmountable.
I'm not so sure. If they execute, they'll win with desire and home passion as the intangibles.

If they don't, and end up down 0-2, it's not looking like they can steal 4 out of 5 with 3 on the road.

That said, GO PISTONS!

The Pistons can win 3 on the road if they shoot anywhere close to 50%.

No need to argue over this. It would be difficult, but not impossible. When you are playing a better team, then it becomes impossible.

We are going to win tonight. Split in Miami. Then win, win to close it in 6. Just do like the players are going to do and enjoy the ride. This is only entertainment after all. These guys are like very highly paid ballet dancers... with afros.

I'm not so sure. If they execute, they'll win with desire and home passion as the intangibles.

If they don't, and end up down 0-2, it's not looking like they can steal 4 out of 5 with 3 on the road.

That said, GO PISTONS!

Get the split today and come back atleast 2-2 from Miami and they will be OK. This game has to have a sense of urgency.

I am not sure what to expect. I would imagine the Pistons will win. They still are the better team and cannot lose 2 straight at home given the circumstances - can they? They can if the offense is still slumping. Have other teams figured us out or are the P's just not moving the ball and hitting shots? Are the bread and butter plays still there but now look like crap because other teams know our offense or is the team not executing?

Stay tuned...

I could not believe all the desperation and hoplessness from the Talk Radio guys. Flip has lost the team, Ben wants out, Billups is not trying, Sheed had the worst game of his career..... on and on.

I want to wait until the end of tonights game to make a judgement, but bottom line is that a loss tonight and all of the folks who told us "not to worry" or "I am not concerned" back in March, should turn in their "Real Piston Fan" cards. I will keep one foot on the bandwagon and go to church tomorrow and pray, but I see no way of us coming back from two down going on their home court. :P

Some time after the allstar game all of the other competitive teams figured out our predictable offense and even though our D is OK??, we are now struggling against the so called elite 8 teams. :mad:

The Pistons can over come it, but they have to dig down and just play they way did when they were real champs and not play with the arrogance that "we cannot be beat" so we will give up an uncontested layup or 3 ball. I think game 2 changed when Walker and Posey came down and shot back to back threes from the left. There should be none of that tonight and no Scrub should be allowed to score like payton and Walker did.

but bottom line is that a loss tonight and all of the folks who told us "not to worry" or "I am not concerned" back in March, should turn in their "Real Piston Fan" cards.


uh oh

:whistle:
:bolt:

uh oh

:whistle:
:bolt:

:laugh:

CHAT IS OPEN!

I don't like how our guys play after travel.
But we didn't call our D a bball version of the Steal Curtain for nothing.
We know these guys can play with one foot in the grave.
Might have to resort to some 150 point game totals.
The way it was always meant to be.
That said, bomb these cats!

these espn guys make me so mad.

"dwyane wade didn't let foul trouble keep him from lighting up the pistons in game 1".

i will give them that wade shot the lights out (9-11). but his point total was 2 below his playoff average. So i believe that would be literally a sub-par game.

so then the espn guys would say: "but he only played 27 minutes because of fouls"

and i'm thinking, well, whose fault is that? since when is accumulating offensive fouls a kind of accident of nature or an act of god?

the fact is, fouls are part of the game and playing out of control is an offensive defect of wade's (just like not being able to go left might be for another player).

the pistons did a lot of things wrong in that game (including letting wade shoot 9 of 11), but one thing they did right was exploit wade's tendency to get out of control by drawing fouls on him. as far as i could tell, none of those calls were cheap calls. they were all clearly fouls.

(just like not being able to go left might be for another player).

I smell a Zoolander reference....:eyebrows:

I want to wait until the end of tonights game to make a judgement, but bottom line is that a loss tonight and all of the folks who told us "not to worry" or "I am not concerned" back in March, should turn in their "Real Piston Fan" cards.
Does that mean, conversely, that if they DO win the folks who WERE worried need to turn in their "Real Piston Fan" cards?

What the hell happened at the end? From the Yahoo boxscore, it looked like the bench gave up another huge lead in garbage time yet again.

What the hell happened at the end? From the Yahoo boxscore, it looked like the bench gave up another huge lead in garbage time yet again.

nope. actually miami started mauling billups and the refs swallowed thier whistles. then bevetta didn't have his ear implant turned up so he could hear tayshaun call time out. it's ok we still pulled it out with some clutch free throw shooting from chauncey.

What the hell happened at the end? From the Yahoo boxscore, it looked like the bench gave up another huge lead in garbage time yet again.No sir. that was The Detroit Five who gave that lead back.

Another horrible Game 2 fourth quarter.

Another game where they checked-out after taking a 15 point lead. how pathetic is this getting.

this was almost a good game for detroit. but now there's no momentum going in to Game 3. Again.:mad2:

nope. actually miami started mauling billups and the refs swallowed thier whistles. then bevetta didn't have his ear implant turned up so he could hear tayshaun call time out. it's ok we still pulled it out with some clutch free throw shooting from chauncey.

LOL.

The close score may actually work to the Pistons benefit. It will give the Heat confidence, but keep Detroit from resting on its past laurels...I hope.

bevetta
Explains everything. That man should have retired five years ago. (Just kidding about the bench.)

Tay had a great game on the boards. Only a -1 differential overall. Can't say anything until I actually watch the game, but a win's a win.

Good energy and movement for most of the game.Ben was a ball of energy out there and played very well I thought.In the 4th I didn't like the lack of movement and back to the iso crap.Bad no timeout call on the ref there and made it closer than it should have been.But it's 1-1 now and we played like we can play.At least 1 in Miami and we come back with homecourt.On a side note good deal with Flip giving the guys Wed. off cept for film and playing the bench some.The starters came out with more energy and kept it running until the 4th quarter letdown.Go Pistons!!

Is bevetta the ref we always have trouble with? Seems like the Pistons were getting banged around in the final 2 mins with no calls. Prince tries to call a timeout. Billups gets fouled hard on the next in-bounds, that should have been a dead ball foul.

Oh well. Hunters steal at the end was poetic justice. Pistons pulled it out and got the win. Prince has been the main reason why we are still alive in this mini shooting slump. Looked like they had finally got out of it until the 4th quarter.

LOL.

The close score may actually work to the Pistons benefit. It will give the Heat confidence, but keep Detroit from resting on its past laurels...I hope.

I think, in seriousness, you're dead on Darth. It's not at all clear to me that "momentum" is a helpful thing to Detroit from one game to the next.

Is bevetta the ref we always have trouble with? Seems like the Pistons were getting banged around in the final 2 mins with no calls. Prince tries to call a timeout. Billups gets fouled hard on the next in-bounds, that should have been a dead ball foul.

Oh well. Hunters steal at the end was poetic justice. Pistons pulled it out and got the win. Prince has been the main reason why we are still alive in this mini shooting slump. Looked like they had finally got out of it until the 4th quarter.

I thought Crawford was the team nemesis.

Here's an early recap hot off the press for those that missed the game:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/recap;_ylt=AvUr8Hws1jeVhgT20kfKMMg5nYcB?gid=200605 2508

I keep telling y'all that the refs are incompetent. I believe some harbor grudges, and it's not a league conspiracy to fix the games, but these refs need to get "checked" and made accountable.

