Game 2 is this Wed. Looks like only NBATV is picking it up nationally.

tv: tv20, NBAtv.

More to follow.

Game 2 is this Wed. Looks like only NBATV is picking it up nationally.

tv: tv20, NBAtv.

More to follow.

Nation doesn't want to see Pistons choke? :stirthepot:

Nation doesn't want to see Pistons choke? :stirthepot:

It is kind of weird. Not sure if it was planned of if they dropped it after watching game 1.

It was planned that this game would be on NBATV. They're splitting the evenings with TNT during the middle of the week. For the last few years, I think almost every first round series has had one game on NBATV, although that probably won't happen with a marquee matchup like Suns-Spurs.

Pistons are an old story of a team not trying. Don't want the kiddies seeing grown men giving less than acceptable effort. Put em on the radio til they start trying.:gun1:

I predict this one with be back and forth, but our starters will find a way to pull it out at the end with a little extra effort in crunch time. We'll do a little rope-a-dope, then punch em in the keister.

The only thing that could derail this plan would be if we don't make shots that we normally make, of if we get a bad call or two, or if Lindsey can't run our offense when we move Rip to the 3 and CB to the 2.

I hope we try even more rotations/combinations that we haven't tried all season long. This is the time to experiment. And even though that's a 7th seed, we shouldn't take them lightly! We should adjust to their game plan because we're that damn good.

This game was scheduled on NBAtv since day one. No change in schedule.

I expect that pistons are hurt and will fire back. They will totally blow out the Sixers and our starters will be rested half way through the last quarter.

one positive way to look at things: we never lost a game 1 since 2003. Maybe this changes the whole equation. Lose game one but win all the way.

Goooo Pistons.

Billups needs to prove he is an allstar and so does rip. Dyess needs to grow a couple, Tay needs to wakeup, lindsay needs to be deactivated, sheed needs to stay in his own huddle, and flip needs not to panic so much. GO Pistons!!!!!!!!!!

I hope we try even more rotations/combinations that we haven't tried all season long. This is the time to experiment. And even though that's a 7th seed, we shouldn't take them lightly! We should adjust to their game plan because we're that damn good.

I agree. I say let's start running, and maybe try Sheed at PG. They are no match for us.

quick question...who said this?

I'd also like to see what Amir Johnson and Arron Afflalo can do in short minutes. Lindsey Hunter didn't do anything particularly well in Game 1 -- he picked up three silly fouls trying to contain the Sixers athletic perimeter players. Why not give Afflalo those five minutes Wednesday?
The same goes for Johnson. He's athletic and does well rebounding and blocking for his size. Give him five minutes now just to see what he offers.


correct answer to be announced later today.

quick question...who said this?
Do you want an answer?

I harness intarwebs.

lol glad i read it just before i came here... was to easy.

Sleepless Pistons upset over Game 1 | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080422/SPORTS03/804220366)

so the correct answer would be Krista Jahnke, While I agree with idea that it would be interesting to see what they bring, Its much more important for our 2 self proclaimed all star guards to how up and show us why they think there the best back court in the league.

This game was scheduled on NBAtv since day one. No change in schedule.

I expect that pistons are hurt and will fire back. They will totally blow out the Sixers and our starters will be rested half way through the last quarter.

one positive way to look at things: we never lost a game 1 since 2003. Maybe this changes the whole equation. Lose game one but win all the way.

Goooo Pistons.

Not sure what you are saying...

We lost game 1 to the Heat in 06' did we not? And game 1 to the Spurs in 05'

Not sure what you are saying...

We lost game 1 to the Heat in 06' did we not? And game 1 to the Spurs in 05'

He might have meant game 1 of the first round.

Is this game never going to start?

I need to either move on with a convincing win or just start sloshing around in a roiling stew of recrimination and humilitation.

Sometimes it's tough to know what to do.

He might have meant game 1 of the first round.

Well we split with Milwaukee in the first 2 games in 03/04'. Same thing if we win Wed night.

Pretty early in the series but I think it's a "must win" game for Detroit. Where's the GuaranSheed?

Is this game never going to start?

I need to either move on with a convincing win or just start sloshing around in a roiling stew of recrimination and humilitation.

Sometimes it's tough to know what to do.

I get cha dba!
These first-round schedules pi$$ me off every year! :bored:
Imagine if Seattle made the playoffs. They could conceivably move their entire franchise to a different city between game 1 and game 2!

They should throw is some back-to-backs in the first round. No need for these big breaks.

