raymond felton should stop whining and just suck it up, like daye...

[frankied]

raymond felton is playing horribly.
funny, though, he seems to think that part of his problem is the lack of confidence from the coach.
maybe he should just take the advice of some of our posters and just suck it up and stop whining.
after all, players shouldn't have confidence problems like that.
especially a guy like felton who's been in the league a long time.

"He knows he's struggling and he's done what every professional basketball player does when he is struggling with his shot – you stay after practice and get more shots up.

But for the Portland Trail Blazers' point guard Raymond Felton, he says he's reached a point he's never been at as a professional athlete and playing for someone who doesn't have confidence in him, is very frustrating.

“I know I'm struggling, but it's hard to perform the way you know how when you know they don't have confidence in you,” Felton told CSNNW.com. “Never in my days playing basketball, have I felt like a coach wasn't confident in my abilities. It's hard to play knowing that.

"Coming in and out of games is throwing my rhythm off, but it's something that I'll get through.""
[Only admins are allowed to see this link]
gee...who would ever think that such considerations would impact on a player's game.
at least felton has been starting all year, playing 33 minutes a game despite playing horribly.

[deusXango]

Frankie, Wise, Fly, Grizz, Don, Murph, and Merc I'd like to run a few things past you'all for your consideration. Mind you now, 9 out of 10 times I don't place much credence in nbadraft.net mock drafts because I think they suck for us, but the latest have us taking two very interesting players; Arnett Moultrie in the 1st round and Jeff Withey in the 2nd. I've been impressed with what I've seen of these two young men so far, albeit limited views. I'm thinking, also, that if this turns out to be the case then it's imperative that we acquire a couple more first rounders!

My eye is on New Orleans #12 and Utah's #13 to go along with our projected #6. With these two picks we could excellerate our return to contention by filling the holes neccessary to do so; Kendall Marshall, a real PG at last, and John Henson or Quincy Miller to upgrade the athletecism and length of our bigs. Brandon Knight is one hell of a guard that we shouldn't make the same mistake we did with Rodney Stuckey, by forcing him to play out of position...he's a very talented SG, but a SG naturally not a PG! How about starting to develop a backcourt of Marshall and Knight now? Should that work out Stuckey immediately becomes one of the most dangerous players in the NBA. Coming off the bench! Hopefully he and J.J. survives the purge when it comes to bartering for those extra picks, but we may have to sweeten a deal by including one or both in a package. Thoughts?

[Oracle]

It's the Rodney Stuckey show for the Pistons!

Monroe almost shut out!!!

[Grizz]

Frankie, Wise, Fly, Grizz, Don, Murph, and Merc I'd like to run a few things past you'all for your consideration. Mind you now, 9 out of 10 times I don't place much credence in nbadraft.net mock drafts because I think they suck for us, but the latest have us taking two very interesting players; Arnett Moultrie in the 1st round and Jeff Withey in the 2nd. I've been impressed with what I've seen of these two young men so far, albeit limited views. I'm thinking, also, that if this turns out to be the case then it's imperative that we acquire a couple more first rounders!

My eye is on New Orleans #12 and Utah's #13 to go along with our projected #6. With these two picks we could excellerate our return to contention by filling the holes neccessary to do so; Kendall Marshall, a real PG at last, and John Henson or Quincy Miller to upgrade the athletecism and length of our bigs. Brandon Knight is one hell of a guard that we shouldn't make the same mistake we did with Rodney Stuckey, by forcing him to play out of position...he's a very talented SG, but a SG naturally not a PG! How about starting to develop a backcourt of Marshall and Knight now? Should that work out Stuckey immediately becomes one of the most dangerous players in the NBA. Coming off the bench! Hopefully he and J.J. survives the purge when it comes to bartering for those extra picks, but we may have to sweeten a deal by including one or both in a package. Thoughts?