I don't know if anyone caught this, but they interviewed Tay coming off the court, and he said that Bavetta claimed it was too loud to hear him. Then Bavetta apparently "said something he shouldn't have" to Tay. Tayshaun was careful to hang him out there, but not indict himself with a league penalty.

I just wanna know if what was said was in any way rascist. Tay seemed really shook up by it. I'll post video tomorrow.

What the hell happened at the end? From the Yahoo boxscore, it looked like the bench gave up another huge lead in garbage time yet again.
Tayshaun was amazing. I am sure you will watch the game and pick him apart, giving him little credit for making huge plays down the stretch, and basically being the player of the game, but hey, it's a free world.

I'd be awfully surprised if it was anything racist. Bavetta probably just cussed at him or something, like "don't question my f^%&^ing hearing" or something like that.

I must say that was one of the WORST blown calls I've EVER seen. Of COURSE he was trying to call timeout, what planet was Bavetta on in that situation?

I'd be awfully surprised if it was anything racist. Bavetta probably just cussed at him or something, like "don't question my f^%&^ing hearing" or something like that.

I must say that was one of the WORST blown calls I've EVER seen. Of COURSE he was trying to call timeout, what planet was Bavetta on in that situation?
You can watch the Tay interview bit when I post it if you didnt see it live. He was really shook up over it.

Bavetta blew the mugging on Billups twice. The guy is a liability to be calling games in the playoffs. Missing a call in a crunch time playoff sequence is bad. Missing 3 in 20 seconds, all in front of his eyes, is atrocious.

Best part of this game was Tay's monster double-double. He's the only guy that really played with focus the ENTIRE time he was out there. Other guys take off possessions. The Heat scored 17 points in the last 1:46, which is inexcusable -- even with the refs stepping on their johnsons. Things that were annoying: The backcourt was 12 of 31, which, although an improvement from Game 1, is still not good enough. Bench scored a total of 3 points. Three points! :doh: I was glad to see Delfino in there even though I don't think he did much out there. He was OK. No Mo. That was great. I wonder if someone said something to Flip.

I'm not that pissed off at Bevetta. The guy is pretty fair to us. He screwed up the Sheed jump ball thing and the timeout, but Crawford typically asks the Pistons to "bend over" before the game.

The team still didn't shoot that well but things got better. It would be nice if the team avoided their usual Game 3 doldrums on Saturday.

Yeah, I saw the interview bit. I think he was just stunned that such an obviously blown call happened to him like that with the game potentially on the line. That'd be enough to shake me up.

Does that mean, conversely, that if they DO win the folks who WERE worried need to turn in their "Real Piston Fan" cards?

Real Piston fans should always be concerned when the team is struggling and not assume that they will be prevail. Look at tonight's nailbiter; heart-stopper. Some of us in the chat room were already conceding the win in the 3rd qtr and were already thinking ahead to Saturday...and looks like the Pistons players were too.

We thought this one was over but our D gave up 17 points in the last 1:46...we should still be concerned about that even though we won. :doh:...and keep our cards.

No sir. that was The Detroit Five who gave that lead back.

Another horrible Game 2 fourth quarter.

Another game where they checked-out after taking a 15 point lead. how pathetic is this getting.

this was almost a good game for detroit. but now there's no momentum going in to Game 3. Again.:mad2:
To be fair Griff, they did get jobbed by the refs in the 4th Q several times.

It seems there are two standards for physicality, and the Heat can play like the 90s Knicks, and the Pistons are expected to take it.

Yes they surrendered the lead, but when you don't get foul calls, and when you get called for iffy crap, that saps momentum too.

CB is simply overmatched when asked to break plays and create. When he gets a different look from defenders, he gets flustered and is forced to decide, pass or shoot, overthink what is happening and it usually turns out ugly.

Gotta give him a little credit for finally playing some defense late though.

Real Piston fans should always be concerned when the team is struggling and not assume that they will be prevail. Look at tonight's nailbiter; heart-stopper. Some of us in the chat room were already conceding the win in the 3rd qtr and were already thinking ahead to Saturday...and looks like the Pistons players were too.

We thought this one was over but our D gave up 17 points in the last 1:46...we should still be concerned about that even though we won. :doh:...and keep our cards.
I never think it is over DRE. :)

Tay and Ben were the difference. Ben's frenetic play is having an impact on defense. Tay is scoring, hitting the boards--doing it all. Riley has to be worried about Tay. They have little answer for him. His roaming on offense is very le Bron--like. My friend, (a Buck fan rooting for us) called Tay "your second best player behind Ben Wallace." A bit too far but an interesting comment.

It is clear that we didn't have it in game one. We need to get out of Miami at 2-2 and we should be alright. We are still not operating on all cylinders but if we move the ball on offense and play frenetic on defense, we can expose the Heat's slowness of foot.

BBJ, BBen wants his respect back.
Nice of him to stay focused.

Best part of this game was Tay's monster double-double. He's the only guy that really played with focus the ENTIRE time he was out there. Other guys take off possessions. The Heat scored 17 points in the last 1:46, which is inexcusable -- even with the refs stepping on their johnsons. Things that were annoying: The backcourt was 12 of 31, which, although an improvement from Game 1, is still not good enough. Bench scored a total of 3 points. Three points! :doh: I was glad to see Delfino in there even though I don't think he did much out there. He was OK. No Mo. That was great. I wonder if someone said something to Flip.

I'm not that pissed off at Bevetta. The guy is pretty fair to us. He screwed up the Sheed jump ball thing and the timeout, but Crawford typically asks the Pistons to "bend over" before the game.

The team still didn't shoot that well but things got better. It would be nice if the team avoided their usual Game 3 doldrums on Saturday.

Yeah Ggazoo, the bench gave us plenty of minutes to rest the starters, but they didn't contribute offensively at all. Dice was intimated by Zo and missed 3 layup attempts under the basket and finally scored on a dunk. Hunter threw up 3-three point bricks and Delfino touched the ball only one time and made a bad shot from the left. But I will take it their contribution as they did take 9 fouls on Shaq and Wade, etc

To be fair Griff, they did get jobbed by the refs in the 4th Q several times.

It seems there are two standards for physicality, and the Heat can play like the 90s Knicks, and the Pistons are expected to take it.

Yes they surrendered the lead, but when you don't get foul calls, and when you get called for iffy crap, that saps momentum too.

CB is simply overmatched when asked to break plays and create. When he gets a different look from defenders, he gets flustered and is forced to decide, pass or shoot, overthink what is happening and it usually turns out ugly.

Gotta give him a little credit for finally playing some defense late though.Wave, zebras or no zebras, this team was drifting through the last 18 minutes of this game. that's okay if miami's waving a white flag. but when they start pushing back we have to snap back into attack mode. that's all i ask for.

Imo it is the classic case of giving the calls to the aggressor b.s. That in no way means I agree with how the end of the game went but that is typical NBA rhetoric. If Mark (refs couldn’t even manage a dairy queen) Cuban was the owner of the Pistons there would have been an interview after the game of him criticizing the refs saying how horrible the game was called and we will be sending a tape to the NBA and paying a $250,000 fine whew:blah:. Pat Riley said it best in his post game interview the Pistons were just looking at the clock trying to get the game over with. I don’t understand how the Pistons don’t have the KILLER instinct. It is always the same thing inbound the ball and hope they send Billups to the line. I will not complain about a win though Tay was huge this game and for all of you who complained about his contract please look at the stats of this playoff run and tell me who has been more consistent than Tay.