Two days off in between games isn't all that bad. I can recall at least one playoffs when the league decided to avoid any games being played at the same time, i.e. no more than 2 per evening during the week, so some first round series had up to FOUR days off in between games. That was ridiculous, so they scaled it back afterwards. The current system seems pretty sensible to me; I don't think we'll have two days off in between games any more times during this series.

The losing team after each game should have the option of choosing the next game time, on either of the three following nights.

Hey remember when AA kept Lebron in front of him? Remember when he did that with AI? Good Times.

I love having a great defender sit on the bench. Flip is so smart!

Seriously though, I agree with the whole wait thing being way too long. I need to know one way or another. Are thing going to change? Or are we going to go down 2-0 to the 7th seed?

edited to add;

Check out this article. These quotes side by side are extremely telling, probably not intentional, but are just perfect examples of the contrast b/w (good) coaches


"Our strength is our ability to where teams don't score out of our offense," Saunders said. "We let them score way too many points out of our offense."


"Believe it or not, we had more open shots in the last five minutes of the game than we had in any of the quarters," Saunders said. "But we didn't make them. We didn't make open shots down the stretch."



While Sixers coach Mo Cheeks understands that was an important part of his team's success, he knows he cannot bank on Detroit's shooters missing so many shots and free throws that they normally make.

"Those things don't normally happen," Cheeks said. "So we have to make our breaks. And you certainly gotta be lucky; have some luck on your way against a team like that."

When you consider the 6ers started out like 5 and 20 and ended up 40 and 42 with 3 wins over Boston, you know they can land the right hand on any given nite. I seriously hope the 6ers are still in the "cureing" stage and we can tough out a 7 game win !!!
8.9 DR - that's assuming we have a 10 man rot.

We should try zone (as much as i detest it). Philly is an absolutely awful 3 point shooting team.

Hey, that's a pretty good idea.

So far five game 2's and the team that has won game 1 has prevalied in game 2.
Can you imagine the frenzy around here if the Pistons don't win game 2??

All hell will break loose:hanged2:

Hunter was OK for about 4 mins in game 1. Put him back in a suit and dress Dixon. I am not saying that he, AA or AJ will win the game for them, but at least give them a blow if the matchup presents itself...and please make some type of sub in 3rd about 4 minute mark even it means pulling 2 starters to have them sit on bench for Curry and Porter coaching.

The defense was decent Sunday, it was the offense that wasn't clicking 100 points and 25 assists should win any game for the Pistons.....that is the goal!!!! oh yeah and a victory!!!!!!!!

Sorry for the confusion, i meant the first game in the first round. I read this somewhere.

Not sure what you are saying...

We lost game 1 to the Heat in 06' did we not? And game 1 to the Spurs in 05'

well i'll be there again, keeping the maxiell jersey. they messed up last game by giving away a ton of chauncey billups t-shirts...and in only one location. i think there were still a couple thousand people still waiting for their shirt as the game was starting and it caused the stands to be more empty.

sidenote, the crowd that did show up for game 1 was excited...more jerseys and shirts than i've seen all year (regular season people show up to games to 'be seen' more often than to see a basketball game).

Ended up with two tickets myself in Section 211. Not great seats but my face will be in the place feelin' the heat from the torches.

Hunter was OK for about 4 mins in game 1. Put him back in a suit and dress Dixon. I am not saying that he, AA or AJ will win the game for them, but at least give them a blow if the matchup presents itself...and please make some type of sub in 3rd about 4 minute mark even it means pulling 2 starters to have them sit on bench for Curry and Porter coaching.

Ain't this the kicker? After all the hullaballoo about the Zoo Crew and the development of the bench, what is DET's small lineup? How bout their big lineup? What do they do if they need more scoring? Isn't the answer to all of the above some combo of Sheed, Dyess, Tay, Rip, CB & Max?

A lot of people have remarked how Hunter and Stuckey hadn't played together all season yet there they were in the 4th quarter figuring it out. It brought back memories of G6 in the ECF seeing Hunter and Murray out there together. 82 games and 6 months isn't enough time to figure out what combos work together. That is barely enough time for Flip to figure out what the subs can't do.

Coach after coach the last few days said some variation of, 'It's a long game.', in between the 1st and 2nd quarter. I have a hunch one will buck that trend down 6 points or so.

