+/- I Couldn't Resist/ Our Two All Stars

[WTF]

Again just a dumbass useless stat. Okay the Eye Test tells me that Singler has had two exceptional games. Tonight he shoots 5-6 and 2-3 from downtown to be all of a minus 9. Just get rid of it.

As I said both Drummond and Stuckey will be coaches selections they won't get fans votes but they are locks

[merc]

I don't think it's fair to compare KCP to a PG that has the ball in his hands 10X more... if you want to compare Jennings to them fine... KCP is doing exactly what he's asked to do... looking better each day.

[Oracle]

Maturing right in front of our eyes!

Jennings is starting to play like a real PG, and I'm loving it!

Drummond is just a freaking BEAST, and will be an all star, IMO!

[Oracle]

I know, and I won't argue that MCW or Burke were the much better pick, and I'm not talking about with hindsight!

Either of them were the better pick on draft night!

However, Joe picked KCP, and we have time to let him grow.

BTW, I think your insight that he was a scorer rather than a shooter is spot on!

Joe made a big mistake confusing the two, if that's what he did!

[Phil-Good]

Good Post ORACLE. I agree with every word. Jennings takes his bad shots, just like Smith but I do see the number going down and the KID has BALLS!!!


Drummonds looks ready to be the next big thing in NBA basketball. Greg Monroe look to have taken A step backward mentally. Greg still look afraid of the big moment and he still looks afraid to pull that 15 FT jumpshot. He also bitches to the refs way too much. Monroe as of today does not look like A Max contract player. Close to it like Smith but not MAX money.

[WTF]

KCP is on a playoff bound team that can't afford for him to be a gunslinger and take over the offense to run as he wants. No, KCP must play within a system where he's not the best player on the team. - Oracle

First I'm not making a comparison I'm flat out saying that KCP wasn't a better fit than Burke or MCW. This doesn't mean KCP I see him as a bad player he just isn't the right player. I'm not even saying we should trade him what I'm saying is that will never get the Bang for the Buck of selecting him at 8th overall in the draft. KCP is a scorer not shooter he never was and obviously Joe mistaken him for being a shooter.

It's bad enough they come in already at a disadvantage of being fundamentally disabled, but then you ask him to be something he wasn't/isn't. KCP never played in a structure system like he's being asked to be and if all he's good for is his defense then it was really a wasted pick IMO. 18 games in and the kid is shooting .271 from deep, I don't want to bash KCP but as the I said on draft day he better be the second coming of Reggie or Rip being pick that high in the draft.

I'm saying Joe was a dumbass for passing on Burke and MCW PERIOD!

Come On closed your eyes and dream with me. Imagine the clock running out and Burke has the rock and we need a three to win (Swiish!). Okay imagine its crunch time we're down 15, minute and half left and he channeling his inner Zeke do we win. This is all I'm saying

[Oracle]

Here's the reason Jennings is growing on me!

1. The kid is intelligent and is remarkably candid in interviews! He doesn't just say the same old stuff, he tells the truth, and that's refreshing!

2. He was working on a bad game in Miami less than 5 assists, and sporting 7 turnovers, which puts him squarely in BK7 territory(although Miami is tough defensively), he didn't give up and sank a huge 3 pointer and another huge steal!

3. The kid has a little CLUTCH in him, and we've been missing that!

Finally, he appears to want to be a great guard, and we can see that he's making progress!

Now let's see if he can resist trying to do too much tonight! I know he want to, but the season end result is a much bigger prize that can be savored much longer than one win!

[Oracle]

MCW is obviously the #1 pick, and no DX, stop re-writing history, he didn't get worse as the season went on, unless you consider where they ended up a bad season ender, losing to the #2 team in the country!

MCW does everything Burke does and he does it a 6'6, but Burke is a solid #2, Murph had that exactly right!

DX, the guy that gives up on his guys the easiest, is giving up on KCP as fast as he kicked Monroe to the curb, while Monroe learns a new position and a new system, AND new teammates... easy stuff in DX's book

But you can't compare KCP to MCW & Burke, who are on tanking teams and have been given the reigns and told to do your thing, because you're either the best talent or close to it on your team!

KCP is on a playoff bound team that can't afford for him to be a gunslinger and take over the offense to run as he wants. No, KCP must play within a system where he's not the best player on the team.

All of that comes with a whole different dynamic, so the smarter thing to do is wait and see, because this whole team has played hard but dumb and bad so far!

Once that changes, and it will, KCP's role will be better defined!

So let's be really happy about what Burke is doing, but let's not get crazy(Wise, LOL) with the comparisons.. they don't apply!