One thing that made me almost giddy was seeing DD out there bangin Shaq. Sure he didn’t score did not get a rebound or block but he had 2 fouls in like 7 minutes giving Ben a huge breather. Same goes for Delfino Tay did not even hit 40 minutes this game. The Bench came in did their thing and imo it is a huge bonus.

Go Pistons Beat the Refs and Beat the Heat!!!!!!!

Yeah Ggazoo, the bench gave us plenty of minutes to rest the starters, but they didn't contribute offensively at all. Dice was intimated by Zo and missed 3 layup attempts under the basket and finally scored on a dunk. Hunter threw up 3-three point bricks and Delfino touched the ball only one time and made a bad shot from the left. But I will take it their contribution as they did take 9 fouls on Shaq and Wade, etc

Can't expect too much from the bench, especially Delfino, Davis etc. They haven't played enough to develop a rhythm. At best if they can spare the starters some rest and keep the momentum from shifting they have done their job. Keep the defense strong should be their motto.

Wave, zebras or no zebras, this team was drifting through the last 18 minutes of this game. that's okay if miami's waving a white flag. but when they start pushing back we have to snap back into attack mode. that's all i ask for.
Ideally they never leave attack mode and bury the opponent completely.

As I said, I'm not blaming the zebras, but they impose their incompetence on the game too much, and it seems that this match, and Game 5 against the Cavs, they did as much (or was it little) as they could to sap momentum.

I love the Pistons, and I love basketball, but sometimes I get totally frustrated with the NBA and it's variables.

The Pistons can win this series. They are the better team. Anything short of the Finals at this stage is unacceptable.

They have to keep the tempo upbeat. The Heat, especially Shaq, can't hang with them for 48 minutes. Some props to Flip for playing the bench.

Real Piston fans should always be concerned when the team is struggling and not assume that they will be prevail. Look at tonight's nailbiter; heart-stopper. Some of us in the chat room were already conceding the win in the 3rd qtr and were already thinking ahead to Saturday...and looks like the Pistons players were too.

We thought this one was over but our D gave up 17 points in the last 1:46...we should still be concerned about that even though we won. :doh:...and keep our cards.
How can you measure a true Piston fan by how much they worry? People have different perceptions.

The counter argument would be that a real fan has blind faith and undying loyalty. The real fan is not a worry wart.

Personally, I worry sometimes and not at others. I have faith sometimes and not at others. But I don't judge others because they do not share my own SUBJECTIVE feelings at any given moment.

I thought people were excited in chat. Is something inherently wrong with that?

What matters as far as the outcome of the game...the only thing that matters...is how the players felt and how they reacted.

I think the tension and anxiety of the game got to all of us in different ways.

What is important is that we are going to Miami to steal a game.

or two.

You can watch the Tay interview bit when I post it if you didnt see it live. He was really shook up over it.



Interesting that you understood it that way. I thought Prince was insinuating that Bavetta admitted he blew it, but Prince didn't want to say that and "put anyone out there." But now that you say that, I'm really wondering what was said. I suppose we'll find out tomorrow in a Parker or Wojo column.

How can you measure a true Piston fan by how much they worry? People have different perceptions.

The counter argument would be that a real fan has blind faith and undying loyalty. The real fan is not a worry wart.

Personally, I worry sometimes and not at others. I have faith sometimes and not at others. But I don't judge others because they do not share my own SUBJECTIVE feelings at any given moment.

I thought people were excited in chat. Is something inherently wrong with that?

What matters as far as the outcome of the game...the only thing that matters...is how the players felt and how they reacted.

OK you won, I am not going to argue about it.

Interesting that you understood it that way. I thought Prince was insinuating that Bavetta admitted he blew it, but Prince didn't want to say that and "put anyone out there." But now that you say that, I'm really wondering what was said. I suppose we'll find out tomorrow in a Parker or Wojo column.
I'm an interview junkie. I like to think I could do impersonations of most of the players. Maybe I was looking too hard, but my first impression of Tay (based off of dozens of post game interviews) was that he really got shook up and felt strongly enough about what Bavetta said to throw it out there on national TV (Tay is no one's fool, he knew what he was doing).

OK you won, I am not going to argue about it.

Darn, if only it was this easy with my wife. :laugh:

OK you won, I am not going to argue about it.

Get a split at Miami and I will be feeling real good about this team's chances. Hopefully Game 3.

Yeah Ggazoo, the bench gave us plenty of minutes to rest the starters, but they didn't contribute offensively at all. Dice was intimated by Zo and missed 3 layup attempts under the basket and finally scored on a dunk. Hunter threw up 3-three point bricks and Delfino touched the ball only one time and made a bad shot from the left. But I will take it their contribution as they did take 9 fouls on Shaq and Wade, etc

Good points, Dre, as always.

Let's definitely make it Game 3, please. Down 2-1 on the road? Even though the Pistons have come out of it before, I never like being in that situation.

Got a little too close for comfort there at the end, but we kept the outcome of the game in our hands and came away with a win. Note, we did not have that much a margin of error. If Flip had tried to hide his favorite scrub into the game, we could have lost. Instead, he chose to use good solid NBA players.

Delfino did not play a whole lot, yet it was night and day difference when he was in there or not in there with our bench. Our bench with Hunter in there without Billups just did not work unless Delfino was in at small forward sharing some of the load of making the offense run. A pick here, a good feed to the post there. Lots of good stuff by Delfino on both ends of the floor. No stats, but if you look a little closer, he was helping us get bounds, helping us come up with loose balls. Its certainly a step in the right direction. Now hopefully Flip will look at the film and realize that he simply needs to ensure he keeps Delfino in the game whenever Billups sits and we will do even better going forward.

And Dale Davis got time. Great. Some more fouls you can give Shaq and a little more energy for our bigs toward the end of the game. Even though Shaq made way too many free throws for my liking, fouling him was effective, as often it gave Miami side line out vs. a scoring op from Shaq or from Shaq finding a shooter off our double team. We still have not used Cato though, and I think we will have to to get a win down in Miami. For some of the game, you actually need to put someone on Shaq who can keep him away from the basket. With Shaq near the basket, if our big comes off him to help, Shaq is right there for a catch and dunk.

Rip nailed some long range shots, Sheed hit a couple of threes and hit several other shots for about 16 points I believe. Billups did some scoring, not a ton. But Tay was the big time scoring hero tonight. Man was he aggressive going into the lane. He would attack once, get stopped, turn and attack again, and a third time if needed. But he kept finding his way to the basket. And he continues to make those free throws. After being the clear MVP of the last series, he is well on his way to being MVP of this one. 11 bounds too, a whole lot of them offensive.

Hunter did not do that great on Wade tonight, but Flip certainly used him extensively on Wade. Good job of coaching. Hunter did ok at least, which saved energy for Rip and Tay to score more. On offense, like I mentioned, Hunter could not make anything work, nor could he hit a shot himself. Flip, in my opinion, ought to give up the idea of Hunter being a point guard. Play him along side Delfino and let Delfino do the bulk of the ball handling. Hunter can be a very valuable asset in this series, as long as he uses all his energy for one thing, guarding Wade.

Dyess did not do a whole lot in this one. Delk played briefly in the 1st half and did little.

This is pretty obvious, but I will mention it for anyone who may be reading who does not follow the game that closely. Shaq is not too quick. The more the Pistons can push the ball up the floor and shoot before Shaq gets back on defense the better. We did some of this, but we can do more.

