Detroit At Washington
7:00 PM

TV: FSN / Raps NBATV (Windsor Cable 154)
Radio: WDFN


Notes: Need a quick win? Go to Washington. Last Piston loss at Washington was on March 14 2001. George Irvine was the coach.

2nd meeting of 3 this year and the only home game for Washington.

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Your comments?

~~

Arenas was left off the list of All-Star reserves picked by Eastern Conference coaches last week while four players from East-leading Detroit were named.

"Some people say all five of them should have gotten in," Arenas said. "This is All-Stars, not All-Star teams."

"It was disappointing because when you calculate, I was the fourth-leading scoring in the league," he said. "I was All-Pro last year. That means top 15 in the whole NBA, but I'm not top 12 in the Eastern Conference. That's what was hurting me." Hey Gilbert, your team sucks and you are a ballhog. I've watched you play and you are a scorer who always looks to get his own. You have no concept of team, you aren't a proven winner and you run your mouth like a 13 year old. I don't care if you are the #1 scorer in the NBA. Your job is to win games and compete for a championship, not go to All-Star games.

You see those 4 guys over there? The Pistons? They're champs. They have dignity. Heck, Ben doesn't even have a shoe deal and he's a 3 time defensive player of the year. They belong in this game. They're the best team in the NBA. As my man John Salley would say, "You can't touch this". I'll even go further. If you had any useful grey matter between your ears, YOU WOULDN'T EVEN TRY TO TOUCH MY PISTONS!

Gilbert Arenas told us on Friday that if he got 20 minutes of burn, he'd win MVP honors. He played a game-low 9:51, going 0-4 from the field and scoring only one point. Utilizing the famous "20 minute stat", you would have had 2 points and no made field goals. I dunno about the All-Star game playing in your head, but Flip is trying to win this damn thing and you're stinking up the joint. MVP my ass.

Gilbert Arenas will use the initial snub as motivation.
"Somebody's going to have to pay for me missing the initial," Arenas said. "And that's almost every Eastern Conference team out there." Hey clown, why didn't you motivate for the All-Star Game? You played like dog poop. So now you are going to play hard for the rest of the season? What were you doing up until this point? Oh right, you were working on your shoe deal...

Arenas pleads for more attention from adidas
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2338336

"We're in a negotiation period right now and, just like everything else, I'm at the bottom end of negotiations," Arenas said after scoring one point in the game. "So, I decided, 'Hey, I'll leave the three stripes, but I'll cover up the Adidas.' . . . A silent protest." So you were so mad at being snubbed that you jacked up your shoes with electrical tape? Arts and Crafts with the Wizard. At least you have a hobby to take your mind off all the "disrespect" and "haters".

“I'm on a mission,” says Arenas, who aims to show that coaches should have voted him on as a reserve. “Somebody has to pay. Somebody is going to pay until I end my career.” Do as all a favor. End your career now. I don't think I can handle watching you age and continue to behave like a petulant child. It's embarassing for both of us. Please, RETIRE. You're nothing without Larry Hughes cleaning your mess.

“I already had it in my mind. It's time for elimination,” Arenas says, vowing vengeance on the entire league for overlooking him again. “I'm the terminator. I'm in terminate mode, and I'm trying not to get out of it.” You're not the Terminator. You're the guy trying to make the playoffs. You're the guy who doesn't share the ball. You're the guy trying to make a point to other teams, rather than focusing on getting a win. It's all about you, all of the time. GILBERT WORLD. You got one thing right, it's time for elimination. See you in the playoffs...

Arenas says the Pistons get the benefit of the doubt so much from officials that "you have to totally outplay them to barely beat them." Oooooooooooh Nooo!!!! Now it's on, we are gunna settle this like men....

I got a little Arturo "Thunder" Gatti for you. :boxing:

Then I am going to get all "Jean Luc Picard" in this... :fencing:

And at the end of the night, you'll be feeling

DEEEEEEEETROIT BASKETBAAAAAALL!!!

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

:fencing:

arenas is a clown. this guy in our work basketball league looks just like him, plays the same way, and has the same ridiculous attitude.

on a sidenote, that dueling smiley reminds me of Masters of the Universe for the Intellivision gaming system, where after you made it across a stage on foot, He-Man and Skeletor swashbuckled to a tie for a few seconds before Skeletor ran away and you had to chase him.

arenas is a clown. this guy in our work basketball league looks just like him, plays the same way, and has the same ridiculous attitude.

on a sidenote, that dueling smiley reminds me of Masters of the Universe for the Intellivision gaming system, where after you made it across a stage on foot, He-Man and Skeletor swashbuckled to a tie for a few seconds before Skeletor ran away and you had to chase him.

