Pistons' wasted season comes to an ugly conclusion

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If you're a Pistons fan and you thought the end of the past four seasons since the 2004 championship were frustrating, you were spoiled.

Badly.

Because the end of this Pistons campaign had to be the epitome of frustrating for anyone associated with the franchise. Detroit had it string of six straight Eastern Conference finals appearances snapped in ugly fashion, getting swept by the Cavaliers in a completely one-sided series.

All the games were decided by double figures. None of them, really, were ever in doubt. Even when the Pistons were in a game, it was usually because likely NBA MVP LeBron James was on Cleveland's bench getting a nice, long rest before coming back in to finish the job.

Detroit was the first team eliminated from the playoffs, which technically makes sense. After all, it had the worst regular-season record of the 16 teams and was playing against the team with the league's best mark.

If anything, the nine-day series -- which probably could have taken place in about six days and saved everyone a few wasted ones -- proved that as long as the 82-game regular season is, it shouldn't be taken for granted.

Throughout the season, we kept hearing the Pistons say that they didn't think they were far from becoming a good team, from developing a strong chemistry. I guess talk is cheap (I think I've heard that before).

What actually happened -- what actually matters -- is that the group of players led by rookie coach Michael Curry and second-year point guard Rodney Stuckey, who is more of a hybrid, never clicked. Never. Sure, there were a couple minor winning streaks, but no groove was ever found.

And that's what is needed to be a good playoff team. That's what is needed in playoff games, when things aren't necessarily going well, to turn momentum in your favor.

These Pistons never found that.

That's what has to be frustrating to everybody associated with the team.

And they underachived, plain and simple.

It's easy to point to the trade of Chauncey Billups to the Denver Nuggets for Allen Iverson as the main reason the Pistons fell apart, and that certainly hurt the team -- especially considering Iverson never fit in the rotation and then was lost for the season to a purported back injury.

But even sans Billups, this team should have been better than the eighth seed in the East. This team should have been a middle seed that at least got close to making the second round.

Consider the players on the Pistons who were a part of many, if not all, of those conference finals runs -- Richard Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince and Antonio McDyess in the starting lineup.

Those four, plus Stuckey and an improved bench, should have been enough for the Pistons.

But Curry struggled mightily to develop the team sans Billups, and the veterans simply didn't play up to their capabilities.

Hamilton had a hot streak after Iverson went out, but he didn't maintain it down the stretch. And Wallace and Prince simply often didn't show up to do what they were supposed to.

Curry deserves a lot of blame, but the Pistons veterans should have known what they had to do to make the team successful. Heck, they're almost as old as Curry.

What it boils down to is a lost season, a season that needs to be forgotten by the organization as quickly as possible and moved on from.

And now, really, it is clear that changes are needed.

That was the rhetoric after each of the last couple years ended in the conference finals, and that talk probably helped fuel the Billups-Iverson deal. And look how that worked out.

This season proved that when you have something pretty good -- not perfect, but very solid -- you need to really think before breaking off a big piece of it.

Now Joe Dumars needs to break off some more pieces -- mainly Wallace and Iverson -- and try to build up a consistent winner again. It's almost akin to the job he originally inherited.

Is Prince unmovable? I wouldn't think so. What about Stuckey? Can he run the point for an NBA championship team? That's another question to consider.

A long, busy offseason looms for Dumars and his aides.

And it must be welcoming, considering the way this lost season went.

Pistons rediscover winning formula minus the 'Answer'

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These are the Detroit Pistons we know, the group of players we'd grown accustomed to watching win 50-plus games a season.

Yeah, Chauncey Billups made sure to play one of his best games on Tuesday in his return to The Palace of Auburn Hills as a Denver Nugget — a "You shouldn't have let me go" performance.

But his team lost the game, 100-95. And it was Detroit's third straight victory, getting it back to above .500 at 30-29.

In the grand scheme of the past several years, of successful regular seasons piled on top of each other, three straight wins should be nothing to this franchise.

But not these three. By beating Orlando and Boston on the road and the Nuggets at home, the Pistons proved that they're still a team to be reckoned with in the Eastern Conference.

As long as they're aligned right, that is.