For this game, other than Wade and Shaq, the rest of the Miami players were cold shooting the ball. And we still just won the game. Don't expect things to get any easier Saturday night down in Miami. Of course, since Flip seems to be on the right track tonight with his use of the bench, it could get easy. Its up to Flip. PS Evans did not get into the rotation in three of the last 4 games. All Piston wins. The one game Flip tried to hide him in there for a spell, we lost the game. Give it up Flip. Especially in Miami Saturday night. Please don't even try it. Us Piston fans are rather fond of wins. GO PISTONS!!!!!

The Pistons can win this series. They are the better team. Anything short of the Finals at this stage is unacceptable.

They have to keep the tempo upbeat. The Heat, especially Shaq, can't hang with them for 48 minutes. Some props to Flip for playing the bench.

Anakin, I agree wholeheartedly that Detroit is the better team. Problem is, they don't always play like it. And they're not better by much. A few bad calls or bad bounces one way or the other make a real difference.

Darn, if only it was this easy with my wife. :laugh:Yeah when my wife starts yelling, I walk away too...kept it real for 20+ years :eyebrows: ....good comments dude

Hunter did not do that great on Wade tonight, but Flip certainly used him extensively on Wade. Good job of coaching. Hunter did ok at least, which saved energy for Rip and Tay to score more.

That steal at the end looked pretty "great" to me.

I'll take either game and be happy, but game 3 would be my preference. I don't want to think about the prospect of losing game 4 and falling behind 3-1. :faint2: I would like our chances going back to Detroit at 2-2.

That steal at the end looked pretty "great" to me.
That was due to Delfino. :rolleyes:

I'll take either game and be happy, but game 3 would be my preference. I don't want to think about the prospect of losing game 4 and falling behind 3-1. :faint2: I would like our chances going back to Detroit at 2-2.

Agree, grabbing game 3 and the HCA back right away is most important to keep up the momentum and put some scare in the minds of the Heat as they would be in panic mode in game 4 knowing that they may have to go back to Motown down 3-1

Lord how I have missed Lee.....sort of....I guess
Ben, I have to take up for this guy in a big way, here goes. When Ben gets TOUCHES we play our best ball. You need 5 players involved in the offense every possession for this team to excel. Ben Wallace is the only starter that when he catches the ball at the top from the strong side IMMEDIATELY SWINGS THE BALL WEAKSIDE FORCING THE DEFENSE TO ROTATE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sheed, Rip, Lindsey and Chauncey are notorious for holding the dang ball instead of instinctively swinging it to the weakside. When Ben gets TOUCHES it means that this team is sharing and moving the ball. Ben does not want TOUCHES so that he can get more shots and score more points, Ben wants TOUCHES because he's the only starter at times that seems to remember what it takes/took for this team to be champions
-Tough Defense
-Tough Rebounding
-Sharing and Moving the ball
Every dang time we got to the 2 man game and Iso BS, we f$#$%n blow a lead or get our azziz kicked. For 2 seasons we all knew that this team got into trouble when 1 or 2 players (mainly Chauncey and Rip) would try to put too much pressure on themselves to get this team going. After every loss it was the same old story, "We got away from sharing the ball...." "We tried to go too much one on one" every time it was the same story, now we actually have sets designed to put pressure on one guy to do it all.
When 2Chest, is our primary play and Rip runs his man ragged it opens up sooooo many options
-Rip can shoot
-Rip can drive the lane off the curl
-Rip can drive and drop off to Ben
-Rip can drive and kick weakside
-When Bens man helped on the curl the lob to Ben from the pt was WIDE OPEN
Man I could go on for days, however it was good to see our boys 'PLAYING THE RIGHT WAY" for 3 qtrs. Now lets hope we can steal game 3, cause that'll put us up 2-1, then you know we'll lose game 4-cause we can't handle success, but we come back to the Palace tied up after a loss, so we'll win game 5 and go up 3-2 hopefully with enough motivation to closeout on the road in 6.

I'm an interview junkie. I like to think I could do impersonations of most of the players. Maybe I was looking too hard, but my first impression of Tay (based off of dozens of post game interviews) was that he really got shook up and felt strongly enough about what Bavetta said to throw it out there on national TV (Tay is no one's fool, he knew what he was doing).Due to his mild mannered nature, I feel like Tayshaun's national criticism will resonate with the media and the league. i don't know if it will cause any effect, but at least it gets people talking (Bill Simmons has been calling out Bavetta a lot, as well).

I never think it is over DRE. :) its over, bro...u kno whatimean?

Got a little too close for comfort there at the end, but we kept the outcome of the game in our hands and came away with a win. Note, we did not have that much a margin of error. If Flip had tried to hide his favorite scrub into the game, we could have lost. Instead, he chose to use good solid NBA players.

Delfino did not play a whole lot, yet it was night and day difference when he was in there or not in there with our bench. Our bench with Hunter in there without Billups just did not work unless Delfino was in at small forward sharing some of the load of making the offense run. A pick here, a good feed to the post there. Lots of good stuff by Delfino on both ends of the floor. No stats, but if you look a little closer, he was helping us get bounds, helping us come up with loose balls. Its certainly a step in the right direction. Now hopefully Flip will look at the film and realize that he simply needs to ensure he keeps Delfino in the game whenever Billups sits and we will do even better going forward.

And Dale Davis got time. Great. Some more fouls you can give Shaq and a little more energy for our bigs toward the end of the game. Even though Shaq made way too many free throws for my liking, fouling him was effective, as often it gave Miami side line out vs. a scoring op from Shaq or from Shaq finding a shooter off our double team. We still have not used Cato though, and I think we will have to to get a win down in Miami. For some of the game, you actually need to put someone on Shaq who can keep him away from the basket. With Shaq near the basket, if our big comes off him to help, Shaq is right there for a catch and dunk.

Rip nailed some long range shots, Sheed hit a couple of threes and hit several other shots for about 16 points I believe. Billups did some scoring, not a ton. But Tay was the big time scoring hero tonight. Man was he aggressive going into the lane. He would attack once, get stopped, turn and attack again, and a third time if needed. But he kept finding his way to the basket. And he continues to make those free throws. After being the clear MVP of the last series, he is well on his way to being MVP of this one. 11 bounds too, a whole lot of them offensive.

Hunter did not do that great on Wade tonight, but Flip certainly used him extensively on Wade. Good job of coaching. Hunter did ok at least, which saved energy for Rip and Tay to score more. On offense, like I mentioned, Hunter could not make anything work, nor could he hit a shot himself. Flip, in my opinion, ought to give up the idea of Hunter being a point guard. Play him along side Delfino and let Delfino do the bulk of the ball handling. Hunter can be a very valuable asset in this series, as long as he uses all his energy for one thing, guarding Wade.

Dyess did not do a whole lot in this one. Delk played briefly in the 1st half and did little.

This is pretty obvious, but I will mention it for anyone who may be reading who does not follow the game that closely. Shaq is not too quick. The more the Pistons can push the ball up the floor and shoot before Shaq gets back on defense the better. We did some of this, but we can do more.

