El Wade

I am SO glad I have league pass. The Miami Chicago game last night was bananas. I was attempting to flip between that game, the Hawks-Hornets, and Pistons-Magic. The Hawks rather easily beat the Hornets, I mean they just looked pretty well in control for a lot of the game. The Pistons-Magic game was close and came down to the wire, with Rip banging a (of course) mid range J to basically seal the win. Onto the game of the night (and probably month) Chicago-Miami in an instant classic double OT thriller. Miami was wearing their "Latin night" jerseys, they read "EL HEAT", the announcers thought it would be a good idea to remind us that their are a lot of Latins in South Beach..... yeah, thanks for that, its almost as original as saying "Jamario moon with a half Moon jam" every time he gets a dunk. I was watching the game just to see Wade, and would have been happy had Wade crushed one on Brad Miller or Aaron Gray (who got no tick) but Wade had other ideas. He stuck a three in John Salmons eye (Salmons did a TERRIBLE job on D letting Wade set his feet and rise) at the end of regulation to knot the score at 104 forcing OT. Props to Ben Gordon though, dude was no slouch, he single handily kept the Bulls in the game nailing 8 threes (good for 43 points), Wade didn't score much in the first OT, he was busy dishing to his teammates. He was a man possessed in the second OT though, and on the final play of the game with the score tied at 127 and Bulls ball, Wade ripped Salmons (who did manage to drop 29 points) at the foul line, sprinted down court and threw up a running three at the buzzer..... all net game over Heat 130 Bulls 127. Wade is one of my "I'm watching all his teams games this year because hes so entertaining by himself" guys. He was silly yesterday doing literally everything including dropping sick oops to Jamario Moon, and of course blocking shots. His final line: 15-21 shooting for 48 points (5-6 from deep) 12 dimes, 6 boards, 4 steals and 3 blocks! According to ESPN's daily dime there has only been one other such line with as many points and assists with that high (71.4%) a shooting percentage, guess who? Yeah Wilt, on March 18th, 1968 had 53 points (on 24-29 shooting which is 82.8%) 14 dimes and 32 bounds!! As the daily dime said Good company Dwyane. Think hes in the MVP conversation now?

Drama in Orlando

So the Pistons ended their 8 game losing streak last night in Orlando of all places (Magic are 22-7 at home). I just had to comment about the game that the Pistons won without Allen Iverson (who I had been campaigning as a prime candidate to join the bench brigade). Thanks to Rip Hamilton's 31 points, dime put it best "Back in the starting lineup and playing like he just found out he’s not the father, Rip Hamilton was unstoppable". Stuckey also had his game in WEEKS with 22 points and 4 boards, further supporting my argument that he can't get his groove on when Iverson plays because he demands the ball so much. I still think Iverson is a first ballot hall of famer and all, but I just don't think that I want him on my team... EVER! I mean the Pistons have been playing completley uninspired basketball (up until they NO on Wednesday-- they played their hearts out) and I think it goes back to resenting Iverson. They resent him for not being Chauncey Billups, and they resent him for not coming off the bench instead of Rip. I think Iverson -- and listen closely Curry-- NEEDS TO GO TO THE BENCH!!!!!!!!

Heres hoping they get back to ruthlessly smoking the competition and (at least) dominating at home.