See, what happened Sunday wasn't an aberration or a fluke. It was the manifestation of a seasons worth of work and repetition. The Piston offense sputtered because for 3 years it has passed the ball without a purpose and relied on people who can't go one on one to go one on one against the shot clock. They should spend their season making sure that their offense is crisp & efficient and honing their defensive principles regardless of who is the game, not shortening the bench to beat SA because they lost in Dallas the night before. Is that negative? How many times are they going to go trap someone who is in a completely non-threatening position only to create lay-ups for the other team?

DET will win tonight. If I had to guess, they'll be up 10 or so points with a minute or so left when they'll start fouling 3 point shooters, turning the ball over needlessly and giving up 3's when they should give them 2. This, unfortunately, is now the Piston way. (Damn I need this game to start!)

Ain't this the kicker? After all the hullaballoo about the Zoo Crew and the development of the bench, what is DET's small lineup? How bout their big lineup? What do they do if they need more scoring? Isn't the answer to all of the above some combo of Sheed, Dyess, Tay, Rip, CB & Max?

A lot of people have remarked how Hunter and Stuckey hadn't played together all season yet there they were in the 4th quarter figuring it out. It brought back memories of G6 in the ECF seeing Hunter and Murray out there together. 82 games and 6 months isn't enough time to figure out what combos work together. That is barely enough time for Flip to figure out what the subs can't do.

Coach after coach the last few days said some variation of, 'It's a long game.', in between the 1st and 2nd quarter. I have a hunch one will buck that trend down 6 points or so.

See, what happened Sunday wasn't an aberration or a fluke. It was the manifestation of a seasons worth of work and repetition. The Piston offense sputtered because for 3 years it has passed the ball without a purpose and relied on people who can't go one on one to go one on one against the shot clock. They should spend their season making sure that their offense is crisp & efficient and honing their defensive principles regardless of who is the game, not shortening the bench to beat SA because they lost in Dallas the night before. Is that negative? How many times are they going to go trap someone who is in a completely non-threatening position only to create lay-ups for the other team?

DET will win tonight. If I had to guess, they'll be up 10 or so points with a minute or so left when they'll start fouling 3 point shooters, turning the ball over needlessly and giving up 3's when they should give them 2. This, unfortunately, is now the Piston way. (Damn I need this game to start!)

That is a long post for you, Ernie. You must really be feelin' it. Leave work early, grab a six pack and kick back on the couch and relax til game time. Things will be O.K. in 5 hours.

I just realized that we are the only higher ranked team to lose a game so far.

That's technically true, although Houston has dropped two games at home to Utah, which has the higher seed only by virtue of having won their division (home court always goes to the team with the better record).

I just realized that we are the only higher ranked team to lose a game so far.

Yup, and all the teams in the East PO's are up 2-0. (BOS/ATL didn't happen yet, but that's irrelevant to the outcome).

This 5 game series is going to wear us out and will put us at a big disadvantage in the next round.

This 5 game series is going to wear us out and will put us at a big disadvantage in the next round.

Actually it might if the starters continue to play 40 min :).

Seriously though, i believe mental fatigue of a long series is worse, and i see this going at least 6. Don't know who's going to be on the winning side yet.

Well, I "reviewed tape" of Game 1 and took extensive notes. What phrases come up more often than anything else? 1st quarter: rip horrible shot, dyess horrible shot, rip nice shot can't hit, rip horrible shot select, Sheed playing great. 2nd quarter: great quarter for us, still a lot of jumpshooting without ball movement, Sheed playing great 3rd quarter: rip horrible shot, rip horrible shot, dyess horrible shot, tay horrible shot, Sheed looking fine 4th quarter: horrible Rip shot, and another stinky Rip shot, Sheed beautiful shot, Chauncey misses 3 free throws, Rip horrible way short jumpshot, and finally a clutch made Rip jumpshot.

I guess the shots just weren't falling.

So we need to attack the basket. Rip iso's alone won't work. I love Rip, but I could not believe how many shots he took that were "missed" before they left his hands.Rip iso's cannot be our offense. Please Flip, Sheed, someone...make them move the ball until they get a nice shot at least. Where are our easy baskets?

GO PISTONS! ATTACK! FORCE THE ISSUE!

Chat is open!

* removed link*

Here is the box score

NBA.com: 76ers at Pistons Game Info (http://www.nba.com/games/20080423/PHIDET/boxscore.html)

Great game. Defense was there, execution was there, focus was there, rebounding was there, bench chipped in.

I would call McDyess the player of the game. Played like he was before the injury with 16 points and 12 boards ( 6 offensive ).

We are playing ourselves into playoff level. We are still a bit out of rythym actually, despite the score. Tay and Sheed were big. Tay is growing up finally it seems.