For this game, other than Wade and Shaq, the rest of the Miami players were cold shooting the ball. And we still just won the game. Don't expect things to get any easier Saturday night down in Miami. Of course, since Flip seems to be on the right track tonight with his use of the bench, it could get easy. Its up to Flip. PS Evans did not get into the rotation in three of the last 4 games. All Piston wins. The one game Flip tried to hide him in there for a spell, we lost the game. Give it up Flip. Especially in Miami Saturday night. Please don't even try it. Us Piston fans are rather fond of wins. GO PISTONS!!!!!
whats ur name again/ lee is it? o the guy from DetNews.com's forum! Do u ever enter the chat room here?

Kgreg, I totally agree. I have been posting about our offense since we scored like 28 points against Indiana last year for a half. There is no reason we shouldn't score well against a slow-footed Miami. We absolutely need to move the ball from side to side, have players cutting the lane and when we drive, not be afraid to kick it out to a shooter. Our guys are not one on one players especially Rip and Chauncey.

Tay is a real development and I would like to see him handle the ball more on the side and survey the defense. His skills put tremendous pressure on the Heat. They really can't cover him and it will open up others. Believe it or not, they cannot handle Tay on the offensive boards either. He is too quick for them on the jump.

We are not a post up team either. How many post ups did Sheed or Rip or Chauncey or even Dyss get tonight? But if we move the ball, we are a very good offensive team.

Lord how I have missed Lee.....sort of....I guess
Ben, I have to take up for this guy in a big way, here goes. When Ben gets TOUCHES we play our best ball. You need 5 players involved in the offense every possession for this team to excel. Ben Wallace is the only starter that when he catches the ball at the top from the strong side IMMEDIATELY SWINGS THE BALL WEAKSIDE FORCING THE DEFENSE TO ROTATE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sheed, Rip, Lindsey and Chauncey are notorious for holding the dang ball instead of instinctively swinging it to the weakside. When Ben gets TOUCHES it means that this team is sharing and moving the ball. Ben does not want TOUCHES so that he can get more shots and score more points, Ben wants TOUCHES because he's the only starter at times that seems to remember what it takes/took for this team to be champions
-Tough Defense
-Tough Rebounding
-Sharing and Moving the ball
Every dang time we got to the 2 man game and Iso BS, we f$#$%n blow a lead or get our azziz kicked. For 2 seasons we all knew that this team got into trouble when 1 or 2 players (mainly Chauncey and Rip) would try to put too much pressure on themselves to get this team going. After every loss it was the same old story, "We got away from sharing the ball...." "We tried to go too much one on one" every time it was the same story, now we actually have sets designed to put pressure on one guy to do it all.
When 2Chest, is our primary play and Rip runs his man ragged it opens up sooooo many options
-Rip can shoot
-Rip can drive the lane off the curl
-Rip can drive and drop off to Ben
-Rip can drive and kick weakside
-When Bens man helped on the curl the lob to Ben from the pt was WIDE OPEN
Man I could go on for days, however it was good to see our boys 'PLAYING THE RIGHT WAY" for 3 qtrs. Now lets hope we can steal game 3, cause that'll put us up 2-1, then you know we'll lose game 4-cause we can't handle success, but we come back to the Palace tied up after a loss, so we'll win game 5 and go up 3-2 hopefully with enough motivation to closeout on the road in 6. you r so right, KG...just look at the 2004 NBA Finals...BEn and LB vs THE WORLD!!!

How about that game from Ben? He's back. He was scoring, passing, taking charges, holding his ground against Shaq, etc. What a great leader.

But at the end of the day, I just have to mention the refing. I don't think that there is a conspiracy, but that was god awful. Whoever here posted that the Heat are playing like the 80's Knicks was right on. If the refs allowed us to turn up the physicality like that we'd be holding teams in the 50's every time. How many times can Shaq hit Ben in the face in one series? 15-20? Elbow, Shoulder, hand, headbutt. The combination of Ron Garretson and Ba'Vetta was brutal.

The NBA has to be the most stressful pro sport to watch because of the inconsistency of the calls.

And Dice needs to make his chip ins and FT's too. He was killin' me.

Final thoughts... crazy stats
Pistons 33-75 FG; 20-27 FT, 6-22 3ptFG, TO's 19; points in the paint 38, 39 tot brds
Heat 31-73 FG; 20-23 FT, 6-22 3ptFG, TO's 19; points in the paint 40, 40 tot brds

Of course most of these stats didn't even out until the last 5 mins of the game.


Final crazy stat: Heat score 12 points in first 12 minutes and 17 points in the last 1:46 ??

Stars by quarters: Ben was da man in the first 6 mins and Rip took over iand led us to the halftime lead as he had 20 points...but only 2 in the second half though??. Prince provided scoring and rebounding in that second qtr too.

Third qtr was more Prince and then CB got into the act, with some help from Sheed. In the 4th we started to rely to much on Prince, but Sheed and CB helped out and we were able to hold on with some clutch shooting in the end despite our defensive lapses and ref calls. We got to remember the refs call fouls for the aggresive teams and against the whiners. :nod:

The Heat were scoring at a pace that would have given them 466 points in the game during that 1:46!

That would have been embarrasing on national TV. Heat 466, Pistons 92.

Kgreg, I totally agree. I have been posting about our offense since we scored like 28 points against Indiana last year for a half. There is no reason we shouldn't score well against a slow-footed Miami. We absolutely need to move the ball from side to side, have players cutting the lane and when we drive, not be afraid to kick it out to a shooter. Our guys are not one on one players especially Rip and Chauncey.

Tay is a real development and I would like to see him handle the ball more on the side and survey the defense. His skills put tremendous pressure on the Heat. They really can't cover him and it will open up others. Believe it or not, they cannot handle Tay on the offensive boards either. He is too quick for them on the jump.

We are not a post up team either. How many post ups did Sheed or Rip or Chauncey or even Dyss get tonight? But if we move the ball, we are a very good offensive team.

You know, Flip has been having Tay work on his one on one skills all season, right in the games. Rip to to an extent. Both have quickness and length that should make them pretty darn good one on one players. Yes, its the playoffs, and what you are is what you are pretty much at this point. Still, it could not hurt at all if after we win this series both Tay and Rip are doing a little better at one on one. One more series to go after this one, and all the weapons he can develop just might be needed.

A more entertaining game than I'd have expected. Quick rundown:

Billups - was solid. Started to get his own scoring going, and looked much better running the offense. Was not a defensive liability.
Rip - was solid. The offense reintroduces his off-ball movement, and look what happens. Improved defense from Game 1, too.
Tay - was solid. Did the garbage work; really impressive on the boards; still no jumpshot. Defense still questionable but much improved.
Dice - was intimidated by Zo.
Sheed - was not intimidated by Zo.
Ben - phenomenal.
Lindsey - had some brilliant, classic stretches on defense, and some horrible stretches on offense. Gets the game ball for getting a stop in the final two minutes without being called for a foul.
Delfino - needs to take more pride in setting screens.
Davis - very good.
Delk - he played?

Knick Bavetta - needs to follow in the footsteps of Karl Malone and Greg Ostertag. And please, take GP with you before he makes even more of a mockery of his legacy.

I would have loved to finish strong. however having W is the most importnat. so let us look for getting the home court back.

The refs have to do a better job in calling the offensive fouls. Not to mention all, at least the ones related to having feet inside the line. They should not give superstars so much edge. Wade hit CB real hard towards the end of the game.

now, if we want to win the series, we really really want CB scoring. He was scoreless for the first half. This is not CB that i know. 3's should fall again, and more and ones are needed.

we did a better job on sharing the ball so we got a big lead. maybe at the end we started saving energy so we went into isolation. i don't want us to go back to ISO again. this is not pistons. i hope we see 25+ assists in game 3 so that we can get the court advantage again.