[deusXango]

IMHO the main thing that's being ignored is Joe's sheer foolishness, and the apparent forked tongue he spoke with to more than a few! Believe it or not folks, there's a big difference between PG and SG, and two of the three are PG's. That says a lot to me, if no one else; our need going into the draft was for a reliable PG, not a SG and everyone knew it!! Having the 8th pick in the lottery, we collectively wished for more than just a reliable PG, but one who had greatness written all over him, to play with Monroe and Drummond. WTF was KCP all about with Burke and Carter-Williams still on the board?!

KCP: After Oladipo and McLemore, there was a slew of equally talented SG's, from KCP to Alan Crabbe who the Pistons could have wasted the 8th pick on, but wasting the pick made/makes no sense at all. KCP was not a waste, but he's not showing the potential to become an alpha dog either.

MCW: Carter-Williams is the sexy pick today, mainly because of what he's done with the opportunity the 76ers have given him, and there was a contingent of supporters for him due to his size and shown ability to get team mates involved in the offense, which BK7 just wouldn't do. The forgotten fact is MCW wasn't projected to go in the top ten, as Burke was; he had no outside shot, and seemed to get weaker as the season wore on, so he went where he was projected to go. There was no talk from the Palace about being overly impressed with him as a choice at #8.

Burke: Now this is the choice that would have put 99% of Pistons fans in Joe's corner and renewed faith in his ability to make sound judgments. Didn't happen. Burke is the only one of the three that was projected to go in the top 5 across the national media boards, and fans (myself included) wished that by some miracle, he would fall to us at #8. For three years running players who were slated to go much higher in the draft fell to us in the lottery, Drummond being the best of the lot, so it was a dream come true when #8 rolled around and Burke was still on the board; Trey Burke, as our PG,  would have been the perfect compliment for our center. That was the missed opportunity of guaranteeing our franchises excellent future. Joe made innuendos that Burke would be the pick if available, and GM's from #5-#7 didn't need a PG as much as we did, so what was the reason for passing on him? Plain and simple, Joe f#cked up again!!!!

So with KCP, who's not a bad player, we're trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. The good news is, we've got experience in disappointment, and the roster is not as far out of balance as it used to be. Honestly, the question that haunts my mind is, would I rather have KCP or Middleton; would I rather have Jennings or Burke? That's just the fan in me talking.

[deusXango]

Lil' Larry has been reassigned to doing daily reports....what the hell is a daily report, and does being a file clerk for daily reports pay $1 million? I always said that boy could politic. Damn, he's a hell of a hustler!!! I can't wait for the Lil' Larry supporters, that wanted him to coach this team, to stick their heads out and put a spin on this.

I’m stickin my head up.  Whack away.  There is no spin to put on it.   It's a BOO breakup.  Call Jerry Springer.  According to a local source (interviewed on Mike & Mike this morning), Kidd gave Larry a major voice in running the defense, which hasn’t done well, and now has decided to take control.  BTW, Nets players reportedly felt Larry was over coaching in practice.  Bottom Line:  JMO, but losing may be causing some finger pointing.

You can point to our roster turnover as evidence that management agreed to claims that Lil Larry was somewhat hamstrung with poor talent.

Burying my head now.

Lemon, you a riot! D-Will, Garnett, Pierce, Lopez, Terry, and Co. resented being over coached by Lil' Larry? I don't believe it!!! 

[WTF]

Of course I had to conduct an investigation on this and no KCP wouldn't be the 5th player selected in the draft. In fact Hardaway Jr. would be a much better fit than KCP and he doesn't even start for the Knicks. Not only does Jr. average the same 7pts a game in fewer attempts ad he does it less minutes and has a better FG% and shoots .400 from the deep to boot.

My guess is KCP wouldn't cracked the top 10 if the draft was re-done based on what we're seeing. Remember Jr. was not a slouch defender either, has better handles, attacks and plays above the rim. I was honestly hoping at one point we could land both Burke and Jr.

Now while MCW has look great with that 17pt average Burke has dropped 20pg in his last 4 starts. Burke might be #1 overall.  

[cool breeze]

I am not sure if anyone posted this information yet but you have to wonder if the owners have been reading the stats of other games around the league last night. Last night Affalo scored 43 points and Michael Carter Williams had a triple double with 27-12-10. Are they asking Joe questions this morning? A lot of you were high on MCW while I had no idea that he could be this effective so early on in his career. KCP is playing much better on both ends now so it will be interesting to see how everything shakes out at the end of the season regarding who did the best job of selecting players in this last draft. Our Pistons needed another point guard and could have retained that 2 guard currently starting for the Bucks. Does Joe Dumars sleep well at night? The draft is a lot of guess work so my bet is that he has not problems in the area of sleeping as he did draft Drummond who might be the biggest draft steal in a long time.