Because what the trio of W's has made crystal clear, more than anything else, is that Detroit is at its best not like, well, it was previously constructed (if that makes any sense).

During the franchise's darkest days since the early '90s, which culminated last week with an eighth consecutive loss, rookie head coach Michael Curry made the grand error of starting future Hall-of-Famer Allen Iverson.

Seems like a smart move, right? Putting the four-time NBA scoring champion in the lineup couldn't hurt, right?

Very, very wrong.

Because, for one, that meant sending Richard "Rip" Hamilton to the bench for the first time, probably, since he was a skinny kid hoopin' in Coatesville, Pa.

On the surface, Curry's move is mildly understandable. Iverson is, after all, the more explosive player, the guy who can do more things. To simplify, the better overall player.

But what Curry didn't realize in making the move is what the effect on the team's synergy would be. And that, folks, was his big mistake.

As good as Iverson is, he doesn't fit with the Pistons' other starters. Too often in games, Iverson would be on the perimeter dribbling the ball through his legs 1,097 times while the other four guys watched. There'd be no on-court chemistry, a lack of movement and team basketball.

In L.A. that might work, but not in Detroit. The Pistons have always won with team basketball.

Which brings me back to Hamilton, who knows the tendencies of starters Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess like he knows the roads of Coatesville. They've been winning, after all, for several seasons together.

Rip is not as familiar with the bench players he often took the court with during his stint as a bench player — youngsters like Arron Afflalo and Amir Johnson.

So what the move did was weaken the Pistons' starting lineup and their bench rotation.

The losses followed.

And they might have saved a going-nowhere-fast season.

Last week, with the L's mounting — and some critics already calling for Curry's ouster — Iverson made the coach's decision easy by hurting his back in Detroit's 90-87 loss at New Orleans.

And, just like that, Hamilton was back where he belonged.

Of course, Curry hasn't actually done anything yet, because Iverson is still hurting. But it's clear that when he returns, he'll be coming off the bench. Rip is back in the starting lineup for good.

And if A.I. accepts his role, he has a chance to become the most dynamic sixth man in the league. No other team has any player close to Iverson's caliber starting games sitting.

That's what could make Detroit dangerous. It's already proven during this three-game stretch how good it can be sans Iverson. It could cause some serious havoc if Iverson embraces running with the second-tier guys, acting as their leader.

No, I don't see the Pistons getting by both Cleveland and Boston to the Finals. But compared to the destination I had them pegged for just a week ago, their prospects are now rosy.

Iverson has said repeatedly the past few years that all he's missing is an NBA championship. He also knows that he'll be gone after this season, dumped into the free agency market when teams are stuffing their pockets for 2010.

So there is plenty of incentive for him, just like Stephon Marbury, to make the most of his new niche on a team capable of doing some pretty big things.

And even if the end of the season is another disappointing playoff exit, these Pistons should be able to look forward and feel confident with the future's pillars — Hamilton, Prince and point guard Rodney Stuckey — in the starting five and playing well together.

Trading Billups still might have been a mistake. The past week hasn't completely erased the trade's effect.

But it's shown that maybe, just maybe, these Pistons — present and future — will by successful without their former Mr. Big Shot.

Now is the time for Curry to tinker

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Relax, Pistons fans. Yes, your team isn't exactly putting together winning streaks. Yes, the 11-6 record isn't up to the standard of the past six seasons. And yes, those stinking Cleveland Cavaliers and their New York-loving superstar are up three and a half games on your team in the Central Division...

Relax. Because every fact from the above paragraph has almost no meaning.

Here's what does matter: The Pistons will be back in the playoffs come springtime. I'd bet this nice laptop plus my car on that.

Here's what else is important: First-year coach Michael Curry knows what he's doing. He's performing admirably at focusing on the regular season, but simultaneously keeping his eyes on the only objective that really matters for this recently underachieving franchise: making it back to the NBA Finals and winning a championship.

Curry knew what he was getting into when he accepted Joe Dumars' blessing. A 60-22 regular season might be nice for a day, but coupled with another exit from the Eastern Conference finals, it would mean nothing and impress no one. The same can be said of winning another division title or even finishing with the conference's and/or league's best record.