GOOO Pistons

Bavetta vs. Tayshaun

The late sequence with CB getting mauled, then the missed timeout, and CB getting thrown into the stands by Gary Payton (no foul).

All courtesy the Prince of Senility, Richard B.

It's so much better when ben gets passed to. I don't care if he's fouled because it forces the other team to gaurd him. I especially don't mind Ben getting fouled when it usually will be a foul on Shaq. Tay was great and so was Rip. Sheed is still hobbling but he had some big shots. Chauncey is missing shots he usually makes but in the 3rd quarter he was trying to get "himself" back. We hounded Wade and made him have 9 turnovers as well.

Postgame Audio

Tayshaun Prince

Ben Wallace

Flip Saunders

Pat Riley

and a special diapersucker moment with Dwyane Wade whining that the Pistons didn't show the Heat respect for winning Game 1.

Great that the team won- only one victory in Florida would be great.
what do you guys think why did Fino finally play 8 minutes? Was great to see him on court.
Wade had 9 TO's
All the guys who want Ben to be involved on the other end seem to be right, at least for the last game. Just imagine how dangerous the team would be with a real offensive threat at the 5 spot... and I'm not talking about a scorer, but about someone who can score about 12-15ppg with an acceptable FG%.
RIP was huge in the first half and disappeared in the 2nd- hopefully he can be more consistent.

Kgrag, you're 400% right, while watching Ben's play, I could only shook my head and was like "Wow ! what a great leader."
Ben, Tay and LH were the main reason we had this win. What would happened if LH had failed to make the final steal.
Go Piston.

In game 1, I did a check of the game flow and play by play and saw that Miami beat us 42-4 over a total of 12:36 (composed of 4 different runs) and that we beat them 82-49 over the remaining 35:24.

For game 2, the time disparity is even more glarity: Miami beat us 29-13 during two stretches (the final 1:46 obviously, plus a stretch from 10:19 in the 4th to 3:26 in the 4th) that total 8:39. While the Pistons beat Miami 81-61 during the remaining 39:21.

So now, over the first two games, Miami wins 71-17 over 21:15; and we win 163-110 over 74:45.

Now, in game 2, during the 8:39 of the game (really, of the 4th quarter) where they were killing us, we had 23 possessions (i counted an off reb as starting a new possession); on those 23 possessions we got:
-4 field goals (2 tay put backs, 1 tay lay up, and 1 chauncey lay up) on 13 attempts,
-7 TO's,
-5-6 FT's. (I broke these possessions down into a table, so if anybody is interested, let me know).

What's really striking is how long most of the possessions were. If I exclude from the list of possessions tay's 2 put-backs and the 3 quick-foul possessions that resulted in our free throws, we've still got 18 possessions:

Out of those 18 possessions:
-4 points,
-2 field-goals on 11 attempts,
-7 TO's. And of those 18 possessions,
-10 of the 18 possessions took 19 or more seconds off the shot clock. Now, if we are whipping the ball around the perimeter and making beautiful cuts for layups or wide-open triples at the shot clock buzzer i'm all for it. But we all saw what was happening for those long possessions seconds: for the first 8 to 10 seconds, chauncey pounds the ball to get it over the wing, for the remaining 14 to 16 seconds, tay pounds the ball while backing down. meanwhile, ben, rip and sheed stand perfectly still on the weakside and chauncey kind of floats out to the top of the arc. it's a miracle tay could get shots off at all with so little movement around him and we're lucky he was able to get the put backs he did. for this i fault the players, who were just trying to run clock and flip for not calling the time out that would get them running their offense again and playing to crush rather than not to lose. and it was a shame, because miami, especially in the first bad stretch in the 4th quarter, gave us plenty of opportunities with their own turnovers and bad shots.

anyway, sorry to get so anal in breaking this down (i guess it was kinda lock staring at a bad car wreck). i guess my real point is two fold:

1) on the down side, playing not-to-lose we stopped moving on offense and our efficiency and production went way way down and defensively we let them play the short-burst offensive game

2) on the plus side, as in game 1, but better and with better results, we showed we can beat miami handily and steadily over long periods of time and, in this game, those long periods were mostly very very good, with higher assists, higher assist-to-turnover ratio, better and more balanced shooting, and better defense, especially on miami's supporting cast, but also I would say, on shaq and wade (though they obviously got theirs).

I don't think we were complacent during those bad stretches, I think we tightened up. I'm hoping that the players upon reviewing film of the game recognize the striking difference between the unselfish up-tempo intelligent detroit basketball they played to slowly build an 18 point lead and the foolish, stagnant, 1 on 1 pound the ball game they played to piss it away. the contrast couldn't be plainer, more stark, or more obvious.

but all in all, for me at least, there was much more to be encouraged by than discouraged by in last night's game. i feel that we are slowly putting things back together -- as though a piece gets added back with each game.

Dialing Sheed long distance...
This is a response to Roscoes's PM about Sheed for discussion...
No problem with shooting the 3's... as long as there's some balance...
The value of getting easy put backs when he's doubled down low ... or getting the Heat in the penalty... just doesn't happen from 20' out.
Of course you know the effects of long rebs going the other way.
Then you add in the passes out of the post for easy looks.
What bothers me is that he's not even trying to get inside position...
I'll concede that there's some legitimacy to the ankle making it difficult to fight for position... but if there's any big advantage we have it's Sheed against Walker /Haslem down low.... we need to capitalize.
That said, I think it's good strategy to nail a couple from deep early to open things up....
Sheed taking Zo outside makes a lot of sense...
balance my friend...balance.

Great game flow analysis, prof. It really was irritating to see all the standing around in the 4th quarter, after the ball movement and cutting had been so good for most of the first 3.

Rob Parker is REALLY talking some smack today in his column (http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060526/SPORTS08/605260331/1127):

Either way you look at it, Game 2 was a far cry from Game 1 when everything went right for Miami. The Heat team that shot the lights out Tuesday night wasn't real. When it's all said and done, it might be the best game the Heat play in this series...

[W]hile many worried about the Pistons' loss in Game 1, you need to worry no more. The Pistons we know are back. Better yet, so are the Heat.

Wish I could say I shared his confidence...let's hope it plays out that way.

From Drew Sharp's column this morning (this is for all the people who don't want to involve Ben in the offense):
"Wallace's improved offensive aggressiveness warranted enough defensive attention that it provided Hamilton a touch more breathing room. And sometimes, that's all you need to get out of a shooting funk."

Game Chat excerpts

mercury LH is in Wades head


Dumars4Ever wow, delfino's in!
FreshPrince22 Delfino...
FreshPrince22 wow
professor oh my


Hotsauce flip is adjusting...finally
aurorakmw it is so nice to see the bench in this game
roscoe36 geezus, Flip is playing everyone!@!!!!
LA Dre flip already played 10 players...Joe must have got on him


BROTHER HQ margarita time!!


LA Dre We are on pace for 100... a good sign...