DX .. It seems like teams with 2 quality PGs can work out quite well. Certainly Joe Dumars was a very good PG whenever the team needed him to be. So I think he thinks it is not that tough a transition to make from SG to PG. That has turned out to not be true, and it has been a significant miscalculation that has put the team an extra 2 or 3 years behind in rebuilding. I honestly believe that other than JJ, Knight, and Monroe, no player on the Pistons would be desired by another team due to the combination of low talent yet high salary. I mean, Ben Gordon would have to play like Rip Hamilton in the best year of his career to be worth his salary, and he is far from that even with some recent improvement. Therefore, I dont see us geting any pick higher than 30th from any other players than the 3 named. So I see the Pistons chances of obtaining higher draft picks as futile at this point. There are consequences of mismanaging and devaluing the skills and talents and positions on a team, and Joe Dumars has been careless and working under some real detrimental misconceptions about NBA teams: (1) SGs can play PG fairly easily, and the position of PG itself really isnt that important, (2) shooting skills are far more important than any other basketball skill, and seeking players who can have a great all around game, both sides of the court, just is not a key to becoming a great team, (3 ) you dont need to develop young, athletic players at key positions, (4) the inside post game is not key to winning basketball games, (5) keep your players happier by paying them more than they could get anywhere else, (6) you dont need good head coaches except when contending for a title, (7) self-disciplined and highly motivated players are no better than any other player with more or less talent, (.8.) young players, any player, can learn to play 2 or 3 positions without any negative consequences, (9) it is more than OK to play an NBA game with a nonstandard complement of positions such that there may be no PF nor PG nor even a Center on the court for extended durations of the game.

These are serious misconceptions and that is why Joe is no longer a GM I care to have around. Honor him for his past glory but kick him out for turning away from the very ideas that made him and the Pistons great enough for 3 championships during his superb work during those title years with the Pistons.

[Grizz]

Look at how well Stuckey can play when not over-burdened by playing PG, and playing alongside a real PG, like Knight. Gotta give credit to Frank as well. Players get better, the head coach gets credit because Stuckey has not played this well over such a stretch of games since his rookie season.

[Oracle]

Stuckey Blowing UP!!!

[Oracle]

Look at how well Stuckey can play when not over-burdened by playing PG, and playing alongside a real PG, like Knight. Gotta give credit to Frank as well. Players get better, the head coach gets credit because Stuckey has not played this well over such a stretch of games since his rookie season.

Stuckey was #1 on my list of underachievers for this year, and he's turning that around in a hurry!!!

[deusXango]

I do believe I'm beginning to believe. Stuckey is playing his ass off and I like it! I've been Lil' Larry's biggest critic but as far as his grade for this season, so far, I'd have to give him an A-.......what he is succeeding in doing is changeing the culture of this sorry mess of a team that Joe's given him, and these young men are playing with pride, determination, and without the drama they were know to exhibit in the past. !Bravo Mr. Frank.

[deusXango]

Tonight on NBA TV Bill Laimbeer is one of the co-hosts, along with "The Czar of the Telestrater" Mike Fratello, and in his breakdowns of games being played and insight into what's needed to do things for a particular team to succeed, he's constantly out in front of Fratello, a proven NBA head coach. The most impressive thing I noticed is his knowledge of the players in the league; their strengths and shortcomings. He very well may not be a part of this team at any point, but the man is one hell of a basketball mind, and I believe he would be a terrific administrator. The "Bad Boys" will always be tops in my book. They set a standard of excellence that is yet to be reached, and Laimbeer was one of the brightest on the team.

[Grizz]

Tonight on NBA TV Bill Laimbeer is one of the co-hosts, along with "The Czar of the Telestrater" Mike Fratello, and in his breakdowns of games being played and insight into what's needed to do things for a particular team to succeed, he's constantly out in front of Fratello, a proven NBA head coach. The most impressive thing I noticed is his knowledge of the players in the league; their strengths and shortcomings. He very well may not be a part of this team at any point, but the man is one hell of a basketball mind, and I believe he would be a terrific administrator. The "Bad Boys" will always be tops in my book. They set a standard of excellence that is yet to be reached, and Laimbeer was one of the brightest on the team.

