Re: FORUM

[cool breeze]

SVG’s full-court press convinced Meeks of a future with the Pistons

Oracle I like the idea that Meeks thinks that he can handle the point guard spot as well as the 2. While some other Piston fans do not believe Meeks was a good pick up, I do. I watched him play in about 12 games last season and he played hard on both ends. If only somehow SvG could swing a trade with either Smith or Monroe to bring in a defensive rim protector who can shoot outside the free throw line. When and if Dinwiddie is fully healed, will we know the potential of this team. But as much as I dislike Jennings, he might be exciting this season. By the trade deadline, something might break in favor of the Pistons. Piston depression is still with me but for sure this season will be better tun the last one. SVG will insist on max effort.

Don, I don't think anybody hated Meeks. The only part we questioned was the price!

IMO, Meeks could play PG to KCP's SG, because even though he's not very good defensively, he's at least 6'4 so that gives him an advantage over Jennings when we need to go bigger!

IMO, this team could live up to what it should have been last year if Chauncey was full strength and shooting 3's and Datome had lived up to his promise!

This may be the year that the shooting delivers the floor spacing that Joe attempted to get, and that will mean monster numbers for one of the best frontcourts in basketball!

One problem the outside shooters had last season was the fact that they seldom had really good looks. Basic selfishness prevented the offense from executing properly. Only when Siva entered the picture at the end of the season did the ball move from side to side. Playing one side of the floor killed our chances of victory. So it wasn't all the fault of the shooters.

I agree that's what it looked like, but that's just part of the bigger picture. Why didn't that happen to other teams, and while we did have selfish play, IMO, it didn't account for so many games of futility.

If you remember, Datome almost NEVER had a clean look, all of his shots looked rushed, he was scouted and covered like a blanket. But Josh Smith got a ton of clean looks on the perimeter... for a reason!

So if your theory was true, Josh would rarely get clean looks! Since we know he did, obviously he got the rock passed to him more times than others to take(bad) shots! It also meant that defenses didn't have to cover Josh and therefore covered other perimeter players closer.

Putting that all together, it is largely the shooters fault, because if Josh had been a deadly perimeter shooter, the defense would have had to pay closer attention to him giving someone else an open look. So we should expect that having more capable perimeter shooters will leave one of them open for a clean look!

BTW, Josh took a lot of shots because his teammates forced the ball to him late in the clock because they knew he could take the heat of missing and they didn't want the responsibility(rightly so for the guy making the big bucks).

Smith also jacked up a lot of long range shots early in the shot clock before even one Piston big man could get set up in the paint. My memory of last year is still fresh where I see KCP and Singler standing on the baseline or wing on the weak side wide open but somehow they seldom received a pass. When Stuckey was open, Jennings and Bynum saw him. Remember the NBA Finals where the Spurs moved without the ball and made several passes from side to side finding the weak side wing man or baseline man open and getting that player the ball? That kind of basketball was non existent until the last two weeks of the season when Siva played and Bynun, Jennings and Smith rode the bench. Siva is gone but SVG is alive and well and will not allow this nonsense to go on. The chemistry last season was bad and certain players make it that way and those players who caused it are back. This will be a year of reckoning. While Dumars watched everything unfold and did nothing to help his coaches, SVG will do something about it. Maybe I am sounding more like you with this thought in that you really believe that coaching in the NBA does have an impact if done the right way. To me, the big plus with the Pistons is that SVG has the final word. He will have the power to insist that players have excellent mental discipline while on the court. All of SVG's new pick ups will be on board with that. Drummond, Singler, Jerebco, KCP and Datome will be extremely happy to play under the new rules of conduct. It will help big time if Smith doesn't return to the small forward position and gets his touches somewhere in the paint to limit his implosive long range shots. Augustine will be a breath of fresh air. One big trade involving Smith or Monroe would be the shocker trade SVG needs to get the fans really excited about the future. The players need to play in front of live fans not empty seats. The players who played last season created a real downer for everyone. A good start is important. If the team falls on hard times, the fans will bolt and panic will set in with management. There is pressure on everyone. And Charlie V is no longer around to give lame excuses.

