Detroit Pistons

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Forget all the Detroit jokes. Shanahan couldn't wait to get here. He was traded the afternoon of the Red Wings' home opener, and made like those poor folks on "The Amazing Race" just so he get to Joe Louis Arena in time for pre-game introductions. It ended for him in Detroit shortly after Steve Yzerman retired in July 2006. Shanahan didn't care to be part of the good old days. He thought his continued presence in the Red Wings locker room would stunt the growth of some of the kids, so he made like Sinatra and wanted to be a part of it---New York, New York. Then a swan song last season with the Devils, the team he broke into the NHL with as an 18-year-old in 1987. In New Jersey he couldn't play his age---at age 40 he skated in 34 matches. He scored six goals. The acti...   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Our guest was Ansar Khan, the team's beat writer for MLive.com. Ansar has been on the Red Wings' beat for about a dozen years, starting with his days at the Oakland Press. Nov. 23 U-M/MSU football post-mortem Nov. 30 TBD (likely Pistons-related) Dec. 7: NHL Central roundtable with Bleacher Report writers from Columbus, Chicago, Nashville, and St. Louis Dec. 14: Gregory Shamus, one of the best sports photographers you'll ever know (Getty Images, Pittsburgh Penguins, Red Wings, Cleveland Cavaliers, and others); don't forget---this will be our first 9:00 show! Big Al Eno On talks of trading Granderson: "There are a few bloggers in Detroit who I respect, who went on as if the Tigers had announced they were going to start drowning puppies!"   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Ben Wallace is a 35-year-old NBA big man who is playing like he's 25. For now. Wallace spoke openly after last season, which ended with him as a non-factor with the Cleveland Cavaliers, about hanging up the sneakers. Injuries had frustrated him, as did his time in Chicago, which never met anyone's expectations---Wallace's or the Bulls'---after he signed his big free agent contract in July 2006. But he wanted to give it one more shot, and the idea of doing that in Detroit intrigued him, as it did the Pistons. So I figured, why not? Now, after seven games, Wallace is being heralded as "the old" Ben Wallace. Not "an old" Ben Wallace. There's a difference. But refer back to the opening paragraph, please. Ben Wallace is 35 years old.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) After burying the Lions for about an hour, Al and I delved into some juicy topics around Detroit sports. Upcoming guests/topics: Nov. 16 Ansar Khan, Red Wings beat writer for MLive.com and Booth Newspapers Nov. 23 U-M/MSU football post-mortem Nov. 30 TBD (likely Pistons-related) Dec. 7: NHL Central roundtable with Bleacher Report writers from Columbus, Chicago, Nashville, and St. Louis Big Al On Tom Brookens: "He was a blue collar player. That's why the fans in Detroit liked him so much. Maybe he was born to be a big league manager." Eno On Tom Brookens: "Tommy's a smart guy. And he's a Tiger. I think he would make a terrific big league manager."   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) They don't make arenas like Olympia Stadium anymore. Hell, they don't make buildings like it anymore. It's among the list of electrifying moments I've been lucky enough to witness in person in Detroit sports history---right up there with Kirk Gibson's homer off Goose Gossage to seal the 1984 World Series, Isiah Thomas's 16 points in 90 seconds against the Knicks in the 1984 playoffs, and the Lions' 45-3 trouncing of the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thanksgiving Day, 1983. The Pistons called Olympia home for a few seasons before Cobo Arena opened on the riverfront in 1960. I feel sorry for those who never got a chance to take in a Red Wings game at Olympia Stadium.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) After Matt, Al and I delved into some juicy topics around Detroit sports. We tipped things off, so to speak, with some concerns about the direction of the Pistons, and we wondered when the mainstream media was going to stop giving team president Joe Dumars free passes. Finally, we saved the worst for last: our lovable Detroit Lions. You'll have to listen for yourself. Big Al On the Pistons: "It's only been three games, but John Kuester isn't impressing me at all. And Charlie Villanueva is playing like a soft Rasheed Wallace." Eno On the Pistons: "The Pistons have no one who can score in the low post. Joe Dumars is flailing; it's like he's grasping at straws. I don't think he even has a plan."   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Not since 2000-01 have we gone into a Pistons campaign with so little to expect. That was the George Irvine year, which was followed by Rick Carlisle and instant success in 2001-02. Not since 2000 have we looked at the Pistons, shrugged, and said, "The playoffs would be nice---but don't count on it!" Or is it? Curry had precious little control or respect last year, and that was highlighted once again when Hamilton, of all people, sided with Iverson in blasting the rookie coach for his lack of honesty with players. New set of Pistons: Gordon (left) and Villanueva But there are 82 "real" games to play, and Wallace isn't a spring chicken. I don't know." That might as well be the Pistons' slogan for this season.