We need to stretch this team out. So Dyss's jumpers worked. Also, Chauncey needs to actually shoot more jumpers against this team. His drives are still poor and we will need them in later rounds.

Last two years we started great and sank. This year we are building into the playoffs.

Good win. The starters played good hard tough basketball. Our key bench guys got some time. The team is still a work in progress though. The rotation is still not set, not really functional. Tonight, the starters played way too great a percentage of the first 3 quarters. If it had been a tight game, what would have happened in the 4th quarter. Would Flip have kept a bunch of tired starters in to lose the game? Amir and Afflalo did play, but they have to play in the 2nd quarter if we are going to keep going in these playoffs.

Some good things happened. Tay got real aggressive, going inside and scoring right over Philly. Repeatedly. Rip got a lot of shots up, and nailed quite a few, scoring 20. This is significant, his first 20 point game since return from his hip injury. Sheed scored plenty, and plenty inside. He started out hitting about 4 of his first five. Then stepped out and nailed a triple or two. (I only remember one going in.)

Dyess steadily kept nailing that outside shot of his. Better yet though, he scored inside a couple of times off offensive rebounds. Another good rebounding game for him and a lot of points scored.

Billups was fairly quiet, except for a stretch in the 3rd quarter where he bunched together 2 triples made and a conventional 3 point play to help bury Philly. We enjoyed a 28 point lead at one point in the 3rd.

Stuckey got sub of the game with 5-6, 2-2 at the line. Thats two outside shots made and the rest going inside. Sometimes quite impressively. Sometimes fancy, like that double clutch floater.

Amir scored well on a couple of pick and rolls, and then a sweet looking hook shot with range after zooming across the lane. He made about half his free throws.

Maxiell did not play much in the first half as he picked up his 3rd foul not too far into the 2nd quarter. I remember the dunk and a block from him for the game. (He still played long enough to give Dyess and Sheed each a brief rest.)

Afflalo did little except what he does best, make it hard for anyone to shoot the ball on the perimeter.

To be clear, neither Afflalo nor Amir entered the game before the game was well in hand. Still, they played the whole 4th, (Amir some minutes in the 3rd quarter) and the lead held at around 20 well into the 4th. They did the job, and gained some experience against a Philly team that did not quit trying to well toward the end of the quarter.

Of note, we went with Stuckey at backup small forward in the 2nd half, with Hayes not getting back into the game until the game was completely decided. In other words, Hayes only got garbage time in the 2nd half. For the game, Hayes did make a couple of shots, but in all he hurt us pretty bad by being on the floor. Philly attacks him something fierce when he is in there. (To be clear, Rip played well into the 4th with the subs, along with Afflalo and Stuckey. Amir and JMAX were the two bigs.)

Discounting Hayes few minutes in the 2nd quarter, we just went with a 7 man rotation in this game up until most way thru the 3rd quarter. Dangerous. Lets see what the next game brings. (To be clear, Stuckey spelled Rip and Billups a bit each, JMAX spelled Sheed and Dyess a bit each, and Hayes spelled Tay for a few minutes.)

GO PISTONS!!!!!

This was definitely what the doctor ordered, but the main difference from Game 1 was that the Pistons...dare I say..."hit some shots"? They shot 55% for the game! The Sixers scored 90 in the first game and 88 in this one, but the Pistons upped their total by 19. They were very aggressive getting to the hoop, and Dice was red hot with his J when the guards were getting doubled.

Another obvious difference is simply that they showed up in the 2nd half. They were up 51-38 at halftime of Game 1, and 53-36 at halftime tonight. But there was no blowing the lead in this game.

The defense was decent Sunday, it was the offense that wasn't clicking >100 points and 25 assists should win any game for the Pistons.....that is the goal!!!! oh yeah and a victory!!!!!!!!
The defense played great in the first half limiting the Sixers to 18 pts in each quarter. Once the 20 point lead was was established they let up a little, but the Pistons did exceed my goals with 105 points and 26 assists and a Victory!!:whoo:

This was definitely what the doctor ordered, but the main difference from Game 1 was that the Pistons...dare I say..."hit some shots"? They shot 55% for the game! The Sixers scored 90 in the first game and 88 in this one, but the Pistons upped their total by 19. They were very aggressive getting to the hoop, and Dice was red hot with his J when the guards were getting doubled.

Another obvious difference is simply that they showed up in the 2nd half. They were up 51-38 at halftime of Game 1, and 53-36 at halftime tonight. But there was no blowing the lead in this game.