[Oracle]

SVG’s full-court press convinced Meeks of a future with the Pistons

Oracle I like the idea that Meeks thinks that he can handle the point guard spot as well as the 2. While some other Piston fans do not believe Meeks was a good pick up, I do. I watched him play in about 12 games last season and he played hard on both ends. If only somehow SvG could swing a trade with either Smith or Monroe to bring in a defensive rim protector who can shoot outside the free throw line. When and if Dinwiddie is fully healed, will we know the potential of this team. But as much as I dislike Jennings, he might be exciting this season. By the trade deadline, something might break in favor of the Pistons. Piston depression is still with me but for sure this season will be better tun the last one. SVG will insist on max effort.

Don, I don't think anybody hated Meeks. The only part we questioned was the price!

IMO, Meeks could play PG to KCP's SG, because even though he's not very good defensively, he's at least 6'4 so that gives him an advantage over Jennings when we need to go bigger!

IMO, this team could live up to what it should have been last year if Chauncey was full strength and shooting 3's and Datome had lived up to his promise!

This may be the year that the shooting delivers the floor spacing that Joe attempted to get, and that will mean monster numbers for one of the best frontcourts in basketball!

One problem the outside shooters had last season was the fact that they seldom had really good looks. Basic selfishness prevented the offense from executing properly. Only when Siva entered the picture at the end of the season did the ball move from side to side. Playing one side of the floor killed our chances of victory. So it wasn't all the fault of the shooters.

I agree that's what it looked like, but that's just part of the bigger picture. Why didn't that happen to other teams, and while we did have selfish play, IMO, it didn't account for so many games of futility.

If you remember, Datome almost NEVER had a clean look, all of his shots looked rushed, he was scouted and covered like a blanket. But Josh Smith got a ton of clean looks on the perimeter... for a reason!

So if your theory was true, Josh would rarely get clean looks! Since we know he did, obviously he got the rock passed to him more times than others to take(bad) shots! It also meant that defenses didn't have to cover Josh and therefore covered other perimeter players closer.

Putting that all together, it is largely the shooters fault, because if Josh had been a deadly perimeter shooter, the defense would have had to pay closer attention to him giving someone else an open look. So we should expect that having more capable perimeter shooters will leave one of them open for a clean look!

BTW, Josh took a lot of shots because his teammates forced the ball to him late in the clock because they knew he could take the heat of missing and they didn't want the responsibility(rightly so for the guy making the big bucks).

[cool breeze]

SVG’s full-court press convinced Meeks of a future with the Pistons

Oracle I like the idea that Meeks thinks that he can handle the point guard spot as well as the 2. While some other Piston fans do not believe Meeks was a good pick up, I do. I watched him play in about 12 games last season and he played hard on both ends. If only somehow SvG could swing a trade with either Smith or Monroe to bring in a defensive rim protector who can shoot outside the free throw line. When and if Dinwiddie is fully healed, will we know the potential of this team. But as much as I dislike Jennings, he might be exciting this season. By the trade deadline, something might break in favor of the Pistons. Piston depression is still with me but for sure this season will be better tun the last one. SVG will insist on max effort.

Don, I don't think anybody hated Meeks. The only part we questioned was the price!

IMO, Meeks could play PG to KCP's SG, because even though he's not very good defensively, he's at least 6'4 so that gives him an advantage over Jennings when we need to go bigger!

IMO, this team could live up to what it should have been last year if Chauncey was full strength and shooting 3's and Datome had lived up to his promise!

This may be the year that the shooting delivers the floor spacing that Joe attempted to get, and that will mean monster numbers for one of the best frontcourts in basketball!

One problem the outside shooters had last season was the fact that they seldom had really good looks. Basic selfishness prevented the offense from executing properly. Only when Siva entered the picture at the end of the season did the ball move from side to side. Playing one side of the floor killed our chances of victory. So it wasn't all the fault of the shooters.

[Phil-Good]

I don't know why i feel this way. I just have A feeling that Jennings is going to be A good PG in the league this season. I know Stan Van Gundy will ride his azz and I believe, Jennings wants that.