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) The Flyers won their last Stanley Cup in 1975. They’ve made it to the Finals five times since then, but not since 1997. The last time the 76ers were world champs of the NBA was in 1983. They booed Mike Schmidt in Philadelphia, which is only like Detroit booing Al Kaline, for cripe’s sakes. The Phillies are messing everything up now. But here they are, two-time National League champions, awaiting either the New York Yankees or the Los Angeles Angels. Philadelphia can’t possibly handle two championships in a row, anyway. Back-to-back is what they do in New York (Yankees), what they do in Detroit (Pistons, Red Wings), what they do in Chicago (Bulls). Heck, they’ve even done it in San Antonio, which is famous for the Alamo, of all things.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) The Detroit Pistons and the NBA took center court, if you will, last night on "The Knee Jerks", my weekly sports gabfest with Big Al from The Wayne Fontes Experience. That's because our guest was A. Sherrod Blakely, who is the Pistons beat writer for MLive.com. Sherrod gave us his insights on the Pistons and the league, from his vantage point as a training camp observer and beat writer. We covered the gamut, from new acquisitions like Ben Gordon, Charlie Villanueva and draft pick Austin Daye, to returning veterans like Rip Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, and oldie but goodie Ben Wallace. Next week's guest: the always colorful Bob Page, retired (in theory) broadcaster of Detroit and New York.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Oh, and BTW, Big Al asked Marvin which of his father's fights was his favorite, and he selected the "Eight Minutes of Fury" bout against Thomas Hearns in 1985, which Hagler Sr. won by TKO in the third round. Sorry, Detroit," Junior said. By the time we got through all that, Michigan-Michigan State got left out in the cold! They were the guest on "The Tonight Show" that Johnny didn't have time for. Next week's guest: A. Sherrod Blakely, Pistons' beat writer for MLive.com. Upcoming guests: Big Al On Cabrera II: "I was 26 years old once, and I did my share of drinking. But I wasn't being paid $120 million and asked to carry a team to the playoffs. The only good thing was that he wasn't driving. But if that's the only good thing you can say..."   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Hamilton went into mourning and soaked himself in grief after the Pistons traded longtime teammate and friend Chauncey Billups to Denver for one Allen Iverson. Then Rip got hurt. Then he didn't want to be the sixth man. Then he openly and brazenly challenged rookie head coach Mike Curry. Rip Hamilton fussed and kicked and screamed and it was hardly what a new coach like Curry needed---heaped on top of the Iverson debacle and the degradation in skills and attitude of Rasheed Wallace. The Pistons could use one, you know. Hamilton (left) and newcomer Ben Gordon pose at Media Day Kwame Brown? Chris Wilcox?   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Next, we moved on to U-M and their win over Indiana. The health of QB Tate Forcier is an issue, and again I "reasoned" Al down from the ledge, assuring him that the Wolverines CAN win without Forcier. A good rant developed in this segment as we veered off into the college basketball programs in this area, especially the sad state of affairs at University of Detroit-Mercy. Upcoming guests: Big Al Eno On U-M football: "If Michigan can't win without Tate Forcier, then they have issues. The kid's been good, but let's not get carried away. I'm more concerned about their defense than the QB situation. Michigan is supposed to be deep at QB. So let's see it."   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) The Detroit Lions have been Kings of the incompletion. Not talking about passing here; talking about overall performance. Two years ago, the Lions were also Kings of the incomplete season. They sprinted out to a 6-2 start and folks who should know better started to talk about the playoffs. Fourteen points also happened to be the Vikes' margin of victory. Fancy that. So that's 19 losses in a row, if you're scoring at home. The last time the Lions won a game was two Christmases and two Pistons coaches ago. Hillary Clinton was the front runner to be the Democratic nominee for president. No one had heard of Susan Boyle, Jon and Kate Gosselin, or Twitter. Everyone still used MySpace instead of Facebook.