Who cares?

Curry knows all this, and that's why — even here in early December, when the playoffs seem decades away — he is thinking ahead with each game. He won't admit that, but he's simply doing his job.

And that entails establishing a rotation of players he can trust come mid-April. Not just five starters and maybe a sixth man, but a larger group of players who have all played substantially and will have the ability to play big minutes — if needed — when the games count most.

The plebe coach showed off his willingness to play anyone in a loss the other night to the Portland Trail Blazers. When a lineup that included reserves Amir Johnson, Rodney Stuckey and Arron Afflalo made a run to give the Pistons a brief fourth-quarter lead, Curry stuck with his backups and left starting small forward Tayshaun Prince on the bench the entire final quarter.

Detroit went on to lose, and Prince didn't understand why he hadn't been reinserted, but Curry backed up his decision by saying Prince hadn't played well. And the numbers verify his impact on the game: Detroit was outscored by 23 points while he was on the floor.

This doesn't mean, of course, that Prince is less talented than Johnson or couldn't have helped lead Detroit to victory. But Curry went with the players who had gotten their team back in the game. And despite the loss, the trio had to gain confidence from knowing that their coach believed in them to make plays during crunch time. (And, again, the outcomes at this point don't matter so much.)

The move to go with his reserves wasn't isolated, either — although I wouldn't expect starters to sit out too many more entire fourth quarters of close games. Curry said earlier in the week that he expects to continue to cut his starters' playing time at least a little bit. This is a smart move in two respects.

One, it keeps the older starting lineup more fresh. Allen Iverson said recently that he can't find his rhythm playing fewer minutes than he's averaged during his career. Well, the 33-year-old has 65 games to figure out how to find it. That's the benefit of the Pistons' trade for the superstar happening so early in the season.

Rasheed Wallace and Richard Hamilton need to be ready to play their best basketball, not to mention be healthy as can be, come playoff time. It's no secret that the Pistons go as Wallace goes. If he's playing well and finds the range from behind the 3-point arc, Detroit is a very dangerous team.

The Pistons are even more potent when they're getting consistent production from their bench. As we saw in last year's playoffs, Stuckey can play with and against the top dogs and isn't afraid of big-time situations. With the benefit of more minutes under his belt, he'll only become better. Afflalo has shown he can not only lock down on defense, but he can shoot the ball too. He just needs the minutes in real-game situations to become more confident in that part of his game.

Detroit will surely benefit from the return of Antonio McDyess — and his mid-range shooting ability — when he returns off waivers probably next week, but it would be smart to bring him off the bench. By inserting him into the lineup instead of current starter Kwame Brown, Curry would effectively have his five best offensive players beginning the game on the court.

I don't like it. At least one forward and one guard who can score need to be stashed on the bench so that when games start out poorly for the starting five, they can be inserted to provide a "spark," an offensive shot to the arm. When McDyess returns, he'll be Detroit's lone reliable scorer at the forward position off the pine (if, indeed, that's where he begins games).

Of course, there remain 65 games for Johnson, Brown and Jason Maxiell to get valuable experience and gain confidence for the postseason. And with the way Curry's coaching this team, I expect to see some positive gains from them. If nothing else, he'll determine who he can trust in tight spots.

So, relax, Pistons fans. A loss in December means close to nothing.

Unless, of course, it puts the Lions closer to 0-16.

Pistons in better position than a year ago

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The Eastern Conference finals are not kind to the Detroit Pistons.

Sure, there was the 2004 championship season when the Prince blocked Reggie's shot.

And, yes, a year later, they beat Miami in a thrilling seven-game series. But that postseason run ultimately ended with a loss, so nobody remembers them winning Game 7 on the road against Shaq and D-Wade.

No, when someone mentions "Eastern Conference Finals" and "Detroit Pistons" in the same sentence, the thought process begins with 2007, which, of course, is when LeBron James and a rag-tag bunch of Cavaliers won a series they had no business claiming.

And then there was 2006, when the Pistons simply refused to play with a sense of urgency despite the fact that they were taking on a Miami squad hungry for revenge.