I was looking at some Drummonds highlights from last season and I was shocked that Jennings was in almost all of them. making plays or making great passes.

We will see!!!

Now I'm waiting for the Greg Monroe sign and trade and then we will see what this team is really about for the 2014/15 season.

[Oracle]

SVG’s full-court press convinced Meeks of a future with the Pistons

Oracle I like the idea that Meeks thinks that he can handle the point guard spot as well as the 2. While some other Piston fans do not believe Meeks was a good pick up, I do. I watched him play in about 12 games last season and he played hard on both ends. If only somehow SvG could swing a trade with either Smith or Monroe to bring in a defensive rim protector who can shoot outside the free throw line. When and if Dinwiddie is fully healed, will we know the potential of this team. But as much as I dislike Jennings, he might be exciting this season. By the trade deadline, something might break in favor of the Pistons. Piston depression is still with me but for sure this season will be better tun the last one. SVG will insist on max effort.

Don, I don't think anybody hated Meeks. The only part we questioned was the price!

IMO, Meeks could play PG to KCP's SG, because even though he's not very good defensively, he's at least 6'4 so that gives him an advantage over Jennings when we need to go bigger!

IMO, this team could live up to what it should have been last year if Chauncey was full strength and shooting 3's and Datome had lived up to his promise!

This may be the year that the shooting delivers the floor spacing that Joe attempted to get, and that will mean monster numbers for one of the best frontcourts in basketball!

[cool breeze]

SVG’s full-court press convinced Meeks of a future with the Pistons

Oracle I like the idea that Meeks thinks that he can handle the point guard spot as well as the 2. While some other Piston fans do not believe Meeks was a good pick up, I do. I watched him play in about 12 games last season and he played hard on both ends. If only somehow SvG could swing a trade with either Smith or Monroe to bring in a defensive rim protector who can shoot outside the free throw line. When and if Dinwiddie is fully healed, will we know the potential of this team. But as much as I dislike Jennings, he might be exciting this season. By the trade deadline, something might break in favor of the Pistons. Piston depression is still with me but for sure this season will be better tun the last one. SVG will insist on max effort.

[Oracle]

SVG’s full-court press convinced Meeks of a future with the Pistons

[Oracle]

Keith Langlois @Keith_Langlois
Follow
Interesting tidbit I learned today. @GigiDatome gained 10 pounds of muscle during time he spent with #Pistons staff in off-season.
         Detroit, MI, United States

[Oracle]

[WTF]

"The Enigma Known As Josh Smith" should be read by all Josh Smith admirers. One of Josh Smith's comments is priceless in this piece regarding Josh Smith's supreme confidence when launching his long bombs. This will be a tall order for SVG to change Josh Smith's approach to playing the game of basketball. For sure Smith has or had the potential to become an NBA All Star but he is one of those gems who much do it his way.

The Josh Smith Fan Club say's "where's the freaking quote" and really rant and rumor pages again. Josh hasn't spoken a word all summer now out of the blue he has quotes and comment a rumor rag. Please only you could identify with a rumor rag and call it factual.

Josh Smith say's call us when you got something worth while

[Oracle]

Keith Langlois  @Keith_Langlois
Follow
In the gym: New #Pistons assistant Tim Hardaway drilling rookie Spencer Dinwiddie hard.
Beverly Hills, MI, United States

[Oracle]

On another subject regarding our other mystery man Greg Monroe I was reading NBA Rumors today and one writer said that other teams have not been willing to get into negotiations with the Pistons because Detroit has over valued Greg Monroe like they have done with their players though much of their recent history. Rodney Stuckey comes to , and mind here.

So SVG does the same thing Dumars does and you don't want to call him out? I recognize that he's a rookie GM, but come on, if he screws up, let's not paper it over.

I don't give Joe a pass, but Joe was just like some here, he couldn't see what was really going on! Joe thought the 2004 team was about players. Joe unlike some wanted Larry Brown to stay, but thought he could get by without him.

Here's what people didn't understand about Larry Brown!

He implemented a SYSTEM!!! Fortunately, all of the players bought into the system, which produces what's called a network effect. The network effect states that the power of the network grows geometrically, not arithmetically, which results in a much stronger effect!