I have to disagree somewhat. Tay was not just "hitting some shots." He was taking it strongly to the rack, getting very high percentage shots. Sheed kept going inside. Good, high percentage shots. Some of Rips points were to the rack. Billups had that conventional 3 point play attacking inside. Dyess got some agrresive rebounds and putbacks. Stuckey was going inside too. Thats a lot of going inside, vs. a team settling on luck. Dyess did hit some shots to give some validity to your observation, but he actually did not shoot that many outside shots last game.

Yeah, they were getting good shots, which always makes a difference. Although I did see one blog post from McCoskey saying that the Pistons had missed 14 layups in Game 1!

This was definitely what the doctor ordered, but the main difference from Game 1 was that the Pistons...dare I say..."hit some shots"? They shot 55% for the game! The Sixers scored 90 in the first game and 88 in this one, but the Pistons upped their total by 19. They were very aggressive getting to the hoop, and Dice was red hot with his J when the guards were getting doubled.

Another obvious difference is simply that they showed up in the 2nd half. They were up 51-38 at halftime of Game 1, and 53-36 at halftime tonight. But there was no blowing the lead in this game.
After blowing the 13 pt half time lead game 1, there was some concern in my mind if the 17 pt ht lead was safe, but after they increased it midway thru the third. I relaxed and let nature take its course....:gun1:

Good game, good friends. Nice win.

LMAO, I just saw slippy's win counter banner with Flip's face on it! :pound:

What a game by our starting five. Sheed set the tone early with dominating post play. Then Tay upped it a notch by relentlessly pursuing the rim. Dyess rebounded hard in game 1, but this time he doubled his intensity and was on fire with his patented FT line extended J. Besides some forced drives down some dead-end streets, Rip was also ultra agressive.

But the best part was holding AI to 1 FG and 0 rebounds. Isn't this guy an all-star?

The zoo crew was fine, but it really didn't matter much at that point. Stuckey got some quality minutes and came through with aggressive drives. Hayes sort of blew... again. Hit a few shots and did absolutely nothing else.

All in all, a very fun game to watch with an unusually high number of easy hoops for our team. I don't know what the points in the paint # was, but it seemed very high. Also, when Philly wasn't getting hustle points and put backs, their shots looked terrible. Except for boxing them out, which is tough to do, our D looked amazing.

Player of the game = Dyess.

I'm pretty sure Afflalo was the difference in this one. :)

Either way, the Pistons didn't hit the snooze in the second half. Glad they showed up. Better late than never.

Was very excited to see Amir in there.

Great job, slippy, with the counter. That Flip head is classic.

Yeah, they were getting good shots, which always makes a difference. Although I did see one blog post from McCoskey saying that the Pistons had missed 14 layups in Game 1!

Difference between game one and two

Game 1 >Pistons shooting 32-82 assists>Three pt shooting 4-12 >PIP 39> assists 16
Game 2 >Pistons shooting 45-82 assists>Three pt shooting 4-12 >PIP 47> assists 26

looks like they were consistent in the number of shots..they just fell in the hoop tonight.:hoops:

Right, Dre. It seems like the difference was just that they continued to execute in the second half instead of going ice cold and not finding any ways to score.

It would be easy to say that we got better quality shots tonight, but with 14 missed gimme's in game one, I'm not sure it would be accurate.

All five starters shot 50% or greater. All in all, we had 7 players in that category. That's hot!

Our perimeter defenders actually tried in this game. When Chauncey gives effort on defense as opposed to not, the difference is so glaring you almost feel like you're watching a completely different player.

Like Lee mentioned though still a 7 man rotation. Back-up SF is still an issue for Flip even though we a # of options (AA,Hermann,Amir).

In tight games, that rotation won't cut it. Against good teams it won't cut it. AA came in and immediatedly played great defense. Not many teams have a weapon like that and to not use it is just unexplainable.

I have a feeling Philly will come out with some fire in Game 3. And if Lou Williams gets off, let's see if Flip makes an adjustment.

Sheed was fantastic per usual. Tay was agressive. Rip was good sans a few bonehead plays. Dice was on fire; though that shot is not always reliable. He did do some work on the O glass. In this series i actually think Dice is a better option at times than Max. Max just gives up too much height.

Amir needs to play more. Such a great weapon on the pick and roll. No Lindsey; not coincendentally Stuckey played better.

Chauncey was quiet, but controlled the game well. Also had a good burst in the 2nd half.