And if you want, you can go back to 2003, when missed opportunities doomed the Pistons on their homecourt against the overachieving Nets

Yep, after close-gaming it by Orlando in five quick ones, the Pistons are back in the ECF for the sixth consecutive season.

Just think about that for a second, because it deserves recognition. That's right about up there with the Braves' 11 straight division titles and Duke's six Final Fours in seven seasons.

Congratulations, Pistons.

But anyone who has followed these Pistons since Rasheed Wallace was acquired mid-season in 2004 knows that one title is nothing; they should have two or three.

And, believe it or not, if Flip Saunders can't navigate his mix of veterans and rookies through to the Finals this time around, he may become temporarily jobless.

However, Saunders has reason to be optimistic, because the 2007-08 Pistons are in much better shape than they were at this time a year ago. The evidence was on display in the final two wins over Orlando.

Last season, I wouldn't have believed that Detroit could win two consecutive playoff games -- including one on the road -- without its soft-spoken leader Chauncey Billups. And I probably would have been right. That's what happens when you're too reliant on your starters.

That isn't the case this season, though, as Rodney Stuckey proved Tuesday night. The Eastern Washington rookie is completely fearless, as he demonstrated with a makeshift bank shot over the Godzilla named Dwight Howard.

"Stuck," as his teammates fondly refer to him, played a great all-around floor game, eating up 33 minutes, scoring 15 points, dishing out six assists and -- get this -- not turning the ball over once. In fact, the Pistons set a playoff record with a mere three miscues.

How else can you make up for miserable 36.1 percent shooting?

Yes, Detroit will need Billups in the next round, especially if Boston is the opponent. A series against the powerful Celtics -- at least when they're home -- sans Billups would likely spell doom for Detroit. But barring a setback, Billups will play, considering the amount of time off the Pistons now get (at least four days).

So Billups' absence was a huge blessing for the Pistons.

But Stuckey isn't the only nonstarter who is much improved from a year ago and has the trust of Flip. Jason Maxiell is now a key rotation player, whether he starts or not, and would rough up Kevin Garnett as much as he could in a Pistons-Celtics matchup. And if Maxiell starts, there is no Piston who wants a title more than Antonio McDyess.

Amid all the talk the past two years of the Pistons taking opponents lightly, McDyess has never been mentioned. That's because with each missed opportunity, his knees age a year and his opportunity wanes. Wallace, Billups and Richard Hamilton can admire their '04 rings, but McDyess arrived a year late.

Now, he's on his last legs.

Those legs, however, were huge during the fourth quarter of Detroit's Game 5 victory. McDyess was all over the court, grabbing 11 rebounds -- including six offensive boards -- and knocking down his patented midrange jumpers to the tune of 17points.

Whether he's in the starting lineup -- as was the case Tuesday -- or coming off the bench, McDyess is a valuable asset for the Pistons, a player Saunders won't forget about in the ultimate round to come.

Finally, the Pistons' bench can't be discussed without mentioning the revered 37-year-old Lindsey Hunter. He may be ancient, but he still showed that he can be a spark plug in Game 3. He's another guy whom Saunders, if he's smart, will use in the ECF -- Hunter's fitness level be damned.

But besides the team's personnel, there's another reason to think the Pistons will be prepared for the challenge the next round presents: the two potential opponents.

The modern-day Pistons' biggest problems have always been mental. Last season, they basically laughed off each loss to Cleveland, shrugging them off as if they were pieces of lint on their shoulders -- until the season had gone splat.

This year, they'd take the Cavs seriously for an obvious reason.

And there's no way Saunders, for the sake of his job, would allow James to go off like he did in the pivotal Game 5 a year ago. Double-team him, pull Bad Boy Rick Mahorn off press row ... do anything necessary. That's what would happen.

Then there's Boston, the team with the best regular-season record, the team with homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs. Is there any scenario in which the Pistons could take the Celtics lightly, could not be focused -- and absolutely ready to go -- for a possible memorable series?

No, not even 'Sheed would be joking around with Paul Pierce n' his boys in green after timeouts.

This, of course, doesn't guarantee that the Pistons will come out and play spectacular basketball. They'll probably have another bad shooting game like Tuesday's.