Once the players were bought into that system, average players looked good and good players looked great! The result... two straight finals appearances!!!

After we lost the system implementer, it was the players that kept using the system because it produced wins and the success we had all the years after LB! No coach after him removed the system, they just tweaked it a bit to add some additional flavor, mostly Flip, who I credit with extending the life of the defensive system with some truly innovative schemes!

So where am I going with this? Joe thought that the individual players were so valuable that he wouldn't trade them for anything, but it wasn't just the players, it was the system!

Ben Wallace fell off a cliff once he was out of the system! That doesn't mean the players weren't very good, Sheed & CB fared pretty well, but neither were the superstars Joe wouldn't trade, they were complementary players that work well in a good system!

So Joe had an excuse, even if it was lack of vision... what's SVG's?

Now that was SVG the DUMB rookie GM, so why am I so high on SVG the coach?

Because, and this goes to your negative comments, which I understand the frustration, but I see something different!

I see SVG the coach as the BEST Piston coach since Larry Brown, because he's a SYSTEM coach! Flip was also that level of coach, but he couldn't come to a legendary 2 finals team and impose his will, not after Larry Brown!

But SVG can, he has a fresh slate to work from and a system he knows works, like LB, so all he needs are the best fitting players for that system, and where the fit isn't what he wants, he simply adjusts the system!

This is what Pop does in SA! His teams vary based on the fit of players he can get from year to year, but the system remains the same minus a few changes.

That's why I'm high on SVG the coach! A good coach is good for an extra 5-10 games per year, and a good system moves that to 10-15 games you would have lost otherwise!

Using those guesstimates, we should be looking at winning somewhere between 39 and 44 games next season! Will that get us into the playoffs? It depends on a lot of factors, but if our talent is better or just a better fit, add a few more games and we're awfully close!

[cool breeze]

"The Enigma Known As Josh Smith" should be read by all Josh Smith admirers. One of Josh Smith's comments is priceless in this piece regarding Josh Smith's supreme confidence when launching his long bombs. This will be a tall order for SVG to change Josh Smith's approach to playing the game of basketball. For sure Smith has or had the potential to become an NBA All Star but he is one of those gems who much do it his way.

On another subject regarding our other mystery man Greg Monroe I was reading NBA Rumors today and one writer said that other teams have not been willing to get into negotiations with the Pistons because Detroit has over valued Greg Monroe like they have done with their players though much of their recent history. Rodney Stuckey comes to mind here. No teams were lining up to sign Stuckey back when he was a restricted free agent. Still there were many brainwashed Piston fans who thought for sure Stuckey would finally have his breakout season. Stuckey ended up signing for chump change with Indiana. This happening somehow has not gotten the attention of the Detroit News Sports Dept. Last summer, Dumars was so worried that he would lose Will Bynum that he gave him a crazy 2 year contract. Just why did the team need this man for two seasons let alone one? Was he better than Rodney Stuckey Joe? And were any GMs lined up to sign Jason Maxiell when he was on the open market? No wonder the Detroit Pistons have become a JV team. Smith becomes the highest paid player in Piston history while being known throughout the league as the most un coachable player in the league. Did Atlanta want Smith back? I don't think so. And then comes Brandon Jennings the LA club master shoot first no defense point guard with the 2nd highest salary on the team. Even the Bucks didn't want this guy back. And they will be laughing at the Pistons for years to come because Joe Dumars decided to give away two promising young players for Jennings the player nobody else wanted. while Jennings was quick to tweet that he thought Kobe was a better player than Jordan, did he look down the list of current guards or retired guards in the NBA and determine if there has ever been a guard who defended worse than Jennings????

Piston fans deserve better players than we are getting. Our excitement might be trying to figure out which big man will be able to shoot free throws at a better clip than 50%. We have a 3 man race. Who will be the worst and who will surprise us? I am thinking that the worst free throw shooter might be Josh Smith because he doesn't like to be coached or likes to tune out everyone like a teenager does when they are about 14 years of age. Josh will have a tougher time because he insists on standing one foot or more behind the free throw line before releasing the basketball. The game is on the line. Smith takes one big step back and lets it go.