To win the next two games in PHIL, i think we are going to have to get much more out our bench. I liked the min tonight. I feel like 30-35 is good mark for the starting 4. Skewed again b/c it was a blow-out. I'd like to see that distribution in actual close games.

AA needs to take some of Rip's min. I think part of the problem is not just Flip, but Rip out of all our players HATES playing less. But Flip is the coach; he needs to act like it.

Use the bench. That's what will be conducive to a long post-season.

Hopefully we see this same type of effort in Game 3.

edited to add;

And a continued effort to get PIP.

Difference between game one and two

Game 1 >Pistons shooting 32-82 >Three pt shooting 4-12 >PIP 39> assists 16
Game 2 >Pistons shooting 45-82 >Three pt shooting 4-12 >PIP 47> assists 26

looks like they were consistent in the number of shots..they just fell in the hoop tonight.:hoops:
Corrected to removed duplicate wording

Curious. For you out of towners. What feed do you get on NBA tv? The local Detroit coverage or the Sixer announcers?

Max,

There was Buckner and don't know the other guy's name on NBA tv.

Curious. For you out of towners. What feed do you get on NBA tv? The local Detroit coverage or the Sixer announcers?


Tonight we got Quinn Buckner and some Joker named Steve Martin:nerd2:..basically a neutral broadcast team. Durng the regular season you are subject to get one of the participating teams local broadcasting team, but during the playoffs, NBA TV sends in a non-affiliated sportcasters to handle the broadcast duties...

Surprisingly Buckner was impartial tonight. Of course when he has done Pacer games in the past, he has ragged on the Pistons just like he would rag on the Fab Five when he provided color play-by-play doing Big 10 games in the early 90's...

Thanks. Be nice if they would show both and give you a choice.

Great job, slippy, with the counter. That Flip head is classic.I think there should be a red circle around #12.

Tonight we got Quinn Buckner and some Joker named Steve Martin:nerd2:..basically a neutral broadcast team.

They were impartial, but came across mostly disinterested to me. There were some seriously long stretches where they jabbered on about the Lakers, Celtics, the MVP race, etc.

Now that was the kind of effort I expect to see out of these guys! Win or lose, I can stand by a team when they play as hard and intense as the Pistons did last night.

Although the rotation was short, I really liked the sub pattern in this game. However, I'm not sure it would have played out the way it did if it weren't for foul trouble and Rip's temper tantrum. One thing I really liked was that except for garbage time Stuckey was always paired with a starter in the backcourt.

By the way, what was up with Rip's tantrum? Seemed like a bit of an overreaction on his part. Nice way to stay on the ref's good side.

"No More Mr Nice Guy" Was Alice Cooper in the stands?

Maybe the solid punch in the nose finally woke up the beast in all of them. Remember the Sixers did that to the Lakers with AI and Mutumbo.

Whew.

Nice concerted effort both to get to the rim and to actually score once there. Tay & Rip made a living going to the rim. It would have been nice not to give Philly 35 chances to score at the line though.

Nice to give Rip some extra minutes in the 4th. His hip may be right, but his game is still a little off from the long layoff before season's end.

I didn't read the posts or see the game but I'm sure that Flip got a lot of credit for this win. I know that this group of posters didn't lay all the glory at the feet of the players. I"m sure after the ROOOOOOOOASTING that Flip got, that he was praised for his coaching efforts. I can at least see that sombody honored Flip by using his face to count the win. Whoever did that, thanks for giving Flip all the glory for this important victory. I'm sure he coached the team into better shot selection, based on the high shooting percentages.

It would have been nice not to give Philly 35 chances to score at the line though.
I think this was the result of a cost-benefit analysis.

IIRC, Philly is the worst FT shooting team in the "L", so that negates some effectiveness from such volume.

And sending them to the line sends a message, while controlling tempo.

I think this was the result of a cost-benefit analysis.

Those crafty coaches with their spreadsheets. Once again I have underestimated them...

Curious. For you out of towners. What feed do you get on NBA tv? The local Detroit coverage or the Sixer announcers?


I get NBA-TV. Quinn Buckner and Steve Martin called the game. I prefer the pistons announcers. They were okay. During the playoffs NBA TV use their own announcers. You do not get the local feed.

Was at the game last night. Sat in section 211. There are 20 seats in a row and we had 4 people in our row. Lots of room to spread out. Now for the game.

