ECF Game 4 May 29th At Cleveland 8:00 PM TV - TNT The Pistons experienced their game 3 woes and allowed the Cavs to take this game. Billups needs to show up in game 4 or the Cavs may come back to the Palace 2-2 feeling giddy and confident as can be.
By Steve Kerr Monday, May 28, 2007 1:27 am EDT CLEVELAND -- One bad game is a fluke. Two bad ones is a trend. Three in a row? It's a reality. And with that said, I think it's safe to say that Chauncey Billups -- for whatever reason -- does not match up well against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Detroit's misfiring Piston - NBA Experts Blog - NBA - Yahoo! Sports
I completely agree. Three games is not a slump, it's good defense from the Cavs. Question is: can Billups, Saunders, Harper and Porter figure out the adjustments they need to make to get Chauncey (and Rip) back in the game?
i agree, it is good defense. this may seem too simplistic (or obvious), but one thing i've noticed is that chauncey's attempting too many tricky passes (again, against pretty good defense; see for example, a bounce pass from the top of the key to the far corner that Rip couldn't get a handle on). i doubt my h.s. experience as a point guard 20 years ago has too much relevance, but back then when i was having a tough game, it helped me settle down to just sit back and make some really simple passes, just to get me back into a groove. come to think of it, that's something that always helps me whenever i'm struggling in life: get in a hole, flail and try something complex/heroic to get out of it, fail, and then be forced back to simple basics. any takers for that theory?
Chauncey is going to break out of his slump. I am hoping for the Pistons to finally fire on all cylinders though. Webber had a heck of a game yesterday, but no one else stepped up. If Chauncey does good or Chauncey does bad the whole team has to step up.
The Professor writes good stuff. I fully expect the Pistons to jump out to a double digit lead, but win a close one. Billups will not be one of the top two Pistons for the game...........
So who is starting in Hughes spot? Probably Snow. It doesn`t matter because Billups seems to be having trouble irregardless of which Cav is guarding him.
From MLive: Jim O' Brien, former coach of the Philadelphia 76ers has a unique theory about why the Pistons perimeter stars are struggling on offense against the Cavs. This is an ESPN Insider blog, so I'm only going to quote one paragraph and sum the rest. May 28, ESPN.com: I reported in my blog some time back that Chris Webber made what I consider one of the most startling comments I have ever heard. Shortly after we traded for him when I coached Philadelphia I was discussing our playbook with him. One play had Kyle Korver coming from under the basket and our power forward (Webber) screening for him on the box and posting up for a low-post opportunity. Webber looked at me and very politely said, "Coach, I don't do the low-post thing anymore." His point was that at that stage of his career he was best utilized at the elbow with the ball in his hands. If everyone moved when he had the ball he would hit cutters if they were open for a layup or an open jumper.O' Brien goes on to say that Flip Saunders knows Webber still has skills down in the low post despite his resistance to play down low in the recent past, so he's trying to force him to play there with mixed results. The problem is this eliminates post up opportunities for Detroit's talented perimeter players because Webber is clogging up the lane. It always hinders Webber's most important skill, ball movement, because that skill is maximized on the elbow, where Webber is most comfortable. If you have ESPN Insider I high recommend reading the entire blog entry. I'm not making the decision that O'Brien is right, but it's excellent analysis from a former head coach, especially considering he coached Webber for a short time in Philly.
You would think the guy would look at Flip and politely say: "Coach, I will do whatever you ask including running through a forest fire wearing gasoline soaked drawers if thats what it takes to get a championship ring."
i'll take the blame for the Game 3 loss. i was in florida instead of michigan watching the game, and that obviously had a negative effect on the team.
I'm not sure if the NBA wants a depleted Cleveland team to get slaughtered in the Finals by Tim Duncan. Therefore, I don't think there will be any unexplained forces holding us back tonight.