[cool breeze]

So I say SVG is very limited with this team as a GM and as a coach. He can't trade some of the players that need to be traded for the same reason that Dumars couldn't make a any trade for Charlie V and only one bogus trade involving Ben Gordon.

My goodness Don! I could almost(but not quite) buy a weak excuse for SVG that the east is a lot better than the ones you keep coming up for SVG!

We've lost Stuckey, CV, and Bynum likely will never play, and you think the team sucks?

Sorry, it appears that I have a lot more faith in SVG than you do! SVG will ride this team into the playoffs, or at a minimum they'll be one fierce battle for that 8th seed!

I complain a lot about SVG the GM, and rightly so, he's done things that IMO, have hurt our ability to compete even better!

But that doesn't mean that I don't think that SVG the coach can win with who's left!

Monroe is more than capable, and will be a great player for SVG, and Josh as well! Gone are the coaches without the balls to call them as he sees them! Drummond WILL improve, and the combination of Jennings, Augustin, KCP & Meeks are going to terrorize defenses even if 2 of them are a bit weak on defense, they'll defend in SVG's system a hell of a lot better than before!

IMO, this Piston team can finish 6,7, or 8th seed with this coach, and position may be dependent on what happens with Monroe and in season trades!

BTW, who are these slugs still on the team that you're talking about? Josh is a hard worker and focused with good coaching, and I believe Jennings, even though I want him gone, is beginning to realize he's got to get his stuff together!

But here's the real killer!!!

When we can get Dinwiddie & KCP together, that's going to be the closest to Zeke & Joe as we've come from a balance perspective of offense & defense!

KCP is going to be as good as Joe was offensive, and slightly better defensively! Dinwiddie won't be Zeke, but his size will add interesting capabilities that complement KCP's

Those two married with Drummond, makes the future of this squad a bright one IMO!

Oracle sorry that I have become so negative about the Pistons. I still am upset with the insane trade that took Knight and Middleton away from the team. I can't get over it knowing that Jennings and Bynum are still on the team along with some other players who I could care less about. I predicted that Jennings would have a much more effective season this coming year but that doesn't excite me because I really don't think he is a team first kind of player who will go all out on defense or pass up a bad shot to give a teammate a good pass. I want to respect and appreciate Piston players. Perhaps Singler, KCP, Drummond and the 4 new signees will get me excited but I still have a bad taste in my mouth from last season. I have been involved in basketball most of my life and last season was the worst season of all time for me as far as the Pistons were concerned. It is very depressing to think that no team would gamble on entering into a trade with SVG for either Smith or Monroe. i thought for sure one if not both of them would be gone.

Of course this year should be better for fans. If Monroe and Smith can play together on the same team and SVG can get them to play the right way then I will get off their asses. And for sure I will be excited if Dinwiddie is able to play. Knowing how difficult it is to come back from an ACL sewerage as a point guard, it might not be a good thing if he returns too quickly.

[Sparma]

Hoping for the best for Drummond, specifically that this experience can get his D aimed in the right direction.

Concerning Monroe, weird how there's been radio silence for a while now, with folks revisiting the two stories that broke out of Washington, the first concerning Monroe intending to sign to qo, the second concerning what the Falk camp purportedly had done.  I'd like to hear an update from SVG!  Maybe a case of no news being good news, in that the last we heard, after the USA Today story broke, he denied having received word from Falk/ Monroe concerning the qo.

Hard to believe, but there's good news to celebrate concerning the Tigers.  When I stopped following last night, with them down in the second game, having been clobbered twice following one of the toughest losses ever (the complete game 1 hitter by Price, who let up no ERs or BBs and had 9 Ks), I thought their season was over.  At least it felt that way.  Since that point, they've won 2, the Royals lost, and they're two out.  That in spite of the Royals playing great and the Tigers having a stretch that included some pretty terrible ball.  It's a bizarre team, reminiscent of the old Mariners, but IF, IF they can sneak into the playoffs, it could still be a big year.  Starting pitching becomes disproportionately important in the playoffs.  And I'm still confident Soria's still going to help in the bullpen, as will moving a starter to the pen come playoff time.  Yankees next though, so we're not out of woods.