Jarvis is horrible. He is a monkey wrench in the machine while he is on the floor. He dose not move with out the ball on offense and he cannot shoot if he has to move at all. If he gets the ball and can go straight up with it; he has a chance of making it but he is brutal. On defense he is a liability. He cannot stay in front of anyone. When he is on the floor he either fouls or gets the bigs in foul trouble backing him up. The other thing that happens is the flow of the game disappears.

With all the fouls and stoppage in play; the rythm of the game goes in the dumpster. It becomes a stop and go flow that is hard to play in.

Afflalo needs to replace him for the few minutes that Tay needs to rest. This is the only thing I think Flip needs to improve on from last night. I am assuming he was trying to knock the rust off of Rips game and that he will not play as many minutes in upcoming games where we have a large lead.

Jarvis is horrible. He is a monkey wrench in the machine while he is on the floor.

He only played 5 mins. in Game 1, and 9 last night (about half of which was in garbage time). I think Flip understands his limited usefulness.

You're right that we have to sub for Tay at least a few minutes each half. I was glad to see a 3-guard lineup (CB, Rip, Stuckey) for a bit in the 2nd half to rest Tay. At this point if AA is in you'll get better defense than with Hayes, plus AA can make cuts on offense and finish when he's moving. Seems like a positive on both ends.

He only played 5 mins. in Game 1, and 9 last night (about half of which was in garbage time). I think Flip understands his limited usefulness.

You're right that we have to sub for Tay at least a few minutes each half. I was glad to see a 3-guard lineup (CB, Rip, Stuckey) for a bit in the 2nd half to rest Tay. At this point if AA is in you'll get better defense than with Hayes, plus AA can make cuts on offense and finish when he's moving. Seems like a positive on both ends.

The other advantage is the ball keeps moving. When AA is in the game our ball movement is crisper. It may be in part because if he is not wide open when he gets the pass; he is going to pass the ball instead of looking to make a move past someone.

whew! nothing like a win to wash out the angst. We can win 3 straight and be in good shape for rnd 2. c'mon fellas! it only gets harder from here on out!

If Dyess didn't score a point he still would have been huge. Play of the game was him going up against 2 defenders early on to tap the ball of the glass (Shades of Darko) to Tay for a put back.

I had to start playing with my son to get the scowl off my face with a few minutes to go in the second quarter. Didn't Illadelph get the lead down to 4 when they were shooting 30-35% to DET's 55-60%? It seems to me that they go out of their way to needlessly trap someone and end up giving layups away.

Why doesn't Carney play for Philly? I think we'll see a lot more of him.

If we watched Rip with the same critical eye as Hayes, this board would be flooded.

I agree that a rotation needs to be sorted out. If Flip is this reliant on certain players now against 7th seed, what happens if/when they advance?

If DET lost G1 because they hadn't played a meaningful game in a while, how does taking the starters out with 4 to go in the 3rd help?

Sheeeeeeed!!!

If Dyess didn't score a point he still would have been huge. Play of the game was him going up against 2 defenders early on to tap the ball of the glass (Shades of Darko) to Tay for a put back.


Dyess is the best AOTG guy we have had since Darko left.

If we watched Rip with the same critical eye as Hayes, this board would be flooded.


You serious?

Rip has been our leading scorer for how many straight years? Multiple all-star selections. His total production is 2nd, only to Billups. Scored 20+ points 25 times this season. 28 games with 5 or more assists.

The only thing Hayes does well is shoot an OK percentage and Rip even has a significant advantage there.

Rip/ Jarvis
FG%- .484/.431
3P%- .440/.376
FT%- .833/.750

I wonder if Mo will make some lineup changes. Philly bench outscored the starters by A LOT.

You serious?

Rip has been our leading scorer for how many straight years? Multiple all-star selections. His total production is 2nd, only to Billups. Scored 20+ points 25 times this season. 28 games with 5 or more assists.

The only thing Hayes does well is shoot an OK percentage and Rip even has a significant advantage there.

Rip/ Jarvis
FG%- .484/.431
3P%- .440/.376
FT%- .833/.750

Yes, there was a lot of giving back as many points as he scored. I thought he played pretty sloppily myself.

well that's a relief. the palace was rockin' and the pistons never took a play off. and look at the results - the starters got to play fewer minutes and it was a blowout. 3 more times and on to the next round. maxiell is an animal, dyess was even coming out on the pick-and-rolls, and everyone was focused. stuckey was controlled and concentrated. that's what we need to see.

not much else to say, but you guys might be interested to hear that amir got the loudest ovation out of anyone entering the game. when he came in for the first time people were cheering like crazy and happy he was getting some minutes...reminded me of darko except amir can actually play basketball.