An Open Letter to All Pistons Fans

Dear Pistons Fans,
Where are all of you going? Why does it seem like every day, there are less and less of you? Can you help me understand what is going on? I remember a time when no matter where I was, if there was a Pistons game on I was surrounded by you and you just HAD to put the game on and crowd around the tv to fulfill your “Need For Sheed”, as he pranced around the court complaining about every last foul call (Ball Don’t Lie!), always seemingly one word away from a tech. Or you just HAD to watch as Big Ben made the opposing team “Fear The ‘Fro”, as someone (probably Mason) played the tolling of a bell over the loudspeaker. Some of you would inch with white knuckles to the edge of your couches, wondering if Mr. Big Shot “Bi-Bi-Bi-Billups” would hit the go-ahead 3 pointer as time expired. Others just wanted to see The Masked Man, The Pride of Coatesville P-A, Rip City, “Rip HAM-IL-TON” run relentlessly around the court so you could proclaim after the game that “He is the best conditioned athlete in the NBA”, and dare anyone to say different. Where have you gone off to? Still, there were some of you who were fans of The Prince of The Palace, who will surely never forget what he did to Reggie Miller in the closing seconds of Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals in 2004. What happened to wanting to see the passion that “Miggidy Miggidy Miggidy Miggidy Miggidy Mc-Dyess” played with after he came to get a ring for himself? Where are you spending your time now when the Pistons games are being shown on FSN? And what about those of you that hated to see Memo leave in a Turkish Tornado for Utah? What happened to being one of many who were quick to call Lindsey Hunter one of the best on-ball defenders in the game? Do any of you remember crossing your fingers and hoping that C-Webb would return to All-Star form after he came home to finish his career? Or those of you who didn’t mind having Smush Parker and Flip Murray on the team, if only so you could yell their first name after they scored during garbage time, where have you gone? What happened to having faith in Elden Campbell, Derrick Coleman, and Carlos’ Delfino and Arroyo? Can any of you tell me where you are hiding your Darko jerseys, because I know you still have them lying around the house somewhere? What happened to staying up to watch a 10:30 game against the Clippers so you could see Corliss “Big Nasty” Williamson, Chucky Atkins, Mike James (in a Mike Jones voice), Darvin Ham, and Bob Sura get extended playing time because your team was blowing said Clippers out? What happened to you guys? Do you still remember being upset about seeing Cliff Robinson, Jon Barry, Michael Curry, and Rick Carlisle go, but having faith that Larry Brown would make everything ok? What happened to the Pistons fans that I used to know? What happened to not caring about how good your tickets were to a home game because you knew you would still feel the heat from the flames that exploded atop the baskets before game time? Where are you? Can any of you hear me? Are things so bad now that you choose not to attend games or even watch your team anymore? Should I use the new cliché and assume that it is because of the economy that the 5 season/259 game sellout streak at the Palace of Auburn Hills has ended? For some reason, I don’t think that is why….

I am writing this letter for 2 reasons. The first reason is obvious (see above). I want to know what is going on. At least give me a few valid excuses. Humor me. The second reason is to answer once and for all why I am not a Pistons fan myself. As your team has slipped below .500 for the first time this late in a season since 2000-2001 (27-28), I have noticed that the buzz is gone. I have noticed that the casual fan no longer cares (or even knows for that matter) what happens to the Pistons on any given night. I don’t see the white and blue jerseys or the New Era fitteds being worn anymore. I didn’t see them before your team was a contender, and I’m not seeing them now. *Insert Generic Bandwagon Rant Here* I don’t want to rub anyone the wrong way with this, because I know there are still a lot of you die hards out there that are just like me. And I’m cool with you. Forget that you even read this. Hopefully I brought back some good memories for you. This letter is for the aforementioned casual fan. The aforementioned casual fan that had the nerve to question me about why I was a Knicks fan, mumble something about how the Pistons play team basketball, and proceed to tell me that the Knicks suck (don’t look now, but they are only 3.5 games behind your Pistons, and they are climbing). I never miss a Knicks game my friends. I haven’t missed many during your teams incredible run over the past 6 or so years (don’t you dare use the word “dynasty”). And my team has been nothing spectacular to watch during this time either. That is why it sickens me that so many of you have taken for granted the fact that you had a contender to take the floor and root for night in and night out. I have been waiting for this moment for a long, long, long time, and it seems that this moment is almost here. As the window has shut and your team sinks into mediocrity, the casual fans that drove me to hate the Pistons are disappearing like George W. I was around before you, and I am here after you, wondering where you are. Call me a cockroach. I’m not asking for any sympathy, because I can take solace in the fact that I am a true NBA fan. What I am asking you to do, if you can hear me, is to look in the mirror and ask yourself if you can do the same. It’s not too late. The Pistons play Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets tonight at 8:00 on Fox Sports +. That’s Comcast channel 901 for all you Pistons lovers. If you can even hear me. Whether you tune in or not, I’ll be watching with white knuckles as my Knicks take on the Magic, so think twice next time before you question my fanhood….