Dumars4Ever what a great steal by lindsey...that was beautiful
professor classic lindsey


adonis this is Pistons game


LA Dre dunk
FreshPrince22 Big Ben!
roscoe36 Ben doing it all
Ozarkruffrider OH YEAH!!!
mercury Where's bbaljay?
Dumars4Ever OFFENSE
aurorakmw horray
BROTHER HQ BONGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG


Buckeyes#1 i bet arroyo is missing this


Zoso I'm glad to see Delfino and Davis play it's about time too


BillLaimbeer I can say ass in here, Roscoe?
roscoe36 ass (testing)
roscoe36 yes
roscoe36 just dont call anyone an ass
TWOTIMESRALPHI finally a word thats not censored- ASS
roscoe36 anyone in here


BROTHER HQ maya chs dee dada ...hoopa hoopa

armygirl Not a CB hater...No Sirrrrrrrr, just a Pistons Lover


mercury BBBBBen
FreshPrince22 What a pass from Ben!


adonis oneal is hurt
Hotsauce SHAQ hurt
mercury Howard Cosell...Shaq is Down!...Shaq is Down...down goes Shaq
BROTHER HQ he hit Walkers leg
Dumars4Ever no idea what happened to shaq there
BROTHER HQ jammed neck
BillLaimbeer yup, HQ
adonis this is a stupid act to get a minute rest
Buckeyes#1 shaq is a pain in the neck
DarthTater Now they can have an excuse for losing
BillLaimbeer not anymore, buckeyes
roscoe36 ALL HIS FAT RUSHED TO HIS HEAD
adonis i like this one roscoe
detteam lol 36
DarthTater Nah, it would have exploded if that happened
BillLaimbeer No excuses...new Heat motto


(Early) LA Dre If we get 20 from Sheed we win...
(Late) LA Dre That is 16 for Sheed. he should go inside now and get those next 4 to get to the magic # of 20


Dumars4Ever geezus!
Dumars4Ever HOW DID THEY NOT GIVE HIM THE TIMEOUT!!!!!
Dumars4Ever I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT!!!!!
professor wow, they are robbing us
Dumars4Ever OMG
Zoso unbelievable ripoff job
professor they are brutalizing chauncey on the inbounds
adonis ok go for to
aurorakmw omg how is this possible
Ozarkruffrider what a crap call
Dumars4Ever bavetta raped us, but there is NO WAY this should have been this close
BillLaimbeer Bevetta fell asleep on that one
roscoe36 SHADES OF 87
mercury they'll double Chauncey... get it to Rip
Tally What a f'ing ripoff from the officials. This is the worst officiating I've ever seen
BROTHER HQ richard freekin Bevetta
Dumars4Ever 17 pts in the last 1:37 for miami??? unbelievable!
Zoso Richard Bavetta trying to give the game to Miami for or what?????
Tally Bevetta has been at the center of five very bad calls
Dumars4Ever thankfully chauncey got the call when he got mugged 1000 times
professor what i don't like is that fouls to keep chauncey from breaking free in thefirst place


Dumars4Ever lindsey on the STEAL
Dumars4Ever F YOU WADE
Ozarkruffrider GAME BABY
professor oh wade thought he was fouled -- poor baby
BillLaimbeer I almost said "why is Lindsey in the game?"
roscoe36 good game everyone
Dumars4Ever clean strip!
BillLaimbeer Lindsey hammered him

And The Low posted something about (positive) Flip, but I won't share it. Consider him still a sour apple. :D

Oh, I didn't realize the chats were being logged now...LOL...pretty funny to read some of that stuff well after the heat of the moment.

New post-game tradition, roscoe? Game chat highlights?

Oh, I didn't realize the chats were being logged now...LOL...pretty funny to read some of that stuff well after the heat of the moment.

New post-game tradition, roscoe? Game chat highlights?
You silly man. When you log in, it clearly notifies you all chats are logged! ;)

When I have time, I will do it. Post game, I have to record the interviews, catch the radio show, update the graphics, rip video and audio etc.

If someone would be interested in picking through the log for nuggets, I would be happy to provide it and they can put together the chat summary. Many hands make for light work.

You silly man. When you log in, it clearly notifies you all chats are logged! ;)
Oh, yeah, it does...duh. :) :caked:

Hmm, I might be up for sifting through the logs and posting highlights. I'll get back to you on that, roscoe.

I'll do it. I always see stuff thats worth pulling out and sticking in a best of thread.

Cool, slippy. Should be a fun addition to the forum.

Postgame Audio
and a special diapersucker moment with Dwyane Wade whining that the Pistons didn't show the Heat respect for winning Game 1.

wow! i still have to say i find his game pretty alluring, but otherwise, what a spoiled prick! Wade is officially off my non-Pistons b-ball affair list.

I guess that just leaves Nash.

Overall this was slightly better than an ok game.
THE GOOD:
For 36 minutes we displayed the same ability to control the game as during the season.

We uncovered a nice match up advantage with Dice over Mourning.

Wade was made to work harder to get to the rack, despite getting there often.

Tay is playing BIG in the land of bigs and killing the opposing 3.

CB is slowly coming alive with impact plays.

Flip is exploring the bench.

Kudos to Flip for devising a few ways to make Ben a weapon on the offensive end.

Solid boardwork most of the way through.


OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT:
Value our possessions.

Never and I mean NEVER play up on Wade deep in the backcourt. He gets a step on his defender, races up court and breaks down our defense immediately.

Capitalize on transition opportunities. We looked like the Detroit Suns by turning down a layup to pitch the ball out to Lindsey at the arc. We scored only half the points our chances presented.

From the dept of oil & water comes Chauncy & drive and kick. It only seems to work on paper.

Walker on Sheed in the post is a joke. Problem is, the joke’s on us by not making the Heat pay for stupid matchups.


Not sure I would want to be one of the ref’ing crew during today’s review of the game. There should be a few fines, reprimands or whatever penalties they suffer spread evenly throughout.

When Tay and Sheed averages a total of 30 pts and 20 rebounds, we win 90% of the time. Well tonight, they gave us a total of 40 pts and 18 rebounds. Great game by the forwards.

Ben was amazing all game. After watching how Davis who has height and weight superiority over Ben played defense on Shaq with limited minutes, we really underappreciate what Ben to Shaq did all game long. BBalljay, still want Dice and Sheed out there guarding Shaq???

Rip played well in the 1st half scoring 20 pts. But only 2 pts in the 2nd? What happen? Rip is a good FT shooter too, why the pass has to go to CB in the final 1:46 minutes? CB has to start makin his shots. How about pulling up for a jumper at the FT line to start things going again?

Dice should try penetrate by driving to the rim when Zo is guarding him. Dice definitely has more quickness on Zo. That's how I feel.

20 assist for Pistons. Which means that good things happen when we make extra passes. Should limit the turnovers to under 15.

Postgame Audio

and a special diapersucker moment with Dwyane Wade whining that the Pistons didn't show the Heat respect for winning Game 1.

Did anyone heard what Wade say? I don't know if it's an American slang but English as my 2nd language, I would NEVER say something like that; "THEY WAS TIRED". How does Marquette get a student like that? Amazing. He needs to go back to high school for English 100.:laugh:

Why everyone here is thinking about a split at Miami? :doh:

I don't know about you fellas but if we play the way we play last nite (except the final 1:46 minutes) and CB start making shots, we will win games 3 & 4, GUARANSHEED!:fingerscr

If the Pistons win Game 3, which I'm not getting cocky about, then I would hope for them to get Game 4 as well, but that would be an instance of killer instinct that this team has distinctly been lacking.