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) The weekly gabfest I have with Big Al from The Wayne Fontes Experience had another jam-packed episode, and our guest was former Pistons player and coach and member of the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame (MSHOF), Ray Scott. Ray regaled us with stories, from his being drafted by the Pistons in 1961, to his time as the team's coach from 1972-76. And we discussed the state of the current Pistons, and got Ray's take on the rebuilding project that GM Joe Dumars is undertaking. It was a glorious (and fast) 60 minutes with one of the "walking encyclopedias" of NBA history---Mr. Ray Scott. The highlights: Big Al   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) It didn’t take Dumars long to realize that he didn’t have a prayer of keeping Grant Hill in a Pistons uniform. The Pistons got rooked. And this big guy, Ben Wallace? Ben Wallace?! Chucky Atkins?! The fans in Detroit came to worship and adore Ben Wallace, just as they embraced the unwanted Dave Bing 34 years prior. That was the rallying cry as Wallace and, eventually, reinforcements that Dumars assembled in the names of Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton, and Rasheed Wallace joined the fray. The unwanted Wallace and his new cast of characters went all the way to the NBA Finals in 2004 and upset the vaunted Los Angeles Lakers. The next year, the Pistons almost repeated, losing in seven angry games to the San Antonio Spurs.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Isiah would, in time, combine with Vinnie Johnson and Joe Dumars to form perhaps the greatest guard trio to ever play for the same NBA team at the same time. That fantasy says that today's Pistons can recreate that guard trio magic through the talents of Rodney Stuckey, Richard "Rip" Hamilton, and newly-signed Ben Gordon. Ha! Last season, Hamilton was blinded with grief. Hamilton, even though he lost his starting role briefly to Iverson due to the emergence of Stuckey at point guard, nonetheless could have been Mr. Piston with Mr. Big Shot traded away to Denver. Tayshaun Prince? Too quiet. Rasheed Wallace? Too noisy.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) It was a no-holds barred episode of "The Knee Jerks" last night on Blog Talk Radio, as Big Al and I welcomed former Detroit and New York broadcasting legend Bob Page to the program. On his time in Detroit: "It's my hometown, and always will be. I would have liked to have come back and done something in Detroit, but it's a soft market and everyone is afraid of their own shadow." On New York as a sports town: "I will tell you that New York is, by far, the most overrated sports town. By far." Tune in, and after Bob, Al and I talked Tigers, Pistons, and Red Wings, plus named our respective Jerks of the Week (mine wasn't even about sports!).   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Johnson hosted Pistons President Joe Dumars --- Sunday, it was reported --- at Johnson's home in Houston. The two met for nearly four hours, reports say. Johnson is no dummy. Johnson was intrigued by the Pistons, but not enough to budge on his demand for four years. So Dumars flew back to Detroit, still coach-less. Johnson knew that Dumars and the Pistons needed him a whole lot more than Johnson needed the Pistons. Doug Collins was Dumars' No. 1 choice. Collins coached Dumars in Detroit, and has made it known that he's itching to get back into coaching. Dumars wanted Collins; Collins wanted the Pistons. Huh. Doug Collins and Avery Johnson both read that, crystal clear.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Rasheed Wallace won't be contributing to the Pistons' cause anymore. He's gone, off to the hated Boston Celtics. Wallace has been AWOL from the Pistons for too long now. His signing with the Celtics just makes it official, is all. Wallace was particularly missing last season, when the Pistons could have really used his participation in the wake of the Chauncey Billups/Allen Iverson swap and the Rip Hamilton pouting jag and eventual injury. The Celtics, in fact, are a much better team than even the 2004 squad that Wallace joined in Detroit. I, for one, won't miss Rasheed Wallace. Once, he was the fire and brimstone that the Pistons needed to win a title. That was then. In Detroit, he was just missing.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Joe Dumars fires a coach. When will Dumars' noggin join them? Maybe Joe should coach the Pistons himself. Then Rick Carlisle, whose belly was simply bursting with fire, was hired. But Flip Saunders rubbed the players the wrong way, eventually. So Dumars hired Curry after just one season as Saunders' assistant. A 39-43 record. An embarrassing sweep at the hands of the formerly-tormented Cleveland Cavaliers. A complete loss of the players' respect. Rip Hamilton, by the way, disappointed me. Dumars is an anomaly. Speculation is that the still-green Curry was an obstacle to players signing with the Pistons. The Pistons' Engine Has Been Rebuilt!"   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Dumars, the Pistons' president and GM, drew Blackjack in 2004, when his team upset the vaunted Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. A year later, his card total was 22, as his Pistons lost to the San Antonio Spurs in seven hellish games. When Dumars took over in 2000, he was hit immediately with the Grant Hill defection. But Joe D took those lemons and made a big, refreshing pitcher of lemonade, vis a vis the Ben Wallace acquisition. He added Hamilton and Billups in short order, rooking the other teams in both trades. He acquired Rasheed Wallace for a pair of sneakers and a warm bucket of spit in 2004 -- a move that elevated the Pistons to title contenders.