OHH SNAP! I REMEMBER THAT! :)

Wow, that Arenas is quite a character. Sounds like a great fantasy b-ball player though. ;)

No matter how ugly we play in this game, we must win this game, period. Payback time. And this time, Big Ben, make your FT's when it is needed. And to whoever who will be guarding this GA clown, make sure you don't let him score more than his average.

Hopefully Flip will put either hunter, delk or delfino on him more cuz I believe they'll definitely play good D on him.

It's been quite awhile since we blow teams away early, hopefully this is the beginning.....

No matter how ugly we play in this game, we must win this game, period. Payback time. And this time, Big Ben, make your FT's when it is needed. And to whoever who will be guarding this GA clown, make sure you don't let him score more than his average.

Hopefully Flip will put either hunter, delk or delfino on him more cuz I believe they'll definitely play good D on him.

It's been quite awhile since we blow teams away early, hopefully this is the beginning.....

i kind of miss that now. i did want more close games, but not any more. we've only been 12-6 in the last 18 games.

No matter how ugly we play in this game, we must win this game, period. Payback time. And this time, Big Ben, make your FT's when it is needed. And to whoever who will be guarding this GA clown, make sure you don't let him score more than his average.

Hopefully Flip will put either hunter, delk or delfino on him more cuz I believe they'll definitely play good D on him.

It's been quite awhile since we blow teams away early, hopefully this is the beginning.....Well. as my father "Darth vader" used to say..."Blowouts dont concern me, Admiral. I want that win not excuses!...kaaaah-sehhhhh!"

Chat's open kids!

:frusty: Very bad lost...defence 0 and Saunders = Minnesota=no defence

I hope some of those optimistic Piston fans will now wake up and show some concern. After holding 6 straight opponents under 87 pts after the Miami loss, we now have given up 96 points in the last 5 games and over 100 in the last three.:frusty:

The guaranteed wins are only when we hold the opposition under 90. . We win the battle of the boards and the paint and still lose:doh: . Our three point defense was non-existence and I believe that is where we loss this game. Also to many turns.

We played two games in the last 7 days and still looked listless. Ben was non existent tonight and Prince who looked good on offense in the first but couldn't stop Butler disappeared after the first qtr. Billups did'nt have is best game either his MVP glow is all but a distant memory....

Revelations

We gather on the occasion of this sad recrap: o hark, all ye complainers and have thy way for verily, I say, the Pistons have this eve given you every cause. Words elude me. Gilbert Arenas, he who talketh so much smack prior to the game, hath fulfilled his covenant to wreak vengeance upon Flip, the rooster one, and his all-stars. And the Pistons were laid low, and the lion hath laid down with the lambs, cats and dogs living together, real wrath-of God type stuff…

Not difficult to break this one down. The Pistons flat out got run out of the gym, ran into a more energetic, damn hot-shooting Wizards team, led by Arenas-on-a-mission. We turned the ball over too much, didn’t move our feet on defense, and didn’t rotate to help out when they’d swing the ball, nor when they drove to the hoop. I think everyone who played tonight for the Pistons was guilty of this. Sure Washington was on fire, and even the few times we contested jumpers they made more than they missed.

Offensively, I felt that we started out well, continuing the shift, begun in the Bulls game, of moving well without the ball and getting it inside, either with a pass or off the bounce. We were out to a 20-15 lead and looked like we’d be able to take this one, but the Wizards didn’t roll over in awe and we seemed to get complacent as they got back into it and then took a lead with smokin’ outside shooting (as though we were saying to ourselves: “they’ll miss eventually”), but they didn’t. We were trading buckets for a while in the second half, but then started turning the ball over (10 or 11 times in the second half – 17 overall!; with 18 assists!) and they pulled away. I think we cut it to 8 with six straight points at some point in the third, but they hit two straight threes (one wide-open and one challenged) and it wasn’t close again. After that it was garbage time.

Bright spots: I liked the continuation of the trend to go to the paint (we had 38 points in the paint); Delk broke out in the 2nd quarter with 12 points; Tay was super-active in the first quarter (8 points, 4 boards, a nice dish to Rip on a break), and we outrebounded them (38-30, but obviously they didn’t miss too much). But I think that’s about it.