DX, thanks for saying that .. I heard Fratello make a crack during a highlight clip about the top of the key being where Laimbeer used to excel shooting from, and now I get it .. I guess I was listening to Laimbeer as well and didnt know it.

I would like to see him get a shot at GM or HC, if not in Detroit, then somewhere else. No one ever outsmarted BIll Laimbeer as he was into every moment of a game mentally. Determination and Smarts are good qualities for a GM / HC to have. But Frank is proving himself a good HC and Gore made the right decision to over-rule Dumars and choose Frank instead.

[Grizz]

I do believe I'm beginning to believe. Stuckey is playing his ass off and I like it! I've been Lil' Larry's biggest critic but as far as his grade for this season, so far, I'd have to give him an A-.......what he is succeeding in doing is changeing the culture of this sorry mess of a team that Joe's given him, and these young men are playing with pride, determination, and without the drama they were know to exhibit in the past. !Bravo Mr. Frank.

This is the Stuckey we saw his rookie season .... but our GM made the WRONG decision to put Stuckey at PG and to leave the team without a PG for close to 3 seaons. Many the time before RS acted up last season against Q, had I pointed out that Stuckey would be a good player if you just put a decent PG to play with him and put him back at SG where he could flourish .. BUT NO .. some GM had to justify another bad decision, the trading of Billups, and so compounded the problem and NEEDLESSLY pushed Stuckey in the wrong direction ... Mr. Dumars .. SEE SEE SEE ... what you did so stupidly wrong? (Kind of similar to your pointless, stupid dumping of Aaron Afflalo) Now watch all the in the pocket Media fall all over themselves on cue to proclaim how great Dumars is now that the team is playing more players at their natural positions .. when it is YOUR FAULT Dumars that the roster was so screwed up in the first place.

[Sebastian]

I do believe that Stuckey is finally in game shape and that his conditioning has caught up with the rapid pace of the compressed season.

The League better watch out -- Stuckey and Knight are jelling.

[FlyDog]

That was a fun game to watch. I thought Monroe got way too caught up in his individual match-up with Cousins early in the game, and it screwed him up. I hope he bounces back Sunday and puts his horrible game out of his mind. Stuckey was amazing. I might need to dig through my closet for his jersey if he keeps this up. How about Knight? 23 points, 10 assists and ZERO turnovers. Vantastic.

I hated the little leprochaun Larry signing, but by golly, he's got this team playing hard on both ends of the court. At times, they look a little "Chickens with their heads cut off" on Defense, but I attribute that to their overall youth, and or lack of intelligence (Maxiell.....Stuckey). Hell..........at least they try hard, which is something I haven't seen from this team since maybe 2005, 2006.

[FlyDog]

I'm gonna try and temper my Stuckey enthusiasm. He has always played pretty well against bad teams. I wish we could play the Nets and Kings every night..........oh wait........we do!

[deusXango]

I do believe that Stuckey is finally in game shape and that his conditioning has caught up with the rapid pace of the compressed season.

The League better watch out -- Stuckey and Knight are jelling.

Both Stuckey and Knight feel they have something to prove at the NBA level, and I believe that they're finding out they are good for one another (much like Isiah and Joe). I hope and pray that their development continues without interruption because last night was the most entertaining game I've seem in a loooong time! Should Stuckey keep this up he's gonna prove me wrong on a lot of issues........prove me wrong "Big Hoss!"

[FlyDog]

I disagree on your view that Knight isn't a PG, and it's not just because he had 10 assists and no TO's last night.;-) It looks to me that he has very good court vision and he has made some GREAT, thread the needle passes this year. Gotta remember, he's only 2 years removed from high school. I'd develop him as a PG.

[FlyDog]

Until now, I thought all of the "Racially insensitive" Jeremy Lin stuff was being blown out of proportion by politically correct do-gooders. But I find this ESPN headline incredibly offensive.