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Michael Curry, learning on the job with the Pistons, is the easiest coach in town to imagine packing his belongings and being shown the door. Let 'em cry. There's a little bit of Chuck Daly and Jack McCloskey going on with Babcock and Ken Holland, in terms of coach and GM relationships. Daly and McCloskey, who worked together for nine seasons with the Pistons, didn't always see eye-to-eye. Sometimes their contract negotiations were contentious. Daly even worked a couple of playoffs without a contract at all. Holland, to his end, isn't going anywhere anytime soon. His feet are as firmly planted in the executive offices at Joe Louis Arena as the pillars in the concrete basement, holding up the stands.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) It's all lining up for Bill Laimbeer, and the irony is delicious. Laimbeer, the now ex-coach of the WNBA's Detroit Shock, resigned the other day, saying he wanted to pursue a job in the NBA. Preferrably, roaming the sidelines, shouting instructions, as a head coach someday. Once, Laimbeer and McHale were two of the biggest rivals in the game. There was no secret of the disdain McHale, of the Celtics, had for the Piston Bill Laimbeer. The disdain was displayed with words, with body language, and with the occasional fist. The Pistons and the Celtics provided marvelous theater in the late-1980s. The rivalry grew, steadily but surely, like an expanding foil package of Jiffy Pop popcorn.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) Maybe he can bring a sickle into Joe Louis Arena. The Pistons were set to play the Boston Celtics. It was Game Six of the 1988 Eastern Conference Finals. The Pistons, trying to eliminate their longtime playoff nemesis, had won a stunning Game Five victory in the venerable Boston Garden to move ahead in the series, 3-2. Someone noticed that center Bill Laimbeer was carrying a satchel into the Pontiac Silverdome. The Pistons, in what was at the time the biggest game in franchise history, went out and dispatched the Celtics--finally. They would advance to the NBA Finals for the first time ever. Only tonight, there are two snakes showing up at Joe Louis Arena.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) On Chuck Daly: Big Al: "Chuck Daly, in a way, ruined the NBA…he caused rules changes." Eno: "Daly had all the credentials to be a Pistons coach in 1983, which were none!" Eno: "He was the first NBA coach who really put it out there that this is a player’s league." Big Al: "He wasn’t a great Xs and Os guy, like Larry Brown, but he could manage people." Eno: "I remember when Chuck replaced Bill Laimbeer in the 1990 Finals with William Bedford for a few minutes in Game Three. I thought, ‘Wow, what a message.’" Big Al: "His death hit me hard." On the Red Wings-Ducks: Eno: "Brian Rafalski hasn’t played a minute in this series, and Kris Draper hasn’t played a minute in the playoffs, yet here they are, on the verge of going back to the conference finals."   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Marvin “Bad News” Barnes, Detroit Pistons (1976-78). When the American Basketball Association folded, four remaining teams merged into the NBA. The ABA’s orphaned players were then drafted into the NBA. Joe Don Looney, Detroit Lions (1965). This time, the surname says it all. Bill Laimbeer, Detroit Pistons (1982-93). The Pistons of the late-1980s, early-1990s were “The Bad Boys” and Laimbeer was to them what Leo Gorcey was to The Bowery Boys. On second thought, maybe Bill was more like their Al Capone. Or Charlie Manson. It’s quite possible that there was never an NBA player more despised by opponents than Bill Laimbeer. Each of them punched Bill Laimbeer in the face during an NBA game.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) The last time the Red Wings failed to qualify for the playoffs, we were in the midst of President Bush I and the “Bad Boy” Pistons had only won one championship and Dennis Rodman wasn’t weird yet. Demers made the 21-year-old Yzerman his captain shortly after becoming coach in Detroit In Year Three, the Wings won the division, albeit with a pedestrian .500 record. They lost in the first round of the playoffs. Later it was reported that Demers was on thin ice—no pun intended—ever since an unfortunate incident during the 1988 playoffs, in Edmonton. The now infamous Goose Loonies bar debacle, where several players were seen partying into the wee hours, the night before a game that the team lost, dumping them out of the playoffs.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Big Al: Yes? (I'm never sure how to answer "no?") Joe Dumars' reputation is on the line with the next couple of off-seasons. I really think there are only a few safe bets to return: Rodney Stuckey, Will Bynum and...and...well, that's about it. Everyone else is either already out the door ('Sheed, McDyess, Iverson, Herrmann) or trade bait (Prince and Hamilton, Afflalo, Brown, Maxiell) The Pistons literally rolled over and quit against the superior Cavs, and only Antonio McDyess played like he actually gave a sh*t. I'm ready to blow it up. Blow it up good... But which free agents want to come to Detroit? I think a trade for a big name or two is more likely, as some Pistons do have value (Even if some of them rolled over and played dead in the playoffs. I’m looking...   