We looked complacent, in that annoying way that we do from time to time. It was a pretty disgraceful display and the chat was rife with talk of trades and firings and much lamentation, gnashing of teeth, and renting of garments. Obviously, they can’t expect to put in this sort of defensive performance and win many games, but before we go over the top about the end of all that is good and holy in the promised land, we might remember that the Spurs lost yesterday at home to the Lakers, and the Heat lost at home to the Warriors, so it happens even to those teams that even some Pistons fans seem to be favoring right now. Now, I don’t personally care whether we get homecourt for the Finals or not (I could even be convinced by an argument that we’d have a better chance in the Finals as the “underdogs”, without home-court), but it is a goal the team appears to have set for itself and they need to bring it every night if they want to achieve it.

Now we’ve got five games coming up that are should-wins-but-could-lose that we ought to really focus on taking in a convincing fashion, prior to the next meeting with Miami. I'd like to see us start sending some messages, but then, maybe we are hustling people, setting them up to sing our demise, so that we can whack 'em come money time...

Flips "system" is for clowns. Give me Larry and the catheter drama any day.

I think they are just plain bored.

This would be a nice time to give guys like Delfino & the rookies some burn. These games would mean something to them.

I'm only a little concerned. I think it's mostly boredom. There is no excuse for it, but unfortunately, it happens. :ohwell:

Being bored isn't an excuse. As far as I know, Dallas and SA are still breathing down our necks and we are about 20 games away from the playoffs.

I think they are just plain bored.
That's a huge problem.

This team went from wanting HCA, to CB pimping himself for MVP, to getting 4 All-Star berths and now the wheels are coming off.

You can say "they'll be fine" yet if you're watching these games, they are NOT playing well. In fact, they are beating themselves and seem to have lost that next gear.

The sky isn't falling by any means, but if anyone saw Flip's postgame presser, he tried to be flippant (pun intended) about how he's searching for a rotation and would have played the postgame reporters if they could have stopped someone.

EXCUSE ME? The Pistons not putting out on defense? He pretty much indicted the top 6 guys.

I don't know what is scarier, the Pistons not trying (my eyes work good), or that Flip doesn't have an answer besides "get some practice in".

If your coach is good you can win with O or D, but 20 games from the playoffs, a bonfide contender should be hitting their stride, not searching for energy and a rotation.

I'm officially very nervous.

Count me in on the officially worried club.

A championship team should rise to the challenge. The 3's don't fall, time to play some D and go inside. This is bull%%%%. I'm concerned.

dudes, i know it's not about me, but no love for that recap? you think it's easy to turn a crap game like that one and transform it into an artful meld of faux-apocalyptic prose, old testament expressions, and ghostbusters rip-offs?? :)

dudes, i know it's not about me, but no love for that recap? you think it's easy to turn a crap game like that one and transform it into an artful meld of faux-apocalyptic prose, old testament expressions, and ghostbusters rip-offs?? :)

Scolas, you're the man. You took %%%% and turned it into shinola. I apprecieate the biblical references. If only the Pistons did.

dudes, i know it's not about me, but no love for that recap? you think it's easy to turn a crap game like that one and transform it into an artful meld of faux-apocalyptic prose, old testament expressions, and ghostbusters rip-offs?? :)


Nice recap, scolas. I tuned in online around the third quarter and couldn't believe my eyes. How about Tony Delk? Was he a bright spot tonight? I'm just looking at the box score, mind you. Sounds as if the squad had no defensive intensity. Don't look now but the Mavs are fixin to be a half game back. I think Detroit is in a heap o' trouble with Miami coming on. There's blood in the water in the EC and the sharks are a comin.

that's what i'm talkin' 'bout. thanks guys.

and for the record: i don't think we're "fine". i think we kinda suck right now. i just think we will be. in my view, this is all part of the pistons players' unconscious's master plan. i've said it before and everyone knows it. this group of guys (and I don't care which coach they have) has rarely played well with a lead, whether it be in a single game or in the standings. I don't know if it's just that most of them have, both as a matter of fact and as a matter of self-identification, had always to overcome long odds to succed. But here's what I see happening.

Now, the players don't even know this consciously, and flip certainly won't be able to do anything about it, but i imagine that they are going to need to drop further, begin reading national media reports about how they are flaming out, about how the heat and the mavs and the suns and the spurs and the clips and the cavs and the nets and, yes, the knicks are all on the rise, about how disappointing it is that a team that had a shot at 70 wins, that placed 4 guys on the all star team, limped into the playoffs. then, when nobody's on board anymore, that's when the train will start chugging it's way through to the finals and the rings. it's all psychology. and these guys are about as consistent and predictable psychologically as anybody.