[Only admins are allowed to see this link]

I mean............isn't that the equivalent to using the "N" word? Wow..........

[Fennis Dembo]

The Real Notes and Quotes from the Sacramento game not the stuff we get from the beat writers - by Biff Burns

Biff Burns: Stuckey had 36 points. The most by a Piston this season.
Coach Frank: When you’re hot, you’re hot. He was en fuego, on fire, as they say in Spanish.

Biff Burns: You’ve won 6 out of 8 games, but you still haven’t won one third of your total games yet.
Coach Frank: You are harshing out my mellow. You are the ultimate buzzkill. I’ve got a new nickname for you, Buzzkill Burns.

Biff Burns: Tashaun Prince had a fine game with 22 ponts.
Coach Frank: You guys in the media need to talk up Tayshaun. All I have been hearing about is Jeremy Lin Linsanity. How about some Tayshaun Prince Prinsanity?
Biff Burns: Okay. Here are the comparable stats for last night:
Linsanity Points 26 Rebounds 2 Assists 5
Prinsanity Points 22 Rebounds 10 Assists 5

Biff Burns: You sat Austin Daye for the entire game. His confidence level is really down.
Coach Frank: Austin is so lost out there on the court that he needs a GPS to find the basket. I am hoping some time off will clear his mind.

Biff Burns: Trader Joe Dumars, 1,201 days since his last trade and counting.

It was the Pistons Beach Party at the Palace.

To get the crowd in the mood of “Beach Night” the Piston coaches were dressed in wet suits, masks, snorkels, and flippers.
A fan yelled: You guys are in over your heads, alright! Too bad your team can’t tread water!

It was is an image we’ll all have trouble erasing from our brains. Piston broadcasters George Blaha, Greg Kelser, and Mark Champion were dressed in Speedos. This was not a good idea on any level.

Tom Gores was dressed as the Big Kahuna from the movie Gidget. He kept yelling, “Surf’s up", to the crowd.
There were a few responses from the crowd. “Cowabunga dude! Got any weed? Wipe out, you Haole! (Haole is a word used mainly in Hawaii to describe a white person.)

The cast of “Hawaii 5-0” were no-shows. They weren’t crazy enough to leave the warmth of Hawaii for frigid Michigan in February. Danno wasn’t booked here.

Joe Dumars and Charlie Villanueva sang a duet as the crowd left the arena. Just like Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon in the movie “Beach Blanket Bingo” they sang “Pineapple Princess”.

Pineapple princess, he calls me pineapple princess all day
As he plays his ukulele on the hill above the bay
Pineapple princess, I love you, you're the sweetest girl I've seen
Some day we're gonna marry and you'll be my pineapple queen

[FlyDog]

I enjoy a good, stereotypical jab about another person's race as much as the next guy........but don't insult a man's heritage.

Biff- Funny as hell, dude. As always...........

[frankied]

had to be the block on jason thompson, late in the 3rd quarter.
it kept sactown within 4 points and they got a transition bucket out of it, and then detroit took off on a run that got them the lead.
just a great great play. stuckey looked like ben wallace on that one.
when he made the block, i initially thought it had to be ben, he got up so quickly on it.

[frankied]

I disagree on your view that Knight isn't a PG, and it's not just because he had 10 assists and no TO's last night.;-) It looks to me that he has very good court vision and he has made some GREAT, thread the needle passes this year. Gotta remember, he's only 2 years removed from high school. I'd develop him as a PG.

i agree wholeheartedly.
knight has the mindset, the head for a good point guard. you can see that he sees the right course, even if does not correctly execute what he is trying to do.
plus, he's very smart. that much is obvious. he'll get it.
if stuckey had his brains, he'd be the best point guard in the league.
last night was a beautiful game because you could see that stuckey is pretty much freed up from having to think and make critical decisions. instead of trying to figure out how he should run the offense, he's concentrating on how to break down his man. he's horrible at the former, but very good at the latter. the more he stays away from the former and does the latter, the better off the team and stuckey will be.