With Sincerity,
BQ

Six Straight

This post is a tribute to the Detroit Pistons.
It is a tribute to the consistent excellent team basketball they have displayed over the past seven seasons. Over those seasons the Pistons averaged 55 wins a season which is a .67 win percentage. They won at least 50 games 7 years in a row, and reached six straight eastern conference finals, the best of these seasons in 2003-04 when they won a 'chip and the following season when they lost the NBA finals to the Spurs in 7 games. They managed to win 6 central division titles in that time as well. Starting January 19th 2004 verses the Spurs the Pistons sold out every game (including the playoffs) (259 straight sellouts) until February 4th of this year when they failed to sellout against the Heat. They have lead the league in attendance every season since 2002-03 except 2006-07 when they were second to Chicago, and they are still on pace to lead the league in it again this season. This culminated with 22,076 fans per game in 05-06 through 07-08 which is 905,116 fans per season not including playoffs. Over these three seasons the Pistons played an average of 17 games in the playoffs, which since they sold them all out is an additional 375,292 fans. So over these three seasons over one million fans came out to support their beloved Pistons.

Players rose from nowhere to become a part of Detroit sports folklore. It all started in August of 2000 when Joe Dumars (in what at the time was seen as a terrible deal for Detroit) traded stud all-star forward Grant Hill to Orlando for an un-drafted little known undersized center out of Virginia Union University, Ben Wallace; Who would go on to win over the Detroit fans with his blue collar work ethic and low-profile personality. I still have a blue Ben Wallace # 3 jersey hanging in my closet to this day. The next move that helped transform the franchise was a trade (on my birthday, Sept 11th 2002) for a lottery pick in the 1999 NBA draft, Rip Hamilton, who is quickly ascending the Pistons all time scoring list. The next big move was the signing of Chauncey Billups as a free agent in June of 2002. At the time he had started to show some promise for the Timberwolves averaging 12.5 point and 5.5 assists after underachieving for most of his young career. He went on to make the all-star game in 2006, 07, and 08 as a Piston and won the NBA finals MVP in 03-04 while the Pistons won the championship. The final piece to the puzzle (who was not an unknown, but was seen as a malcontent) was the Pistons trading lets call them "spare parts" for Rasheed Wallace and Mike James in the middle of the 03-04 season. This solidified one of the best defensive teams of the modern era and propelled the Pistons that season to their third NBA championship. They held 5 straight opponents under 70 points which is an NBA record and is utterly ridiculous to even attempt to comprehend.

The Pistons were never able to reach the finals again with the core group of Rip, Sheed, Chauncey and Tayshaun again after 04-05. In July of 2006 the Chicago Bulls made free agent Ben Wallace a ridiculous 60 million dollar offer to which he couldn't refuse. Ben leaving the Pistons hurt, and it left a void in the front line that the Pistons have never been able to fill. They could still win games, but haven't made it out of the east since. Joe D tried tweaking the team, attempting to find complimentary bench players after Mehmet Okur and Mike James left in free agency, Corliss Williamson and Lindsey Hunter succumbed to age. He tried bigs such as Nazr Mohammed, and smalls such as Carlos Arroyo, but none of these players were able to help the Pistons reach the promise land again. Then came the news that sent a shock wave through Detroit earlier this season. Joe traded the Pistons engine, he traded their leader, the best three point and free throw shooter on the team in Chauncey Billups to the Nuggets for Allen Iverson. There was a small glimmer of hope when the trade went down that A.I. might be the creative pure scorer the Pistons needed to get over the hump. I went to Iverson's home debut at the Palace verses the Boston Celtics. I got shivers through my spine when he was introduced and my buddy texted me when Iverson scored the games first points to say how excited he was.