The reason I think this is the dynamic actually governing the team is that a) the weaknesses at the moment are obvious to everyone; b) the players, as we know, are capable of addressing them. i.e. the problem is clear and the solution is available, and yet the players don't do anything about it and the problem persists. that tells me that it's at least possible, if not probable, that other forces are at work. it could be the cylons (bsg reference for those in the loop), but i think the more obvious explanation is the one i suggested above.

Scolas, I know micro did some evangelical work with the unwashed at the Detnews Pistons Talkforum endorsing your work.

You need a catchy name for your 'caps.

scolas: :hail:

Flip in the pre-game team talk: Ok guys, I know we're supposed to be the favourites tonight but I want you do go out and give a half ass effort. I read the Art of War during my CBA tenure and I believe in the importance of deception. For my part, I will continue with head scratching rotations. Delfino, I know you deserve more time and it looks like you're gonna have to get it playing in the Olympics because I don't want to tip our hand for the 2007 title run. And Jason, don't ever pass the ball in GT. You saw what we did to darko....

Missed the game was coming back from giving the Indians at the casino a down payment on some upgrades.So I can only make a general statement about play as of late.Pistonland should be concerned we should be hitting stride.I thought we stayed focused longer than I expected trying to get HC and I wish this BOREDOM thing would have reared earlier.So much for focusing the whole regular season.To close to the playoffs to be screwing around.

I swear if they got all cocky looking at history with teams starting as well as we did all going on to win the ship and we fall flat on our faces:rant: .Don't get me wrong but Flip's decisions will play very big part in it but the players lack of focus/intensity are a problem.To go this far in looking to attain HC into the finals then lose it with lack of effort or preperation from FLip is Farking retarded.

Delk, Delfino, Dice, and Dale. The 4 D's.

That should be the bench. No more, no less. Evans and Lindsey need to be situational guys. This constantly changing rotation is idiotic. Players need time to get into the flow of a game. Bringing them in for 4-5 minutes, then swapping them out for another guy to play 3-4 minutes is counter productive.

I actually thought the guys were giving a good effort tonight and just got outshot. It was more than just the shooting %, the Wiz were making tough, long, contested shots. On our side, Sheed was 8-14 inside the arc and making it look easy. That is what everyone wants him to do. We outrebounded them too, which is hard to do when they are making everything.

On the bright side, Delk is settling in and Davis looked pretty tough.

The Pistons have still only lost 2 at home, an overtime game and a double-overtime game. That is why we need to secure homecourt advantage.

Being bored isn't an excuse. As far as I know, Dallas and SA are still breathing down our necks and we are about 20 games away from the playoffs.

My post clearly stated that being bored was NOT an excuse. It IS my opinion, however, that thay are playing in a disinterested manner.

I also believe that Arroyo and Delfino brought energy to the team. They traded Carlos and Delfino has lost playing time because...???

That's a huge problem.


You can say "they'll be fine" yet if you're watching these games, they are NOT playing well. In fact, they are beating themselves and seem to have lost that next gear.


I'm officially very nervous.

It is a problem, but I do believe they have the ability to find that gear when needed. It doesn't mean I like it.

I'm officially somewhat concerned and somewhat disappointed. I'm personally not to the point where I'm nervous or panicked. Not yet, anyhow. 49-12. Looks pretty good to me.

I think they are just plain bored.

This would be a nice time to give guys like Delfino & the rookies some burn. These games would mean something to them.

I'm only a little concerned. I think it's mostly boredom. There is no excuse for it, but unfortunately, it happens. :ohwell:

Being bored is definitely not an excuse. Unless Flip is coaching scared, he should bench the any of the starters immediately if the are getting bored. What's the difference when starters getting bored and Darko playing with no motivation? Almost everyone complained that Darko played with no intensity and that's the reason why he is at the last end of the bench.

I have no preferences who should be traded and definitely not a hater, but I really have doubts about Flip's coaching style. Hall of Famers coaches do not hesitate to bench any players, be it the starters, if they play with no intensity or motivation or 'they are just bore out there'. Fans pay for their tickets to watch teams play basketball to their utmost abilities and most important of all, to have fun.

Back to the game, Rip was hot early and so is Tay (although a few turnovers here and there). Flip rested them. Fine. When they came back onto the floor, feed them plays. Tay was in process getting back into the offensive sets but Flip decided not to call plays for him. Why?