[Oracle]

Until now, I thought all of the "Racially insensitive" Jeremy Lin stuff was being blown out of proportion by politically correct do-gooders. But I find this ESPN headline incredibly offensive.

[Only admins are allowed to see this link]

I mean............isn't that the equivalent to using the "N" word? Wow..........

I'm shocked that a truly mainstream outfit like ESPN could let that one get by them.

Ok, it was a bit funny, but only if it was from a friend meaning no malice.

The reason you don't do things like that is because it tends to give license to those that are haters... really stupid thing to do.

BTW, earlier in American History Greeks were called some nasty stuff, including the N-Word. We were referred to as Olive N-Words. Even though it was largely gone by the time I was born, family members still recount stories of abuse.

[Oracle]

I disagree on your view that Knight isn't a PG, and it's not just because he had 10 assists and no TO's last night.;-) It looks to me that he has very good court vision and he has made some GREAT, thread the needle passes this year. Gotta remember, he's only 2 years removed from high school. I'd develop him as a PG.

i agree wholeheartedly.
knight has the mindset, the head for a good point guard. you can see that he sees the right course, even if does not correctly execute what he is trying to do.
plus, he's very smart. that much is obvious. he'll get it.
if stuckey had his brains, he'd be the best point guard in the league.
last night was a beautiful game because you could see that stuckey is pretty much freed up from having to think and make critical decisions. instead of trying to figure out how he should run the offense, he's concentrating on how to break down his man. he's horrible at the former, but very good at the latter. the more he stays away from the former and does the latter, the better off the team and stuckey will be.

Fly, I totally agree, Knight can be a PG, he has all the capabilities required.

Now he's still a bit of a tweener, but as you pointed out, he's 2 years removed from HS, which means he's ready to learn the PG role(man I wish we has LB to teach him, or even Chauncey).

[deusXango]

I disagree on your view that Knight isn't a PG, and it's not just because he had 10 assists and no TO's last night.;-) It looks to me that he has very good court vision and he has made some GREAT, thread the needle passes this year. Gotta remember, he's only 2 years removed from high school. I'd develop him as a PG.

i agree wholeheartedly.
knight has the mindset, the head for a good point guard. you can see that he sees the right course, even if does not correctly execute what he is trying to do.
plus, he's very smart. that much is obvious. he'll get it.
if stuckey had his brains, he'd be the best point guard in the league.
last night was a beautiful game because you could see that stuckey is pretty much freed up from having to think and make critical decisions. instead of trying to figure out how he should run the offense, he's concentrating on how to break down his man. he's horrible at the former, but very good at the latter. the more he stays away from the former and does the latter, the better off the team and stuckey will be.

Fly, I totally agree, Knight can be a PG, he has all the capabilities required.

Now he's still a bit of a tweener, but as you pointed out, he's 2 years removed from HS, which means he's ready to learn the PG role(man I wish we has LB to teach him, or even Chauncey).

Oracle, I want to apologise first for leaving you off the list of posters that I asked for feedback as I truly value your insight and comments...you're one of the regulars that I think is very smart, thoughtful, and funny.
Gentlemen, what I said was "Brandon Knight is one hell of a guard that we shouldn't make the same mistake we did with Rodney Stuckey, by forcing him to play out of position...he's a very talented SG, but a SG naturally not a PG!" In spite of his tender years and slight build right now I was thinking "special" in the way DWade and Kobe are special. He is a hard worker, basketball smart, sees the court very well, and capable of scoring from any place on it....the only player we've got with that skill set. Like Kobe and Wade you can pair him in the backcourt with any type guard and he'll be effective, but with a real PG, and Stuckey we'd have an amazing backcourt for years to come. I think that he's a budding superstar and playing along side a natural PG wil speed his development towards that end.

[Rett]

I said early in the season that this team was going to come into it's own....
last night showed ALL of the possibilities....



And............I will say it again......


THEY HAVE HEART!!!


GO PISTONS!!!

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