[cool breeze]

Oracle,  Don is crazy this I not a team filled with slugs just a bunch of players he doesn't like so everything he say's has to be taken with a grain of salt or otherwise it'll taste like sh!t.   You know he everything bad to say about every player on the team but consistently he sucks the drawers of a player like Kyle as if it's pure perfection.

Granted the team played like sh!t last season as a whole and I personally think that Monroe is a lazy turd, but with the piss poor direction of a GM and the failures of coaching why would most players be motivated to give 100%.

Right now I think SVG is a far better coach than the previous 4 and might be slightly better than Flip. SVG also has something none of our coaches ever had and that's front office power.

If Don had his way there be 15 Kyle Singlers on the roster   

That's right Wisefan, aka Mr, President of the Josh Smith Fan Club. Ask yourself this question. Do you believe that Labron James would get excited if Cleveland made a trade to add Smith to their roster? Labron can play any position on the court but could he tolerate Smith's mental approach to playing the game of basketball. Would I like to see Smith turn it around and become a real leader of men. Yes Wisefan but so far I cannot believe that anyone in the world would start a Josh Smith fan club after watching the way he performed last season. I still have that image of Smith going to the foul line standing one foot back from the line releasing the basketball as if he didn't give a hoot. Was he concentrating Wisefan? I couldn't see it. I like to stick to the facts and the facts are that Josh Smith was a horrible basketball player for the Pistons last season. It is a fact that the Piston team played a lot better after he sat out the last two weeks. Smith wasn't injured but didn't play and that was a good thing. Bynum sat out because of injury and that was a good thing. Jennings was about the same when he played the last two weeks which was horrible but Siva got a lot of minutes which improved the chances of winning. Now Siva is gone. Bynum and Jennings are back.

Can SVG''s new point guard Augustine play all of the minutes? Monroe doesn't want to wear the Piston uniform but will collect his 5 million dollars which he believes is chump change. Somehow even though Datome couldn't make a rotation last season, he should be great this coming season. I do pull for Kyle Singler to have a great season which I believe will happen. When thinking of last season, it was Singler who always came to play the games. He wasn't the guy who came out at tip off looking like he had stayed up all night attending an orgy. Drummond has made the USA team as a bench player. That will be good for Andre and should motivate him to work hard but he will be traveling with some of the fake players he toured the country with last year. My only hope is that all of the new additions to the roster will play their asses off. As opposed to you, I want to hold our players from last season accountable for not giving an honest effort. Perhaps some of you fans didn't watch that game against Miami held in Detroit to honor the Bad Boys. That was a special night in many ways but meant nothing to many of the players you seem to want to give a free pass to as we enter the new season.

We lost a number one pick along with Brandon Knight and C. Middleton. All of the playoff teams will be stronger with the exception of Miami. Those teams kicked the Pistons asses last season so why won't they do it again this year? And that would not be a bad thing because I want the Pistons to get on top again and not keep harboring 2nd rate players as they did with the likes of Rodney Stuckey, Austin Daye and Jason Maxiell. Until the house is clean, we Piston fans are likely to suffer. I hope you and Oracle are right and I am wrong. And it is good to try to feel confident as you seem to be that things are on the right track again. For sure SVG is a huge improvement over Joe Dumars leadership, but you need stars to win and many other teams have real stars. Why not lose big and get one star in next year's draft? Give away Josh Smith, Monroe and Jennings and bring in D League players. Play Will Bynum for the entire game and bench Singler. Anyone who plays hard will get a fine. Watch Cleveland until next year's draft.

[Oracle]

I'm glad he made the team, but the other side of me thinks that Drummond should be focused on his many weaknesses as a big man!

Specifically defense, post moves and FT shooting!

This experience may well help him most on defense, but the rest is likely not happening!

Having said that, playing and practicing with the team is good solid experience for a young player.

On another subject, WTF is going on with Monroe???

I hope the silence means that SVG in on his horse finding a way to either sign Monroe or move him for the best he can get.

SVG needs to remember that old lesson from dogs...