Well, hopefully everything will be back to normal for DETROIT BASKETBALL tomorrow.

I,m not able to see the games overhere; it's in the middle of the night. So all I can go on is the boxscore and the recap from NBA.com.

Quote from Billups:"I think that for whatever reason, we think that we can coast to the finish line and not do what we have done all season. We are getting away from what we do and guys are looking far ahead to the playoffs."

That's not being bored, that's being a bit to overconfident they will take care of matters in the 4th quarter. As I recall from one of the previous games, it was stated by someone: "The 4th quarter belongs to us". Why not make a stop in the 2th or 3th quarter, as they did at the start of the season?

It also gives a hint ("We are getting away from what we do and guys are looking far ahead") there is still a lack of discipline on the floor. I'ts like they know what is going wrong, and nobody is taking command to put all heads in the right direction. I'm starting to wonder how much control Flip has over these guys.

who was complaining about the bench not getting minutes? ;)

Quote from Billups:"I think that for whatever reason, we think that we can coast to the finish line and not do what we have done all season. We are getting away from what we do and guys are looking far ahead to the playoffs."

That's not being bored, that's being a bit to overconfident they will take care of matters in the 4th quarter.

Yes, and haven't you ever played a sport where you are overconfident at some point?

When that happens, it often leads to a lack of focus which stems from boredom. You think you can turn it on at will. Problem is, you often can't do it in that game. The Pistons are going through a stretch of games like that.

None of us are enjoying it. It will not last for long.

They need to get back to what made them awesome earlier in the year. When they do that, they will be extremely difficult to stop.

Washington with 110 points--unreal. Only bright spot was Delk. Just when we had SA on the ropes we give them a game back.

this wasn't that bad- maybe the team actually just needed to be slapped in the face so that they wake up. Washington wanted to beat us and they did. No effort. No hustle. No D! This team won its ring with the going to work attitude and now sometimes they play like bored Divas.
They owe full effort to the fans and this is what you can expect. No one of them could complain about too less money.
The bad:
Sheed taking another 5 3pt attempts. One less than CB, but CB at least made 2. Sheed didn't make one. I hate him taking so many 3's. His the leader in this team in 3 point attempts! What does he want? If he'd have an average above 40%, maybe- but he's shooting good, but not more.

No effort.
No D.
The good
although this was a bad loss, there are several good things
Tay didn't play very much. Flip always said he's on the floor for his stellar D. Stellar D if his opponent scores at will? That's what Butler did!
So he only played 24 minutes- should happen more often. He hasn't been good all season and now it's time to decrease his MPG.
Fino did ok- solid D, solid O, he showed what he can do.
Delk showed he can give a spark from the bench- this is something we need really bad.
Many minutes for the bench- sure, it was because of the loss. But some of them proved that they're doing ok when given minutes. That's important.

Tick..Tock..Tick..Tock...Tick..Tock

The season is winding down.

What have we learned so far?

Well..... what happens when a great offensive coach is paired with one of the smartest,well-tuned starting fives in the past 20 years?

One of the greatest starts in NBA history.

Sounds good.

But.....now what happens when a coach with a history of playoff failures is called to lead a smart, well-tuned starting five that is looking for answers and is facing a league that has studied our team's tendencies for 3/4 of the season.

Losses.

Not so good.

Simply put, I think the league has caught on to our offensive scheme that had suprised our competition to the point where blowout victories were becoming the norm. Now that the opposition has adjusted to our offense and slowed us down, it is time to make adjustments. Bring out the clipboard. Make some decisions with the great personel we have which includes our underrated bench. Coach us to a victory!

It hasn't been happening.

No effective adjustments.

Tick...Tock...Tick..Tock...

We're waiting Flip.

So far, Flip hasn't shown me anything that suggests he has the goods to coach us to a playoff victory. Great pre-game preperation. No in-game ingenuity.

Well, Mr. Davidson and the NBA's best starting five. Looks like you've got what you've been asking for. The team's best chance definitely does not appear to be coming from the coach's chair. It's all about the players. All these years of grooming from some of the NBA's top coaches will finally be put to its test.

So fellas hit the video archives. Resist the urge to transform into Flip's Timberwolves and review what made you one of the best defensive teams in the past 20 years.