I'm glad the crowd was into it. Too bad the team couldn't muster up that kind of effort when Webz was in the house.

If we watched Rip with the same critical eye as Hayes, this board would be flooded.
...Sheeeeeeed!!!

You serious?


There are some weak parts of Rip's game. He's a little scary on the break with the ball, and his defense comes and goes. He wants to be the Hunter of old at times, but doesn't quite have the hand and foot speed to get it done. And perhaps he's a little too sure of himself at times.

Still, all that stuff TaS said, and he is still the best mid range jump shooter in the league. And I really liked the way he took the ball to the rim last night. Plus, he's worked himself into a serious stand still three point shooter, particularly from the corners.

The part I don't get is why the team doesn't seem to run any of the plays for Rip that they used to - coming off multiple screens for a 10-15 footer. That was his strength, and one of the places they could always go to get a decent shot when they needed it. But, it seems to have fallen out of the playbook.


P.S. Sheeeed!!! indeed.

There are some weak parts of Rip's game. He's a little scary on the break with the ball, and his defense comes and goes. He wants to be the Hunter of old at times, but doesn't quite have the hand and foot speed to get it done. And perhaps he's a little too sure of himself at times.

Still, all that stuff TaS said, and he is still the best mid range jump shooter in the league. And I really liked the way he took the ball to the rim last night. Plus, he's worked himself into a serious stand still three point shooter, particularly from the corners.

The part I don't get is why the team doesn't seem to run any of the plays for Rip that they used to - coming off multiple screens for a 10-15 footer. That was his strength, and one of the places they could always go to get a decent shot when they needed it. But, it seems to have fallen out of the playbook.


P.S. Sheeeed!!! indeed.

I think that coming off screens has not abandoned for rip: just they have figured out that it is easier to get points from cuts and penetrations. Against of philly it works, against of orlando - highly likely, against of boston - no way.

it is easier to get points from cuts and penetrations. Against of philly it works, against of orlando - highly likely, against of boston - no way.
Exactly, except that the 2-chest curl play has been abandoned, which is something I've been whining about for years.

Even if it hasn't been - when you get into a habit of doing things the easy way, you shouldn't be surprised when you fail at the hard necessities under pressure. Ask the Phoenix Suns.

The 2-chest curl play worked like a charm for years. I too have noticed Flip has abandoned it. Its not like the defenses finally learned to stop it recently.

:p_welldone::captain:pistons win.....wings vs avs.....tigers sweep 34-10 vs rangers...and I'm done being on call....nice day....so far.

The 2-chest curl play worked like a charm for years. I too have noticed Flip has abandoned it. Its not like the defenses finally learned to stop it recently.

This really bothers me. I wish we would run it at least a few times a game. Also it led to the play where if Rip was doubled he passes to Sheed for the little mid-range shot. That was a money play.

And glad to hear Amir got a loud ovation. Now if only the crowd could dictate who plays sometimes . . .

Tay really provided a spark yesterday. Question is why can't he be consistently agressive and drive to the basket every game? Some games he is so timid you forget he is there. CB has not shown up in this series so far. Philly was not strong protecting the paint, even in Game 1, the Pistons need to continue attacking the rim and looking for the high % shots.

Was it live or was it Memorex. Yeah we really attacked the paint and put real effort into D’ing up and stuff………………………….. BUT, did anyone else sense early on that the Sixers subconsciously hit the floor with somewhat of an attitude of mission accomplished. They lacked the same fire and aggressiveness shown in game one. Grabbing game one greatly changed the stakes for them and I’m really interested in seeing how the neophyte Sixer squad handles their new perception of playoff success.

Tay really provided a spark yesterday. Question is why can't he be consistently agressive and drive to the basket every game? Some games he is so timid you forget he is there. CB has not shown up in this series so far. Philly was not strong protecting the paint, even in Game 1, the Pistons need to continue attacking the rim and looking for the high % shots.

What I noticed from Tay last night was he did not shy away from the contact. Usually when he drives to the rim he takes a path that avoids contact. Last night he realized early that he could try and initiate the contact and the 6ers would get out of his way to avoid the foul. The first few times he was surprised to be so wide open coming down the lane.

He has the length to that consistently but he is afraid of the contact. He usually plays soft. That is the biggest difference in his game from when he first broke the starting line up and was a defensive stopper.

Don't get me wrong. Tay used to be my favorite player but I think he spends too much time making that pouty face of his and not enogh time being strong to the hole and dunking over people (like he used to).