[Sparma]

That makes sense, Oracle. I read the mlive live explanation after I posted. I don't doubt that he could be very useful against Spain in the finals, counteracting the likes of Ibaka. It can be risky to think so far ahead though. Barring injury, I'd rather have Korver in the preliminary games, but I guess there were tough choices to be made.

Congrats to Andre.  He'll be able to contribute in a lot of ways.  It will be interesting to see if his defense perks up with all of the available help.  At the same time, I'm surprised they're going with 4 centers and that Kyle Korver's been bumped.  At the international level great shooters are at such a premium.  And if Andre can't hit 50%+ FTs, fouling him might often be the best way to get back in the game against this US team.  

Trying to figure this out, I wonder if the "Hack-a-Shaq" rules are different at the international level than in the NBA?  Five fouls rather than six?  In any case, you probably can't freely give away fouls against the US, even if fouling Drummond seems like a smart play.  I have the feeling I must be missing something.

You're missing how much Drummond will be playing and when.

He's insurance, not part of the regular rotation barring injury or foul trouble.

I won't say he's a practice dummy, but there is that aspect of it as well.

[Oracle]

Congrats to Andre.  He'll be able to contribute in a lot of ways.  It will be interesting to see if his defense perks up with all of the available help.  At the same time, I'm surprised they're going with 4 centers and that Kyle Korver's been bumped.  At the international level great shooters are at such a premium.  And if Andre can't hit 50%+ FTs, fouling him might often be the best way to get back in the game against this US team.  

Trying to figure this out, I wonder if the "Hack-a-Shaq" rules are different at the international level than in the NBA?  Five fouls rather than six?  In any case, you probably can't freely give away fouls against the US, even if fouling Drummond seems like a smart play.  I have the feeling I must be missing something.

You're missing how much Drummond will be playing and when.

He's insurance, not part of the regular rotation barring injury or foul trouble.

I won't say he's a practice dummy, but there is that aspect of it as well.

[Sparma]

Congrats to Andre.  He'll be able to contribute in a lot of ways.  It will be interesting to see if his defense perks up with all of the available help.  At the same time, I'm surprised they're going with 4 centers and that Kyle Korver's been bumped.  At the international level great shooters are at such a premium.  And if Andre can't hit 50%+ FTs, fouling him might often be the best way to get back in the game against this US team.  

Trying to figure this out, I wonder if the "Hack-a-Shaq" rules are different at the international level than in the NBA?  Five fouls rather than six?  In any case, you probably can't freely give away fouls against the US, even if fouling Drummond seems like a smart play. I have the feeling I must be missing something.

[WTF]

Oracle, Don is crazy this I not a team filled with slugs just a bunch of players he doesn't like so everything he say's has to be taken with a grain of salt or otherwise it'll taste like sh!t. You know he everything bad to say about every player on the team but consistently he sucks the drawers of a player like Kyle as if it's pure perfection.

Granted the team played like sh!t last season as a whole and I personally think that Monroe is a lazy turd, but with the piss poor direction of a GM and the failures of coaching why would most players be motivated to give 100%.

Right now I think SVG is a far better coach than the previous 4 and might be slightly better than Flip. SVG also has something none of our coaches ever had and that's front office power.

If Don had his way there be 15 Kyle Singlers on the roster   

[Oracle]

So I say SVG is very limited with this team as a GM and as a coach. He can't trade some of the players that need to be traded for the same reason that Dumars couldn't make a any trade for Charlie V and only one bogus trade involving Ben Gordon.

My goodness Don! I could almost(but not quite) buy a weak excuse for SVG that the east is a lot better than the ones you keep coming up for SVG!

We've lost Stuckey, CV, and Bynum likely will never play, and you think the team sucks?

Sorry, it appears that I have a lot more faith in SVG than you do! SVG will ride this team into the playoffs, or at a minimum they'll be one fierce battle for that 8th seed!

I complain a lot about SVG the GM, and rightly so, he's done things that IMO, have hurt our ability to compete even better!

But that doesn't mean that I don't think that SVG the coach can win with who's left!