Overall this was slightly better than an ok game.
THE GOOD:
.


OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT:
Value our possessions.

Never and I mean NEVER play up on Wade deep in the backcourt. He gets a step on his defender, races up court and breaks down our defense immediately.

Capitalize on transition opportunities. We looked like the Detroit Suns by turning down a layup to pitch the ball out to Lindsey at the arc. We scored only half the points our chances presented.

From the dept of oil & water comes Chauncy & drive and kick. It only seems to work on paper.

Walker on Sheed in the post is a joke. Problem is, the joke’s on us by not making the Heat pay for stupid matchups.


Not sure I would want to be one of the ref’ing crew during today’s review of the game. There should be a few fines, reprimands or whatever penalties they suffer spread evenly throughout.

well said lemonpen

Overall this was slightly better than an ok game.
THE GOOD:

[FONT=Times New Roman]We uncovered a nice match up advantage with Dice over Mourning.

good summary lemon. but last night dyess looked really intimidated by mourning with the except of the play where he drove around him and went under the hoop to take zo out of the play (and then bricked the two foul shots). you think dyess can get his head right and exploit that advantage? or was there some different problem, 'cause finally, even though he got fewer than usual minutes, dyess wasn't a scoring threat last night.

roscoe ..one thing left out of the game chat excerpts that I know I said after Chauncy hit the jumper from above the foul line to give us a 83-71 lead with 2:02 left in the game

"this will longest 2 mins...till the end of the game to get this win" or something like that

well based on the ending....who knew!!!:doh:

It was still 83-71 when Wade was fouled at the 1:46 mark and he hit 2FT's . A TO by CB caused by Wade grabbing his jersey was a no call by the refs and then a silly foul by Sheed on the Glove out in the open court is what made the ending to close for comfort.

They marvel at how the Heat scored 17 in the last 1:46, that actually scored 13 in the last 56.7 seconds.:frusty:

One thing for sure we should be ready for tomorrows game as there were a lot of positives that pointed back to Pistons brand of basketball, I think the ending was just a case of us playing not to lose and the aggressive play by the heat allowed the refs to favor them on some bogus calls.

good summary lemon. but last night dyess looked really intimidated by mourning with the except of the play where he drove around him and went under the hoop to take zo out of the play (and then bricked the two foul shots). you think dyess can get his head right and exploit that advantage? or was there some different problem, 'cause finally, even though he got fewer than usual minutes, dyess wasn't a scoring threat last night.

Right professor, Dice did miss three layups with Zo in his grill, and had to dunk it to get a hoop.

roscoe ..one thing left out of the game chat excerpts that I know I said after Chauncy hit the jumper from above the foul line to give us a 83-71 lead:

'this will longest 2 mins...till the end of the game to get this win"

well based one the ending....who knew!!!:doh: You are 100% right bro. I did miss that. There were over 4,000 chat messages last night, so I'm bound to miss some. If you ever need me to post something from the log, drop me a line and I'll fish it out. :)

Btw, you are doing pretty good with this prediction stuff.

One thing for sure we should be ready for tomorrows game as there were a lot of positives that pointed back to Pistons brand of basketball, I think the ending was just a case of us playing not to lose and the aggressive play by the heat allowed the refs to favor them on some bogus calls.

prefectly put dre. exactly as simple as that.

You are 100% right bro. I did miss that. There were over 4,000 chat messages last night, so I'm bound to miss some. If you ever need me to post something from the log, drop me a line and I'll fish it out. :)

Btw, you are doing pretty good with this prediction stuff.

Just creating his site is enough for me...good job and thanks

Several people mentioned the bad plays the Pistons made as well as the poor officiating at the end of the game. But I didn't see anything written (did I miss it?) about the way the Pistons actually moved out of the way to let the Heat (Wade, I think) just waltz to the basket and get easy uncontested, nobody within several feet layups. I thought I saw that happen at least two times if not more.

Now, I realize of course you do not want to foul (and give up three points) in that situation, but an uncontested layup in my opinion is much easier to make than a free throw for just about any player. Why in the world did the defense part like the Red Sea for the Heat? It seems like they should have made them get an extra pass or something to burn off more of the clock and increase the likelihood that the shot might be missed?

I'd like to know what you guys thought of it. Maybe I'm looking at it wrong?

You silly man. When you log in, it clearly notifies you all chats are logged! ;)

When I have time, I will do it. Post game, I have to record the interviews, catch the radio show, update the graphics, rip video and audio etc.

If someone would be interested in picking through the log for nuggets, I would be happy to provide it and they can put together the chat summary. Many hands make for light work....you silly man?....hahahaha:laugh: ...priceless!

Several people mentioned the bad plays the Pistons made as well as the poor officiating at the end of the game. But I didn't see anything written (did I miss it?) about the way the Pistons actually moved out of the way to let the Heat (Wade, I think) just waltz to the basket and get easy uncontested, nobody within several feet layups. I thought I saw that happen at least two times if not more.

Now, I realize of course you do not want to foul (and give up three points) in that situation, but an uncontested layup in my opinion is much easier to make than a free throw for just about any player. Why in the world did the defense part like the Red Sea for the Heat? It seems like they should have made them get an extra pass or something to burn off more of the clock and increase the likelihood that the shot might be missed?

I'd like to know what you guys thought of it. Maybe I'm looking at it wrong?

good point tater. i look at it as another manifestation of the "please-let-the-clock-run-out-without-us-losing" that was evident also on the offensive end. in short, they suddenly played "defense" as if they couldn't stop without fouling.

good summary lemon. but last night dyess looked really intimidated by mourning with the except of the play where he drove around him and went under the hoop to take zo out of the play (and then bricked the two foul shots). you think dyess can get his head right and exploit that advantage? or was there some different problem, 'cause finally, even though he got fewer than usual minutes, dyess wasn't a scoring threat last night.

It hasn't only been Mourning. Dice has been shuffling his shoes for two series now with fake after fake. The Heat and Cavs have put longer defenders on Dice to bother the fall away J.

I was very encouraged to see how easily Dice blew past Zo, twice I believe. After reviewing film Dice is gonna realize how much separation he actually had, and the sound of footsteps will fade. Come Saturday, after being left in the dust once or twice, I expect Zo will have to back up and conceed the J.

I'm surprized that no one mentioned Dice laughing and waving Posey bye-bye from the foul line after collecting his 3rd foul in the first qtr. It was pretty amusing.

I'm surprized that no one mentioned Dice laughing and waving Posey bye-bye from the foul line after collecting his 3rd foul in the first qtr. It was pretty amusing.
I missed that. I will have to watch the tape. As a tribute to lee's return to recapping, in frame by frame detail! ;) :D

The Pistons are gonna need to bring the same intesity they brought in game 2. Set the tone for the first qtr and don't look back.

http://files.tagworld.com/b243d44b241833c94dceb12907e0f9874c60.jpeg

Dice was intimated by Zo and missed 3 layup attempts under the basket and finally scored on a dunk.

i still haven't had time to post my game recap, but i cannot agree with this. dice ATTACKED zo and those missed layups were AFTER he drew the foul AND they were reverse layups. not the easiest and-1s when a guy like Zo is fouling you. plus his monster job was just a thing of beauty...anyone have a clip of that?

my actual recap to come at some point...lol

Dyess missed like 3 ! bunnys.