Save the season and let's see if you guys can win one for Flip, since his value apparently ended once he finished teaching his offensive playbook.

dudes, i know it's not about me, but no love for that recap? you think it's easy to turn a crap game like that one and transform it into an artful meld of faux-apocalyptic prose, old testament expressions, and ghostbusters rip-offs?? :)

Just watch this morning. Somewhere there in the third quarter the streams must have crossed or something and then all that inter-dimensionality stuff started up and things got ugly.

Delk was a bright spot. And Tay actually going to the boards early and then pushing the ball up the floor was nice to see. Otherwise, no defensive energy - more zeros in a Ben Wallace line than I can remember seeing for a while, and whatever happened to knocking some guys on their butts sometimes?

This team is notoriously soft. The only players willing to get physical on "D" are Rip and Sheed. Even Ben prefers to play the ball, not the body.

McDyess is starting to bother me, and he is a guy I carry the banner for. At one point in his career will he figure out how to disguise his cheap shots? The guy is not much dirtier than anyone else, but the refs nail him on those obvious calls every single time. He can complain about the quick whistle but being honest with myself, he's forcing them to call obvious hack attempts.

My mission is to pretend this never happened and look forward to the next game. Some of Chauncey's comments about needing focus and what not, man, that's not an MVP talking. These guys gotta learn that they earn respect on the court, and everyone wants to see them taken down. The Ps and Spurs are not "feel good" stories. The world at large wants them to fail. Could there be a bigger target on their back?

I'd be really curious to know what is going on in that locker room. There is no way all 5 guys are telling each other, "yo, we gotta play harder man", or "we'll get them next time". Because if there is 5 guys blowing this off, it could be a very interesting end to the season.

BTW, did anyone see the Stones playing zone against a hot jump shooting team? Washington has a distinct lack of a post up game, it seems insane to me for the Pistons to play zone.

San Antonio was 12-10 last year to finish the season last year. They won the championship. Does anyone know what was our (pistons) record and the Suns record for the last 22 games last year?

GO PISTONS!!!!!!!!!

San Antonio was 12-10 last year to finish the season last year. They won the championship. Does anyone know what was our (pistons) record and the Suns record for the last 22 games last year?

GO PISTONS!!!!!!!!!

We went 17-5, the suns went 16-6, Miami 15-7, Mavs 19-3, Nuggets 18-4

Spanking... Spankage... Spankathon... Spankanator

The art of going to the nations capitol and touching your toes to receive a well deserved swat on the buttocks as punishment for your lackadaisical effort.... daddy's Butler & Arenas will be receiving a call from child services.

It might be worth reviewing our preseason expectations... if you expected the team to go 82-0 with no lob sided losses please step forward to receive your extreme optimist award.
Seriously, just curious if the Pistons have not reached anyones goals at this point?
Obviously not much to defend from last nights beatdown...
I'll have to agree with Chauncey in that this is what the team needed as a wake me up.... I don't know of any other teams that has played at a consistently high level all year... would almost prefer a slight lag before the final couple weeks of the regular season... going into the playoff knowing that it's gonna take a high level effort or you'll get bounced early.

Spankalicious... Spanky & the Gang.... Spank happens

Spanking... Spankage... Spankathon... Spankanator

The art of going to the nations capitol and touching your toes to receive a well deserved swat on the buttocks as punishment for your lackadaisical effort.... daddy's Butler & Arenas will be receiving a call from child services.

It might be worth reviewing our preseason expectations... if you expected the team to go 82-0 with no lob sided losses please step forward to receive your extreme optimist award.
Seriously, just curious if the Pistons have not reached anyones goals at this point?
Obviously not much to defend from last nights beatdown...
I'll have to agree with Chauncey in that this is what the team needed as a wake me up.... I don't know of any other teams that has played at a consistently high level all year... would almost prefer a slight lag before the final couple weeks of the regular season... going into the playoff knowing that it's gonna take a high level effort or you'll get bounced early.

Spankalicious... Spanky & the Gang.... Spank happens

Well said Merc. I couldn't agree more.
You win the Golden Paddle award. :first:

Seriously, just curious if the Pistons have not reached anyones goals at this point?


My goal was for the Pistons to hold every team in the NBA below 70 points at least once. Other than that, they seem to be doing fine. I may have overreacted last night after watching MSU fall in a gut wrenching "tired legs" spanking by Iowa.

These guys are a little too full of themselves. The All-Star game and MVP talk seems to have gotten into their head. They need to actually play against "lesser" teams, you don't win by just showing up. If this laziness continues into the playoffs I wouldn't be surprised if they get bounced in th 1st or 2nd round. This is the stretch run where they should be ramping up into playoff mode. Every game will be a test.