Monroe is more than capable, and will be a great player for SVG, and Josh as well! Gone are the coaches without the balls to call them as he sees them! Drummond WILL improve, and the combination of Jennings, Augustin, KCP & Meeks are going to terrorize defenses even if 2 of them are a bit weak on defense, they'll defend in SVG's system a hell of a lot better than before!

IMO, this Piston team can finish 6,7, or 8th seed with this coach, and position may be dependent on what happens with Monroe and in season trades!

BTW, who are these slugs still on the team that you're talking about? Josh is a hard worker and focused with good coaching, and I believe Jennings, even though I want him gone, is beginning to realize he's got to get his stuff together!

But here's the real killer!!!

When we can get Dinwiddie & KCP together, that's going to be the closest to Zeke & Joe as we've come from a balance perspective of offense & defense!

KCP is going to be as good as Joe was offensive, and slightly better defensively! Dinwiddie won't be Zeke, but his size will add interesting capabilities that complement KCP's

Those two married with Drummond, makes the future of this squad a bright one IMO!

[Phil-Good]

What does a team need to win?

Guards who can score in the half court setting and defend they positions. Your guards need to be able to close games with high IQ basketball plays and clutch FT shooting. This is not easy to find.

Big boys who can defend the paint, rebound in traffic, block shots, score in the paint and possess A solid mid-range jump-shot.

Small Forward. I prefer A do it all guy. Point Forward type. Handle the ball, defend the other teams best player, take A small guy into the low block, take A big guy out on the wing and blow past him. My Small Forward is A do it all guy.


A smart head coach who knows how to keep the guys motivated and playing hard on defense. This head coach also has to know how to get the max out of the 10th, 11th and 12th man on the
bench. A great head coach has to know how to take A loss in January to win in April.

[Oracle]

It appears that the Lions still have mental issues relating to the quantity of penalties they rack up from game to game. My favorite player who never gets to play is Moore. I have followed this guy since he was a kid. He completes over 75% of his pass attempts while playing with 2nd string players in his NFL history. However, in college and highs school, this guy was almost a perfect football player outsmarting opposing teams game after game and season after season. Meanwhile, while Stafford can throw the football with a lot of pace, he lacks the brains to ever be an outstanding quarterback. He often panics and makes bad decisions. While Moore might not even make this Lion team, Stafford is still the golden child. Life isn't fair. Moore has never had a real chance to show his stuff and possibly might never be given the chance. Any way you cut it, in this last game, Stafford was horrible. Both of the backup quarterbacks looked like they would give the Lions a better chance of winning more games.

I'm really getting sick of Stafford pulling his Scott Mitchell routine... showing just enough leg to keep you interested, but never delivering the goods!

Sure Stafford is capable of making absolutely great plays, but it's useless because he has no consistency!

Give me a QB that consistently makes routine plays with the talent the Lions have, and I'll show you a solid playoff team!

[Oracle]

What does a team need to win?

1. Any team that shoots well from the perimeter can win! If that team can do it consistently, they will make the playoffs!

2. Any team that shoots well and has bigs that can protect the rim can not only make the playoffs, but has a chance to get out of the first round.

3. Any team that shoots well and has bigs that not only protect the rim, but are offensive threats, can challenge for conference leadership!

Golden State proved that if you can shoot, you're in ANY game, so our chances rise and fall with the guards since our bigs are known brick layers!

How about guards who are capable of preventing dribble penetration or give a strong effort on defense? And you didn't mention the number on characteristic of any good team. Players need to like and respect the players they play and travel with. They have to have the feeling that they are Brothers.

None of the things you mentioned have anything to do with what I said! No if I said what does a team need to be a champion, then your comments are 100% right on the mark!

Golden State's guards are TOTALLY defenseless, and it doesn't matter who likes who, just that the ball goes through the hole! Defense doesn't matter if you can out score the other team!

That's how the Pistons under Chuck Daly & Zeke did it, they simply out scored other teams and they won!!!

But when they wanted to be champions, they already knew how to score, so they learned how to defend, and they banded together because they had no other choice... nobody else liked them!

You have to start somewhere, and for us I can see that we need to put the ball in the hole better from the guards, but we have a real opportunity to do that AND protect the rim much better!

[Sponsored content]