[WTF]

It's true that Dumars screwed up big time by not taking MCW or Trey Burke.  Both have a very real chance of being All-Star PGs.

But KCP was actually a good pick.

If the draft were re-held today, based on the performance of all these rooks, it might go like this:

1.  MCW
2.  Victor Oladipo
3.  Trey Burke?
4.  Ben Mclemore
5.  KCP
6.  Kelly Olynyk
7.  Steve Adams?
8.  Nerlens Noel?
9.  Nate Wolters
10.Tim Hardaway

So KCP is far from a bust.  He was actually a good pick. He's just not the All Stars that MCW and Burke will probably turn out to be.

Hey...at least we didn't end up with Bennett, Muhammad, Porter, Len or Zeller.  And who knows how Noel will recover.

Is this suppose to make me feel better  Big difference between All Star PG and Role Players (This could almost be comparable to not taking Melo) even if KCP isn't a bust. We didn't pick a young Reggie, Rip or Redd here these came in as rookies dropping 20pts every other night.

[Murph]

It's true that Dumars screwed up big time by not taking MCW or Trey Burke.  Both have a very real chance of being All-Star PGs.

But KCP was actually a good pick.

If the draft were re-held today, based on the performance of all these rooks, it might go like this:

1.  MCW
2.  Victor Oladipo
3.  Trey Burke?
4.  Ben Mclemore
5.  KCP
6. Otto Porter?
7.  Kelly Olynyk
8.  Steve Adams?
9.  Nerlens Noel?
10.Nate Wolters


So KCP is far from a bust.  He was actually a good pick. He's just not the All Stars that MCW and Burke will probably turn out to be.

Hey...at least we didn't end up with Bennett, Muhammad, Len or Zeller.  And who knows how Noel and Porter will play when they recover.

[cool breeze]

Speaking of players crammed down our throats.........Does Villanueva play at all anymore?  He looked awfully comfortable on the bench last night.  Love him or hate him (Or just don't care about him), the man can shoot.  Seems like this team, which can't shoot for sh*t, could find a role for the guy.

Flydog but he destroys the team's chemistry when he is on the floor because he cannot defend. So far he has not been a consistent shooter which has been his problem since arriving in Detroit. No it is great that Cheeks has him where he belongs. However, I will say one positive thing about Charlie. He is playing much harder this season when he does get in but he doesn't play as well as the players who play ahead of him. Just lack of fundamentals. If he could establish a low post game and defend and rebound on the weak side as well as get in better physical condition, then Charlie might have a future.

[cool breeze]

Wow! Our pistons won a big game with the refs against them last night. Even though Wade didn't play, I thought this was especially sweet because our Pistons made big plays when it counted especially the steal by Smith for a dunk and Jennings big 3 point shot and steal against James that lead to a Monroe layup. By the way, Jennings does a great interview after the game on NBA TV as well. Bogus fouls against Drummond should be reported to the NBA head office but of course it is the front office that manages the NBA like a carnival. The Carney refs must go to Labron's place after the game to party. Officials force our players to become timid while the Miami players have no fear in the 4th quarter and hack at will with no chance of a foul being called against time. You can get some real confidence with that set of rules in place. But lack of ball movement and players lack of moving without the ball caused issues in crunch time where Smith and Stuckey made a lot of mental errors trying to do it all on their own. However, Stuckey and Smith were also fouled hard with no calls during that time period. Greg Monroe had a big game last night and had a nice block on defense. If he can only not switch on the pick and roll plays, and stay in the paint on defense for an entire game, Monroe can really help this team. Great pass from Smith on the baseline out of bounds and a great catch and finish by Monroe on that length of the court play late in the 4th quarter. And don't forget KCP who had a really good game last night. You can see his improvement on both ends lately.

I was most impressed with this Piston bench. They all played hard and smart. Singler was the high scorer of the game and had 5 big rebounds and 2 assists while contending with Labron much of the time on defense. Jerebco also played really well and it is a no brainer that Jonas could be a real key for the team as the season unfolds. He is active on both ends, gets in the passing lanes and can finish. He needed this game for his confidence. And I am not forgetting Harrielson who fits right in with this team playing smart on both ends of the court. What a great pick up by Dumars.

Now get that win in Bucks land tonight!

[FlyDog]

Speaking of players crammed down our throats.........Does Villanueva play at all anymore? He looked awfully comfortable on the bench last night. Love him or hate him (Or just don't care about him), the man can shoot. Seems like this team, which can't shoot for sh*t, could find a role for the guy.