But with the right attitude and a full complement of starters and capable bench players, these Pistons appear well-equipped to get back to the Finals finally.

And maybe get McDyess that slippery championship ring.

Pistons remain the beasts of the East

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In the early stages of Wednesday's Eastern Conference showdown between 20-2 Boston and 17-7 Detroit, the young point guard was playing better.

He was getting to the basket at will. He was spotting up for mid-range jumpers. He was playing turnover-free basketball, while the veteran — with his new five-year contract — carelessly lost the ball on the other end.

Yes, Boston's Rajon Rondo was the star of the first quarter, helping the Celtics establish a lead they would hold for most of the night.

But the Pistons rarely get blown out, especially in highly-hyped, national-televised games. And such was the case Wednesday.

First, there was 37-year-old point guard Lindsey Hunter harassing Eddie House all the way down the court, creating two turnovers and knocking down a guarded 3 to help Detroit take the lead.

And, finally, there was that veteran PG, the man called "Mr. Big Shot" — a moniker that fit very nicely on this night. After Boston tied the game with two 3-pointers in the final minute, there was Billups, with just a second to get off his shot, giving a most convincing head fake...

And poor Tony Allen. He had no chance. Caught in the air, he fouled Billups at the worst time: with 0.1 left on the clock. Billups is a 91 percent free-throw shooter.

I don't usually pencil in games — especially ones that are tied. But when Billups stepped to the line, I said to my dad — who was on the phone watching from Michigan — "That's the ballgame."

And two free throws later, the Pistons (18-7) remained the Beasts of the East.

Not that any game in December really matters. We all know nothing is proved until May and June. That's why Phoenix could sweep San Antonio during the regular season and I'd still bet my two sofas on the Spurs come the playoffs.

But with both teams playing close to full strength — the Pistons were without rookie guard Rodney Stuckey, who has missed the entire season so far — a lot can be gleaned from the Pistons' 87-85 win.

— These teams, easily the East's best two squads, will be very competitive the rest of the year and into the playoffs. There are too many big-time players on both teams.

— The Pistons should have posted Billups on Rondo more early and often. Likely because of this advantage, Boston coach Doc Rivers pulled Rondo in the final two minutes for House, who also has 3-point range, unlike Rondo, and hit a big one as part of Boston's comeback.

— Detroit was saved by the 3-point shot, making 9-of-20 from downtown. Boston was the more physical team, outrebounding Detroit 37-34 and getting to the basket more often. The Pistons won't always shoot that well from 3-point range.

— The Pistons were able to slow down Kevin Garnett when they put the physical, bulky Jason Maxiell on him. Although Garnett scored a team-high 26 points, he had just five in the fourth, all of which he had to earn from the free-throw line.

— Another reason Detroit was able to hold the Celtics to just 33 second-half points was Tayshaun Prince's defense of Paul Pierce. While Prince was awful offensively (1-of-10, 2 points), he held Boston's leading scorer to 11 points on 5-for-16 shooting. With Prince on Pierce, Maxiell coming in to bang with Garnett, and Richard Hamilton draped over Ray Allen, Detroit can at least contain the Big Three — although Allen was near unstoppable, hitting 9-of-13 contested shots for 24 points.

— Rondo (14 points, 7 assists, 2 turnovers) was very efficient, but as seen by Rivers' late substitution, the coach still doesn't have complete confidence in the second-year player's ability to make the right decisions at the end of a game. But overall, Rondo was impressive.

So there you have it. Before the game, the Celtics admitted that Detroit is still the team to beat in the East, and Wednesday's result doesn't change that.

When the Pistons are on their game and aren't letting their yapping at the referees — they complain about every stinkin' call — get in the way of their execution, they are hard to beat. They're a great road team that isn't flustered by noisy crowds and fourth-quarter deficits.

And, most importantly, they have Mr. Big Shot. Boston doesn't.

In the course of a game, the Big Three might be more effective than Billups. But if he and his teammates can stay in a game until the end, it is worth betting on Billups hitting the winning shot or drawing the crucial foul in the final seconds.

Wednesday's game was unpredictable for the first 47:59. What occurred in the final second, however, wasn't surprising at all. Mr. Big Shot to the rescue.