My goal was for the Pistons to hold every team in the NBA below 70 points at least once. Other than that, they seem to be doing fine. I may have overreacted last night after watching MSU fall in a gut wrenching "tired legs" spanking by Iowa.

Ouch. You really know how to hurt a guy. :Cry:

What a pathetic effort.

Either we gave them too much cushion and they would hit a wide open jumper (which was most of the game), or our guards would play tighter and then they'd blow right by for an easy layup with no help from our bigs.

Delfino did have a nice block though. He's been showing great hustle on both ends of the court. His D has really improved.

The bench got some actual playing time too! (even before garbage time)

I liked that Sheed was actually posting up more this game. He was scoring at will down low, but then we went away from it in the 4th.

Delk did hit some shots, but a lot of them were early in the shot clock and he didn't even look to pass first. As long as it isn't a sign of things to come, I don't mind it, since he needs to get comfortable and it would be nice to get him integrated early.

Prince hasn't impressed me at all lately.

I agree with Micro that Dice is becomming more of a liability than a help. His ticky tack fouls are really annoying, and his complaining right after them is even worse.

Man, I do not like the direction this team has been headed. We need to turn this thing around soon. There's still some time, but we need to get some positive momentum going into the playoffs. Home Court throughout would be nice too, but at the very least we need to be #1 in the East.

I was at the game last night. I arrived about an hour an ten minutes earlier just to check out our boys mentality and such. They were all joking around playing especially Sheed & Delfino seem to genuinely like one another.

You would have not believed the amount of pistons fans at the Verizon Center, everywhere there was a sea of red, white & blue. The autograph hounds were out in full force, there were hundreds & hundreds of of them clamoring around the Pistons area to get autographs.

In contrast, the Wizards did not draw a crowd at all. This may have miffed some of the Wizards because it appeared that the Pistons was getting all of the attention.

I left the first few seconds into the fourth quarter, it was so painful to watch, been waiting all year to see the Pistons and I get this.

The Pistons in the second period seemed as though they wanted to be anywhere besides the Verizon Center, they looked bored as you no what. Flip was using some very interesting lineups and played the bench for a longer period of time than the usual. I really like Billups & Delk on the floor at the same time.

Let me say this: Even though the Pistons played poorly, I truly believe that this is not the Pistons team that we will see in the playoffs. For some strange reason I think they are playing the Jedi Mind Trick on us. We will not see those redhot Pistons until the playoffs begin. Just my opinion. I think they will use plays and decoys that will surprise the hell out of us as well as combinations of players.

Let me tell you guys that Tony Delk is the real deal, played an extremely impressive game, this is only the beginning of Tony Delk, he will see a lot of action in the Post Season.

I missed most of the game... could anyone tell me how the bench played... particularly Jmax.
Thanks

Sco, good post. But what was the "changing of garments" remark about?
Merc, "Spank Happens" very strong.
Often an average team will blow off a "should win" to get a "must/want win" the next day. Not sure who is our next date but it will be for the 50th W. I had a feeling the 50th would be tough to get and I guess it's still not too late to say that.

I thought JMax got sent down?

I missed most of the game... could anyone tell me how the bench played... particularly Jmax.
Thanks

Mercury, Delk played very, very, good and was one of the bright spots off the bench, he was only nano seconds from canning 2 consecutive three pointers, took it to the hoop, good overall d, no complaints from eme.

Can't tell you much about Jmax because I left at the beginning of the 4th.

Delfino palyed tight D, took it to the rack on one ocassion, like to see him do theat continuously.

McDyess had a couple cheap fouls, of course he cried to refs about them both, little scoring, many uneccesary fouls.

Lindsay didn't play as much as I anticipated for this game, at least the 3 periods I watched.

Some observations from the box score...

Hunter only 3.5 minutes?... is Delk moving L.H. out of the lineup?
Fast break points only 7... could be this extra focus on rebounding is effecting the transition game (gaurds helping out).

18 assist... 16 T.O's ...ouch... let's not confuse the Wizz with a lockdown defensive team.

Looks like Tayshaun had a decent game for only playing 24 minutes... but sounds like he got burnt on "D".

Should be no tired leg excuses... (Chauncey played the most min @ 35)except for Ben... the knee issues cropping up again is kinda concerning... could be we'll see his minutes reduced over the next few games.

Is Chauncey an overrated defender?