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) What can you say about the Detroit Pistons and their feeble effort against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs? So the end of the Pistons' "era", as we like to put it, came with nary a whimper. Rasheed Wallace didn't get kicked out of the game. The fans were too apathetic to boo or even jeer. The Pistons' last "big" playoff effort came in last year's Game 2 of the Final Four, when they put forth a gutsy performance in beating the Celtics in Boston. The series looked like it might go their way; the Celtics, remember, were 0-6 on the road in the playoffs. Dumars stayed behind, uncomfortable in participating in such a display.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Big Al: If this team is Joe Dumars's vision, I think he needs glasses. Dumars made his bed with Curry, now he has to sleep in it. There's a lack of chemistry on the roster, and with the coaches. Obviously, the roster is going to change, big time. That's the only thing saving Curry—the hope that he can click with a new core. Plus, the Pistons are still paying Larry Brown and Flip Saunders. I doubt Pistons' ownership wants a third ex-coach on the payroll. Eno: The Red Wings in the playoffs, first round version. Big Al: Let’s start with the man the Pistons cannot stop, LeBron James. Eno: Yeah! Vinnie Johnson? Hmmmm.....not so sure about that one! OK, who's your Jerk of the Week, sire?   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) You call these "the playoffs"? In the NBA, the Pistons appear to be content with playing the part of the Washington Generals to the Cleveland Cavaliers' Harlem Globetrotters. To paraphrase Paul Hogan in Crocodile Dundee, "That's not the playoffs...(withdraws a Red Wings-Predators or Pistons-Sixers video)...now that's the playoffs!" Losing without drama is OK, if you choose not to care about the losers. I'm rather fed up with the Pistons' old guard and their overmatched head coach anyway. Can't wait till the Cavs get done with them, frankly. I just hope no one gets hurt. Or in New Jersey, where the Carolina Hurricanes split the first two games? I'm NOT sorry about that one. The Pistons annoy me. Wake me when the playoffs really get going, OK?   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) lt;p>One by one they filed past the Chicago Bulls’ bench, with nary a glance at the opponents who had vanquished them. A couple of them were even sneering as they strode by the Bulls, who looked at them with a mix of amazement and incredulity.</p><p>The Pistons were losing without honor, without dignity.</p><p>But they were losing with disdain, and that was just fine with them, apparently.</p><p>It was 1991, just past Memorial Day. And the Pistons’ reign was ending.</p><p>Five straight years in the Eastern Conference Finals. Three victories in four appearances in the NBA’s Final Four. Could have been four straight, had it not been for a tragic pass in Boston in 1987.</p><...   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) In 2008, it was the supposed hunger to show those Celtics in Boston that they weren't all that. In 2006 it was Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat, unsatiable until D-Wade could lift the Larry O'Brien Trophy. Before that, LeBron James's Cleveland Cavaliers scared the pants off the Pistons with their brand of hunger in the conference semifinals. This year, we'll finally get to see what the Pistons can do in the playoffs when absolutely nothing is expected of them. This scenario hasn't played itself out since 2000, when the Pistons were big underdogs to the Miami Heat in the first round. It was Grant Hill's last hurrah in Detroit. He played on a torn up ankle, but it wasn't enough. Which is why no one should want to play them in the playoffs.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Actually, AI, it's been "thumbs down" on your Pistons Era There are many culpable folks whose hands are bloody during this God-awful Pistons season -- one that appears to careening out of control at the speed of sound. But I'm sorry -- it comes down to the moment Iverson arrived in Detroit. The Pistons were 4-0, don't forget, when Iverson joined the Pistons. They are 23-28 since. Iverson's arrival changed the way the Pistons played, but that was hardly a surprise. But in addition, it changed the way rookie coach Michael Curry substituted, strategized, and ultimately, his starting lineup and his bench people. And none of it for the good, really.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) The Pistons passed away last night, in Chicago of all places. The Bulls have killed the Pistons twice now -- once in the 1991 East Finals in Auburn Hills, and -- after the Pistons had been resurrected, a la Jason in a "Friday The 13th" movie -- they slayed them again. The Pistons are dead. Long live the new beasts of the East, the Boston Celtics. Maybe the Cleveland Cavaliers, with their King LeBron, can overtake them. We'll see. But the playoffs will not include much drama from the Pistons, who will be the only team in the tournament to show up post-mortem. The Detroit Pistons, Part II: 2001-2009. They'd only begun to live. But, at the same time, they seemed so old, too. Funny, huh?   