That game was a sign of things to come, a sign of the end of an era. The Celtics easily blew out the disoriented Pistons 76-88 in a game that was not even as close as the final score indicated. The Pistons have never really recovered from that trade, from that game, it was as if the head of the team had been brutally ripped off and with it came the heart. I had hoped that was where Iverson could help. If you watch the Pistons as much as I do, you know that 'Sheed just doesn't play with heart much anymore, like once he got his 'chip he was satisfied to jack up wild threes instead of taking advantage of his ridiculous post skill. I had hoped that Iverson who is known for his relentless style of play, never afraid of anyone or anything, known for playing much bigger than his 6 foot frame, known for his competitive fire, could supercharge the Pistons, but it just seems like the Pistons haven't mentally recovered from losing Chauncey. I remember reading how when they heard about the trade Rip and Chauncey stayed up at the hotel and just cried. Its almost as if they resent Iverson for Chauncey leaving, to this day when Iverson is on the court the Pistons play like a group of strangers.

This post is a tribute to the Detroit Pistons. This post is a tribute to the consistent excellent team basketball they have displayed over the past seven seasons. The Chauncey Billups trade marks the end of an era. These Pistons are changed forever (they slipped to 27-29 losing to the Hornets in NO tonight). I just wanted to let the Pistons and everyone else know that I appreciate the consistent brilliance they have provided. I just want to urge everyone to continue to support a franchise which has given us so much joy over the past seven seasons. I know it is sickening to watch them lose, I know it is sickening to watch Iverson pound the rock into the ground while the only holdovers from the championship that we have left stand around and watch him jack up shots.

Thank you Pistons for giving us all you had. Thank you for winning. Thank you for your perennial contending. I will not forget, I will not abandon you.

This post is a tribute to the Detroit Pistons.

The All Star Break

So the all star festivities are officially over and I thought I would take this opportunity (I'm in class) to drop my opinions on the events.
1. The shooting stars competition HAS to go. Not only does not a single soul care about who wins this thing, but the only part that is even mildly entertaining is the half court shot. I personally couldn't care less about this event and it is honestly sad to even see some of these previously great NBA players even wear unis (Check out the shape that Laimbeer is in here). It also doesn't make the event more interesting that they have WNBA players play in it, I would rather see them participate in the three point shootout or the skills competition (imagine how hard the guys would try if they were going up against WNBA players). Could you imagine how bad guys would get clowned if they lost the skills comp to Katie Smith??

2. I thought the dunk contest was pretty cool, but the judges SUCKED. They basically were just in love with Dwight because of last year. Not to hate on D-ho because his dunks were cool, but I'm just glad Nate won because I was behind the action and I got a text from BQ saying "Fuck Dwight" so I was thinking that Howard was just going to win via fan slurpage (he got the most all star votes ever so I thought he might win the contest just because of his popularity). But I am a little worried about the contest for a few reasons: Its getting WAAAAAYYYY to gimmicky. Don't get me wrong I am a red blooded American and I like the whole Superman/Kryptonate thing but how far is this going to go? Are the guys going to start making 10 minute videos hyping up the crowd for a simple windmill dunk?? Another problem I can see is the actual creativity of the dunking. I mean how much will be left to do in 15 years that hasnt been done in 15 contests already? I would also like to see the judges have categories not just freelance how they go about judging (like a specific deduction for a pulling a "Birdman").
With all that said my favorite dunks were Nates bounce and reverse throwdown (he threw it down HARD) his dunk over Superman, which the more crazy thing to me is I'm about Nate's height and I can't even sniff the net. I also thought Dwights 12 foot rim dunk was tight and the Pau to Rudy dunk (even though it took forever) was sick.