Mercury, Delk played very, very, good and was one of the bright spots off the bench, he was only nano seconds from canning 2 consecutive three pointers, took it to the hoop, good overall d, no complaints from eme.

Can't tell you much about Jmax because I left at the beginning of the 4th.

Delfino palyed tight D, took it to the rack on one ocassion, like to see him do theat continuously.

McDyess had a couple cheap fouls, of course he cried to refs about them both, little scoring, many uneccesary fouls.

Lindsay didn't play as much as I anticipated for this game, at least the 3 periods I watched.
Thanks Army,
If we keep getting that kinda effort from Delk & Delfino we're going a long way in the playoffs.

Love to give you a JMax update Merc, but I turned the game off at that point. Case of Wizard Reflux brought on by bad D and spicy ribs. :ohwell:

Sco, good post. But what was the "changing of garments" remark about?
Merc, "Spank Happens" very strong.
Often an average team will blow off a "should win" to get a "must/want win" the next day. Not sure who is our next date but it will be for the 50th W. I had a feeling the 50th would be tough to get and I guess it's still not too late to say that.

thanks thee... but it wasn't changing of garments, it was renting of garments. renting as in tearing. it's what people do in the old testament when they're upset about things they can't control...deaths and plagues and the like.

So they tore their clothes up, in frustration? AAaRRRRHHHH

I missed most of the game... could anyone tell me how the bench played... particularly Jmax.
Thanks

Fairly unimpressive I'd say. He got in for the last six or so and pretty much goose-egged across the board - took a shot, hit one freebie, missed another, got a board, turned the ball over once. He tried a couple of those hard runs to the hoop but didn't end up anywhere close. I'd say it was the most uninspired I've seen him.

Of course, there wasn't much of anything you could call an offense being run while he was in so...

HAHAHAHA, I watched this game but missed this part.

After Flip got a T and Arenas missed the free throw, Flip yells out "Ball don't lie!"

You can see a clip of it at www.need4sheed.com (http://www.need4sheed.com)

thanks thee... but it wasn't changing of garments, it was renting of garments. renting as in tearing. it's what people do in the old testament when they're upset about things they can't control...deaths and plagues and the like.

I think you mean rending, as in tearing. Renting of garments is usually done for high school proms or weddings. In an historical context a powder blue, or pastel green tux could be rent after it had been rented. :)

After Flip got a T and Arenas missed the free throw, Flip yells out "Ball don't lie!"

You can see a clip of it at www.need4sheed.com (http://www.need4sheed.com)
Definitely a bright spot the other night. Flip showing a little spirit.

Where are America's entreprenuers? Why isn't there a "ball don't lie" t-shirt? (With "that ball don't lie" on the back)

Though "got sheed" from need4sheed is pretty nice.

I think you mean rending, as in tearing. Renting of garments is usually done for high school proms or weddings. In an historical context a powder blue, or pastel green tux could be rent after it had been rented. :)

I do mean rending, as you say Caliban, and rending is the more common word nowadays, relatively speaking. But in the name of pedantic accuracy and saving my good academic name I must point out that in my Oxford English Dictionary there is "renting": "the action of rending or tearing." Apologies for any confusion caused my use of the obsolete form.

I'm glad I didn't go near that "renting" word.

So they tore their clothes up, in frustration? AAaRRRRHHHH

Yeah, i guess the idea, in my recap anyway, was that I was anticipating a terribly dramatic scene of frustration, sadness, and loss after the Washington game, as though we had just witnessed the apocalypse (hence the heading for my recap: revelations).

In the old testament, people rent (or rend, as Caliban sagely points out) their garments when they are lamenting something (such as a pathetic loss by the top seeded but lackadaisical Nazareth Nuggets to the worse, but more energetic and hot-shooting Bethlehem Barnstormers -- Ezekiel Ch. 21, v. 4-9)

(incidentally, that reaction was, to the credit of those on this forum, much more evident on the det news talk forum. folks here are much cooler and more reasured: an obvious sign of maturity).

What about smashing of furniture? Not much has changed.

I do mean rending, as you say Caliban, and rending is the more common word nowadays, relatively speaking. But in the name of pedantic accuracy and saving my good academic name I must point out that in my Oxford English Dictionary there is "renting": "the action of rending or tearing." Apologies for any confusion caused my use of the obsolete form.

I believe the "renting" form is on borrowed time. :eyebrows:

I believe the "renting" form is on borrowed time. :eyebrows:

:nod: exactly so.