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Eno: I suppose. I hate to keep bitching about them every week at TKJ, but darn it, it's hard to ignore. Some national scribes are murmuring that the players have lost confidence in rookie coach Curry. Supposedly, some players are convinced that President Joe Dumars is telling Curry who to play. Other media folks hint at trades looming. And the Denver Nuggets are sailing along with their new point guard, Chauncey Billups. How much of this is Curry's fault, how much is it the players', and how much is it Dumars' ? Eno: Well, I don’t know how wise I am, but I think this just proves that Dumars ought to tear the thing apart and start anew. There are a ton of great free agents available in summer 2010. I say just patch a team together until then. Throw the bums out,...   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) On Friday, it was the star-studded Boston Celtics. On Sunday, King LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Now tonight, Wade and his Miami Heat. Another night where the Pistons will be asked to fold their trays into the upright position, strap on their seat belts, and pray that the oxygen mask drops down in time. It's not just the league's brutuses, either. Not just the Houstons and Dallases and Utahs. The likes of the Minnesota (Timber)Wolves and Philadelphia 76ers have all come into the Auburn Hills Arena and spanked the Pistons, and good. But that advantage isn't anywhere to be found, these days, in Auburn Hills. The Pistons are playing .143 basketball at home for their past seven Palace contests.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Again, blame Dumars, the Pistons president. It was Dumars, after all, who brought in Michael Curry, with just one year of coaching under his belt (as an assistant), to coach this odd and sometimes maddening bunch. And it was Dumars who upset Curry's apple cart by trading Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson, barely a week into the season. And it was Dumars who let ball-hawking defender Lindsey Hunter walk away, when on-ball defense has been a problem at times. Dumars has put Curry in a tough situation, made even tougher by the seemingly endless period of getting used to Iverson, and the emergence of Rodney Stuckey as a bonafide starting point guard.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Big Al: Of course! Though I never had the guts to make the Homer Simpson-approved Skittlebrau! Eww. The other breaking news of late is the end of “small ball” at The Palace! Pistons head coach Michael Curry has FINALLY given up on his three guard starting lineup, and will now bring Rip Hamilton off the bench. Personally, I can't believe Curry waited this long. But better late than never. What's your take, Eno-brau? Big Al: Let's begin with the new defensive coordinator of the Michigan Wolverines, a head coach who flamed out spectacularly at Syracuse, Greg Robinson. Eno: They used to say that cigarette smoking will stunt your growth. So will playing for Michael Curry! (unless you're Rodney Stuckey) . Gimme one more, Alness.   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno(noreply@blogger.com) All eyes were on Michael Curry. How would the Pistons' first-year coach handle his first genuine playing time/ego massaging crisis? It was written that Curry's "small ball" lineup wasn't going to fly much longer, now that the whirling dervish shooting guard Rip Hamilton was healthy and ready to return to the lineup, the Pistons having played very well with Rodney Stuckey, Allen Iverson, Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace and Amir Johnson as the starters. Someone would have to come off the bench, it was duly reported, so that the big man Johnson could continue to start. Would that benchwarmer be Hamilton or Iverson? Three-time Pistons All-Star and NBA champion, or future Hall of Famer? You can blame Rodney Stuckey for all this, by the way.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Chauncey Billups? Not so sure. Billups was reduced to nothing more than a journeyman when the Pistons rescued him from Minnesota in 2001. Pistons President Joe Dumars, in an amazing display of clairvoyance, saw in Billups what the menagerie of teams prior to Detroit didn't: a starting point guard who could be entrusted with running a team without fear of being yanked at the first hint of trouble. The Nuggets, by the way, were one of those teams who had a crack at Chauncey as he made his way through the NBA. They needed two tries to get it right with Billups; Dumars only needed one. So why can't that theory apply to players? Chauncey Billups has an opportunity to pave his way to Springfield. We'll see.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Big Al: Bad things, man. Bad things. Well, one thing on my mind is the Pistons. It looks like Michael Curry's fascination with “small ball” and playing four players out of position may be coming to an end. If the Pistons are to do anything this season, they need to play a true power forward at the four spot, move Tayshaun Prince back to the three, and bring either Rip Hamilton or Allen Iverson off the bench as the sixth man. Small ball should be used sparingly, as a change up, not your main offensive strategy. Big Al: I can see Stuckey leading a team to the Finals, as long as they give up on the small ball! You have to give Dumars credit. He essentially turned what was a bust of a draft pick in Darko Milicic into Rodney Stuckey. Say what you will about Joe Dumars; a...   