3. I was a little disappointed in the game itself. In the first quarter the guys actually looked like they were breaking a little bit of a sweat and they would try a little and put on a decent show. What I didn't really think about (until I saw it) was that the East truly had only one center. I mean realistically does any team EVER have a chance to win when they have Rashard Lewis checking Shaq??? The overall game was pretty disappointing with very few ooh-ahh type plays outside of Shaq and Cp3's give and go and Bronny's off the board two hand thunder dunk. CP3 did KILL it though 14 points 14 dimes 7 boards and 3 rips with only one turn, he is FUN to watch for sure.

4. I am not a huge Shaq fan but he is very entertaining and when he retires it will be weird. However if I have to listen to one more Kobe and Shaq question I'm going to personally find out where the hell Craig Sager buys his 'fits and make it my personal mission to destroy those establishments. The only good thing that came out of all the "Kobe are you and Shaq nostalgic?" questions was on Inside on NBATV when C-Webb said he was the nostalgic one, who was going to go home and cry because Shaq and Kobe didn't break up a few years earlier.

The Rookie-Soph game:
Kevin Durant is a MAN and dropped a rookie-soph record 46 points. I like the rookie-soph game because it really shows off the young and upcoming talent in the L. And the great thing about this years game was that it was oozing with players that had bright futures including Mike Beasley, Russell Westbrook, Durant, Derrick Rose, and Brook Lopez to name a few.

Just to weigh in on the only major trade so far: Marion to Toronto for J.O. I don't like it. I just don't think that J.O. can stay healthy and if your Miami why do you sacrifice your cap space/ roster flexibility to maybe get to the second round of the playoffs? If your Toronto I guess I do like the deal because it affords cap space, but your going backwards if you don't re-sign Marion (which I doubt they will) and with all the murmur about Bosh being unhappy up north things could get ugly FAST for Toronto.

i3q's First Annual All-Star Selection Concerns

First of all, let me just get this out of the way: Shaq needs to be an All-Star this year. Period. All-Star Weekend is about one thing, the fans. With that in mind, there is no bigger personality (literally and figuratively) than The Big Diesel.. He is undoubtedly the most entertaining player in the NBA, if not all of sports. We as fans need to savor every last moment we have with Shaq as a player, because before we know it he will be retired (Hopefully he lands a commentary job with TNT if he decides to go that route). I have been an NBA fan nearly all my life, and I have gone through ups (Orlando, Miami, Phoenix) and downs (Lakers) with my feelings on Shaq, but as the time draws nearer I am starting to realize that I might actually cry for the first time in my life when a player retires.. Let's hope the coaches feel the same way and give Shaq a spot on the team for the 15th time, if only as a reserve (honestly, who would you rather see on the court, Yao or Shaq?? That's what I thought).

Joe Johnson also has to go. This is a no-brainer. Say what you want, but the Hawks are a contender in the East. Don't believe me? How about taking the Champs to 7 games during last years playoffs before disappearing in game 7?? The single most important reason for their success is Joe Johnson. He's got the numbers and the Hawks have the record. There is no argument here..

As much as I HATE HATE HATE him and HATE HATE HATE to say this, I think Chauncey Billups needs to go as well. He has single handedly turned the Nuggets around after myself and everybody else outside of Denver thought they wouldn't even sniff the playoffs this year.. They currently have a 2 1/2 game lead in the Northwest (even though the division isn't as tough as in years past) and this is without Melo for 14 games, not to mention no Camby. He is making Kenyon Martin look like K-Mart again, and word around the league is it was Billups' idea for the pink lip-print tattoo on his neck.. Another situation of personal numbers + team record = no brainer..

The great debate will always be "Yeah, he has good numbers, but his team has a bad record" or the flip "Even though his numbers are down, he is the best player on one of the best teams". This makes it tough to decide on reserve players and even tougher to tell where to draw the line.