[WTF]

The more I see this 2nd year, young as ****, PHENOM dominate the paint against EVERYONE,  the more I wonder why guys cry about passing on Burke.   Joe can’t be a Genius on one hand and a total Dufus on the other.   Andres' ceiling is beginning to look off the friggin charts.  A few more months of this and AD enters the DPOY conversation.

This doesn't negate the fact Joe passed on Burke, really what does drafting Andre have to do with passing on Burke? absolutely nothing.
 
Burke reeks of Franchise Player and you simply don't pass on those types of players PERIOD.  Really I can only imagine how much better Drummond and Moose would be having a PG that's going to deliver them the rock.  I'm not all that sold on Jennings at the moment and I'm certainly not sold on anyone backing up Jennings so yeah Joe was out his mind passing on Burke.  
 
BTW Joe is always/will be a DUFUS you never heard me calling him a Genius and you never will.  This is the problem with those that don't criticize Joe, he doesn't have to be complete just half ass and you all pat him on the back for it.  Not saying KCP is a bad player, but he's neither a Burke or MCW and it was stupid of Joe to pass on them.  
 
PS. Please lets stop acting as if it was GENIUS that landed us Monroe, Knight, and Drummond in the first place and that Dum Dum needed to followed the same approach when these three luckily felled in his lap and taken Burke so he's a BONEHEAD

[FlyDog]

The more I see this 2nd year, young as ****, PHENOM dominate the paint against EVERYONE,  the more I wonder why guys cry about passing on Burke.   Joe can’t be a Genius on one hand and a total Dufus on the other.   Andres' ceiling is beginning to look off the friggin charts. A few more months of this and AD enters the DPOY conversation.

A liar, a fat ass and a moron walks into a bar.......the bartender says "Get the f*ck out of my bar, Dumars!"

Just kidding Lemon. I think Dumars falls squarely in the middle between genius and dufus. Everybody makes mistakes. Look at the trade the Tigers made yesterday, sending Fister away for 3 lumps of coal. That doesn't make Dombrowski a moron. Maybe he was tired and just screwed up. It happens. Now, if he compounds this mistake by forcing these crummy players down our throats for far too long, that's when I'll get angry. That seems to be the trap that Dumars fell into. Hopefully he's learned his lesson.

[WTF]

The Oracle:  I’m kind of glad that Mo doesn’t readily call time outs.  JMO but it appears he is willing to allow (maybe demand) his team dig their way out of situations.  Yeah, it may put the outcome at risk but it provides another avenue of growth that I’m not sure can be simulated anywhere but in-game.

lemonpen, I agree with School of Hard Knocks approach Cheeks takes a well. I don't he should call them and just let them fall on their faces. I'm hearing different things from them (players) now than I did earlier in seasons they don't seem to be caught up in press clippings and losing is starting to irk them especially noticeable with Drummond.

My guess is that by mid season Cheeks will call more timeouts and manage the games differently.

[lemonpen]

Cool Breeze I commend you on your efforts with our young guys.

[lemonpen]

The more I see this 2nd year, young as ****, PHENOM dominate the paint against EVERYONE,  the more I wonder why guys cry about passing on Burke.   Joe can’t be a Genius on one hand and a total Dufus on the other.   Andres' ceiling is beginning to look off the friggin charts. A few more months of this and AD enters the DPOY conversation.

[lemonpen]

Today's game will show us just how much the team has improved recently. Losing tonight would be a huge step back after showing promise in beating Miami last night.  

[lemonpen]

Lil' Larry has been reassigned to doing daily reports....what the hell is a daily report, and does being a file clerk for daily reports pay $1 million? I always said that boy could politic. Damn, he's a hell of a hustler!!! I can't wait for the Lil' Larry supporters, that wanted him to coach this team, to stick their heads out and put a spin on this.

I’m stickin my head up.  Whack away.  There is no spin to put on it.   It's a BOO breakup.  Call Jerry Springer.  According to a local source (interviewed on Mike & Mike this morning), Kidd gave Larry a major voice in running the defense, which hasn’t done well, and now has decided to take control.  BTW, Nets players reportedly felt Larry was over coaching in practice.  Bottom Line:  JMO, but losing may be causing some finger pointing.

You can point to our roster turnover as evidence that management agreed to claims that Lil Larry was somewhat hamstrung with poor talent.

Burying my head now.

[WTF]

Today's game will show us just how much the team has improved recently. Losing tonight would be a huge step back after showing promise in beating Miami last night.

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