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Oh, what a year it was on the Detroit sports landscape. March On Flip Saunders: On Tom Izzo going to the NBA: April On where Rodney Stuckey will play, with Chauncey Billups in front of him: This isn't 1993, when Thomas was on the verge of calling it quits, and thus trained rookie Lindsey Hunter as his successor, while Dumars did the same with Allan Houston. It's not far-fetched to say that Billups and Hamilton could both stay in Detroit for another five or six years, barring trades or free agency issues. So where does that leave Stuckey? May Detroit in five, that's all. Or six. But Detroit, nonetheless. June On Flip Saunders’ firing: July A face, finally, for the Pistons. On Monday Night Football:   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) If the Pistons make Rodney Stuckey an ex, they’d have some ‘splaining to do. Stuckey is the Pistons’ new point guard, in his second year. He attended school at Eastern Washington University. When you find out where EWU is, drop me a line. I’m dying to know myself. The Pistons drafted Bing from Syracuse, and Thomas from Indiana – two places where you routinely go to find NBA players. But Eastern Washington? Score one for the scouting department. And Rand-McNally. With Billups gone, Michael Curry is trying something new. He’s starting Stuckey at the point, Iverson at shooting guard, and Rip Hamilton at small forward. The NBA jargon for it is “going small.” Curry’s jargon is “We need more scoring – and we need to give Stuckey more minutes.”   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Except that this was news to Prince, according to today's Detroit Free Press. It's a player's league, this NBA, and that sometimes collides, head on, with a new coach's desire to prove that he's no pushover. It's what they said about the deposed Flip Saunders: not enough accountability for the rank and file. Don't be sucked in and try to draw much of a comparison to the Rasheed Wallace trade of 2004. First, the coach was anything but a rookie (Larry Brown), and Wallace filled a chasm on the Pistons roster, rather than trading one like player for another. And Wallace wasn't a point guard handling the ball 80-90% of the time up the floor.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Shortly after becoming the general manager of the Pistons in December 1979, Jack McCloskey realized the enormity of his task. The team was awful. Its two stars -- Bob Lanier and Bob McAdoo -- didn't want to be there. Lanier's trade request was the most public, and the most poignant, for Big Bob had been a Piston his whole career, which was in its tenth year. Ex-coach Dick Vitale stripped the Pistons bare of draft picks, thanks to bad trades -- one of which was McAdoo. The team was lucky to win one of every four games. So McCloskey picked up the phone and called his old friend and boss, Lakers GM Jerry West. West ran the outrageous offer past Lakers ownership, but it was rejected. Keep Calvin and Hanson, and find 51 other players, and go from there.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) The Pistons lost in the 2005 Finals to the San Antonio Spurs, who featured superstar Timmy Duncan. They lost in the 2006 conference finals to the Miami Heat, who featured superstar Dwyane Wade. They lost in the 2007 conference finals to the Cleveland Cavaliers, who featured superstar LeBron James. And they lost in the 2008 conference finals to the Boston Celtics, who featured superstars Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. But Chauncey Billups wasn't the face of the Pistons, either. He was merely one of the starting five -- albeit one of the very best starting fives in the league. But he was no more the face than was the bellicose Rasheed Wallace, or the whirling dervish Rip Hamilton, or the quiet beanpole Tayshaun Prince. Together, they were A face. Bu...   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) The man in question is new Pistons coach Michael Curry. And we've gotten plenty used to placing the word "new" before "Pistons coach" around these parts. Certainly since Joe Dumars was handed the keys to the executive washroom some eight years ago. George Irvine was new once, even though he really wasn't. Rick Carlisle was new, for the most part. Larry Brown was old-as-the-hills/new, but new nonetheless. Flip Saunders was oldish/new, but also bottom-line new. Michael Curry is just plain new. And the youngest of the lot upon assuming the reins. But the market for Dumars's wares proved shockingly dry. So instead, Dumars canned the coach (again) and signed one free agent of note: former no. 1 overall pick Kwame Brown.