2 players that stand out to me with poor team records but great individual numbers are David Lee and Danny Granger. Lee is currently tied with Dwight Howard (don't tell Shaq I said this, but the scariest player in the L) at 33 double doubles on the season, averaging 15.7 pts, 11.5 rebs (5th in the L), 2 dimes (1.5 per game less than "The Best Player in the World" Paul Pierce), and 57% from the field (good for 4th in the L). Not bad numbers at all. In fact, I challenge you to find another player who is more consistent that is not already an All-Star. You can't do it. The problem Lee faces is the Knicks are 1 game back from the 8th spot in the East, and this means no ASG for Lee in 2009. Danny Granger is a player that I thought would fall off, but has only gotten stronger as the season has progressed. He trails only Wade, James, and Bryant (by .2 ppg) in points per game at 26.1. He also grabs 5 rebounds, dishes 3.5 helpers, beats 1.5 shots, and strips you 1 time per game, while banging nearly 2.5 threes per game as well. All-Star worthy numbers, but once again team record comes into play. The Pacers are 3.5 games back from the 8 spot, but considering the log-jam of mediocre teams vying for that spot in the East, nobody gives the Pacers a chance. With that, nobody will give Granger a chance at the All-Star game this year either. These are 2 players to watch out for in the future for however, and given the right situation they will be key players on playoff caliber teams very soon.

As far as the All-Star starters go, I have a few thoughts.. KG does nothing to impress me.. His 16 ppg and 9 rebounds sound more like (vintage) Rasheed Wallace numbers than All-Star starter numbers.. I would rather see someone else in there than him; bring him off the bench. Also, I don't think there is anyone less deserving of a starting gig than Allen Iverson.. Career lows in every category, but the fans still love him.. I suppose the Pistons are still in playoff contention, albeit who knows how long.. Yao Ming also doesn't deserve to start in my opinion, I think he is way too soft (and ugly)..

It was only ten years ago in 1999 that we were experiencing a lock-out in the NBA, and there was no All-Star weekend that year. I am glad that things are going so well and there is an arsenal of talent in the League, because All-Star Weekend has always been one of my favorite sporting events..

Predictions:
Three Point Contest Winner: Roger Mason Jr.
Dunk Contest: Krypto-N8
58th All-Star Game: West 136, East 130. Chris Paul MVP

Other Predictions for the Weekend:
Australian Open Championship: Federer over Nadal in 5 sets
Super Bowl XLIII: Cardinals 24, Steelers 21. Kurt Warner MVP

Sir Lee

So I was watching the NBA pregame show on TNT tonight and they announced the all star starters. The east's starters are Howard, LeBron, AI, Wade, and KG. The West is Kobe, CP3, TD, Amare and Yao. Funny moment GP was arguing with the rest of the panel that Al Jefferson deserved the start over TD. Ernie asked GP who he would take for one game, he got all mad and said TD, good work Ernie.

On the show they picked there reserves and no one had David Lee on their teams. Ernie dropped a ridiculous stat that I personally was really impressed with, Lee has 30 double doubles, second in the leage to Dwight Howard, who has 31! Lee only has one less double double than basically the best big man in the east??? Thats crazy! I told BQ and I mentioned how I felt bad for not giving Lee his due. He responded by telling me he has been waiting for me to "give Lee his kight-hood". All I can say is from now on I will refer to him as Sir Lee, which has a nice ring to it.

Two other things:
1. There is NO WAY KG deserves the start over Bosh. I realize that KG is on arguably the best team in the east, but Bosh has been lighting it up and he desrves to start.

2. There is also NO WAY the Yi Jianlian desrves to even sniff the all star game (he was the second leading vote getter among east forwards). It makes me think that the game should be some fan voting, but not completely in the fans hands. Yi is a nice player but he IS NOT better than Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison, Chris Bosh, Rashard Lewis, Josh Smith, Emeka Okafor, or Danny Granger, and that's just to name a few off the top of my head.