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Jack McCloskey was a grizzled former college basketball coach and a vagabond NBA head coach and assistant, minding his own business on the bench of the Indiana Pacers, helping his old friend Slick Leonard, when Vitale approached him. Dickie V told McCloskey that Davidson was looking for a “basketball man” to run his operation in Detroit. Vitale and McCloskey knew each other from their time spent coaching along the Atlantic Coast – McCloskey at Penn and Vitale in high school in New Jersey. But the Pacers came around, and Jack McCloskey took over the woeful Pistons in December, 1979. Vitale quit the University of Detroit in 1977 because of ulcers. And his early days with the Pistons were pock-marked with stomach ailments, too.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) But reading McFarlin's anointing of Allen made me wonder when someone is going to do the same for Greg Kelser. So I guess I will. Kelser's Pistons career started auspiciously, if only because of the clown who drafted him. The Pistons have just made a trade!," Dickie declared to the curious and perplexed inside the Dome. Then Vitale told of how he had bamboozled the Milwaukee Bucks into trading draft positions so the Pistons could select Kelser, from MSU. Special K was Kelser's nickname at State. So Dickie thought he was a laugh riot, waving the box of cereal as he announced the trade and, in his mind, how smart he was.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Chauncey Billups, one-time NBA journeyman. Cashiered by the Celtics, then the Raptors, then the Nuggets, then the Timberwolves. Only one of those teams -- the Celtics (and only recently) -- have won anything of note after Billups' banishment. Meanwhile, with the Pistons, Billups has appeared in six straight conference finals, two NBA Finals, and won a championship. Not bad for a four-time loser. Tayshaun Prince, from the University of Kentucky. They play some good basketball down there, in case you didn't know. But when Joe Dumars drafted Prince in 2002, there were yawns. Except from the Pistons themselves. In his rookie season, Prince rarely got off the bench. The yawners kept yawning. Until the 2003 playoffs, when Prince became coach Rick C...   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) The new coach of the Detroit Pistons couldn’t score 20 points as a player unless you gave him a week to do it. I like him already. Michael Curry was hired by the Pistons last week, just days after Flip Saunders was given the ziggy by GM Joe Dumars. He’s a recently-retired player, and was never a star – not even close. His claim to fame was playing tough defense and surviving ten-day contracts and being a cerebral player who was the president of the NBA Players Association. Red Auerbach, who chomped on cigars almost as vigorously as he chomped on winning in coaching the Boston Celtics through their dynasty years of the 1950s and 1960s. Red was no hoops star as a player, yet he made so many of them Hall of Famers as a coach.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) The Pistons lost a coin toss in 1966, a toss that would have given them the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft -- a pick they would have used on Russell, the talented gem from the University of Michigan. But the coin didn't come up right, so the New York Knicks got Russell, and the Pistons were left with Bing, the smooth guard from Syracuse. The Pistons felt slugged in the gut. They dreamed of box office success, if nothing else, with Russell playing for them. One night at Cobo Arena, Russell still in college, the few thousand fans at that evening's Pistons game rose to their feet and went crazy as they saw the Michigan senior walking to a seat, a guest of the Pistons for the night. EVERYONE drooled at the thought of Cazzie Russell as a Piston.   [read the full post]

By noreply@blogger.com (Greg Eno) Flip Saunders never truly got entrenched in Detroit. He was the Pistons coach for three seasons, but two things about that: 1) GM Joe Dumars has a fetish for canning coaches after a couple years or so, and 2) you never got the feeling that Saunders was securing his place, about to defy the odds created by item #1 in this paragraph. He won a ton of games -- 176 of them in three years -- but couldn't push the Pistons past the NBA's Final Four. From there, it was dicey, as far as overall belief and trust in Flip Saunders in Detroit. While I hate to give the sports talk radio jabbermouths too much credit, they and their often misguided callers seemed to unite under one common belief: the Pistons win in the regular season despite of Saunders, but will never get...   [read the full post]

By Greg Eno Stuckey is special, folks. I think we're seeing a star NBA guard blossoming before our very eyes. And the Pistons could do a lot worse than to bring someone of his caliber off the bench, or start in case of injury or rest. Yet it might not happen for him here, only because of the quality of the dudes he's playing behind. Neither Billups nor Hamilton is close to retirement. This isn't 1993, when Thomas was on the verge of calling it quits, and thus trained rookie Lindsey Hunter as his successor, while Dumars did the same with Allan Houston. It's not far-fetched to say that Billups and Hamilton could both stay in Detroit for another five or six years, barring trades or free agency issues.   [read the full post]