Pistons trade deadline thoughts...

Some fans are upset the Pistons did next to nothing at the trade deadline. The only move being a trade of expiring contracts, sending the last big man on the bench, Primoz Brezec, to the Raptors in return for Juan Dixon, who will be the 2nd to last guard on the bench. In other words, a tall stiff was traded for a 3rd string guard.

OK, I might be exaggerating a tad, as Dixon can play a little, but he's the 5th guard in what is a 4 guard rotation. What purpose does he serve? How does this trade make much sense at all for the Pistons? If you have answer, let me know.

My biggest concern is the possibility of Dixon taking time away from Aaron Affalo and Rodney Stuckey. It best not happen, as the 2 young guards, despite the occasional mistake, have earned their PT. If anything, Flip Murray better start packing, as this trade marginalized him even more, if that's even possible.

For those who thought the Pistons should have made a bigger splash, whom do you suggest they trade? To get a big time player, it would have required giving up one of the big four, and that's not happening.

The Pistons were essentially handcuffed, as a trade of any importance would have come at too much of a cost. It would have been a lateral move, at best. Billups, 'Sheed, Hamilton and Prince are going nowhere. Not during the season, anyway. The Pistons are going into the playoffs with the roster that brought 'em, which should be plenty good enough to make the eastern conference finals.

On the flip side, we have the Cleveland Cavaliers, who blew up their roster in a wacky trade involving 3 teams. It's a great deal for the Cavs...If it was made in 2003.

Cleveland traded Drew Gooden, Donyell Marshall, Larry Hughes and a couple of warm bodies, and received 4 used-to-be's and never-were's. Namely former Pistons Ben Wallace and Joe Smith from the Bulls, along with Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West from the Sonics.

If you ask me, the Cavs got worse, not better. This is not the sort of trade you make for the long term. Wallace is a shell of the player he was in Detroit. For the next 2+ seasons, the Cavs have a center who's no longer a game changing defender, and gives you absolutely nothing on offense. All for around $15 million a year? The Bulls are jumping for joy after unloading that contract. Their joy will be diminished when they realize they have to deal with Hughes for 2 years...

As for the rest of the deal, Gooden and Smith are basically a wash. Szczerbiak has been long overrated. He can shoot, but doesn't know what defense is, let alone play it. West is what he is, a backup point guard.

Other than ridding themselves of a headcase in Hughes, how are the Cavs that much better? They always have a chance to make playoff noise with LeBron James, but all Cleveland basically did was shuffle the cards surrounding him.

This trade is supposed to worry the Pistons and Celtics? Hardly...

About last night...

Cavs 98, Pistons 82. Meet the new boss, not near the same as the old boss.


The Cavs were the better team, without question, and deserve to move on. The Pistons, on the other hand, embarrassed themselves. The game was far from over when Rasheed Wallace channeled his "Jailblazers" persona, and went batshit insane.

You could sense his frustration, as Sideshow Bob's flopping was out of control. Yet, the officials continued to buy into it. The final flop, giving Wallace his 5th foul, was the flop that broke 'Sheeds' head.

I haven't seen a player get under another's skin so thoroughly since Bill Laimbeer abused the mind and body of Kevin Duckworth in the 1990 NBA finals.

'Sheed let flopsy, the referees, and the crowd get to him. All to the point where he took down James with malice, fouling out in the process, and then blowing up with the power of a 10 megaton atomic bomb. The game, and series, ended when 'Sheed threw in the towel, and went berserk.

Not that having Wallace the rest of the game would have made any difference. The only Piston who showed any mettle at all was Rip Hamilton. The rest were tired, burned out, had nothing left to give. They had little, if any, energy, and couldn't even make the easiest of shots.

It was not how you'd expect such a prideful team to go out, giving up in game 6 of the 2007 NBA ECF. It was the last we'll see of this Pistons team, as we've come to know them over the past 5 seasons.

If there is one city that deserves a little sports karma, it's a blue collar city that's very much like Detroit, Cleveland.

I don't think I could have survived "The Drive," "The Fumble," losing the the World Series in the 9th inning of game 7, Jordan's shot over Ehlo, the "Human Rain Delay," the quick demise of "Super Joe" Charboneau, John Lucas, and Tim Couch, all in one lifetime. Cleveland fans have more than a little coming to them.

Good luck against the Spurs, as LeBron the Cavs are going to need it.

A few more Pistons - Cavs thoughts

I'm not normally one to give kudos to anything that appears on any of the worldwide leader's properties, as for the most part, they're evil incarnate.

But doing my due diligence in following up on the numerous MSM opinions as to what is going to be known as (Due to the lack of anything better) the "LeBron game," I came across this gem of a statement from Marc Stein...

When this series is said and done, what will we have to say about the Detroit Pistons?

Stein: Whether or not they can haul themselves off the mat again, it's time for the Pistons to get over themselves. They still have a quality core of players, but they're so much more arrogant than they were before going to the Finals in 2004 and 2005. They unite in blame against Flip Saunders whenever something goes wrong and play with a sense of entitlement that, frankly, has grown tiresome.

I couldn't have said it better myself. The arrogant vibe they exude is exactly why the Pistons aren't the most liked team in the NBA. In fact, I'd venture a guess they are amongst the most hated teams in all of sports.

I pretty much said the same as Stein during the Bulls series. I was fed up to here with their extreme overconfidence...

Their attitude is a big reason why most opposing fanbases despise the Pistons. (Well, that and the constant referee baiting and whining, of which Pistons fans are sick and tired of seeing) Much like deposed royalty living in exile, royalty who believes they still have the same station in life, the Pistons all too often carry themselves as if they are the defending NBA champions. Considering their NBA title was 3 seasons ago, they don't deserve that kind of respect. 3 seasons is eons in NBA years.

Their "If it ain't rough, it's ain't right" chest thumping (Even though it has been toned down, the arrogance still shows through in their interviews) and the undeserved sense of entitlement is a complete turnoff, and I'm a fan.

In some ways, I'd like to see the Pistons lose, if only to knock them down a few pegs on the cockiness meter. There's that, and also the fact that a loss will lead to some overdue changes in the makeup of the Pistons roster.

I then found myself looking back at my thoughts in regard to the ECF. Before the start of this series, I said the following...

This series comes down to 2 things, and 2 things only.

1. Can the Pistons stop LeBron James?

2. Will the Pistons stay interested?

Well, I think we can safely say that keeping their interest is no longer an issue.

As for stopping LeBron James, my first thought was that the Pistons showed that they could at least slow the James train down. But the more I thought about it, and how could you not with the non-stop James talk everywhere you turn, in the first 2 games, it was James stopping himself, not the Pistons.

So after the "LeBron James as Basketball Jesus" coming out party Thursday night, I'd expect nothing less than 35 points from the new Basketball Jesus. Considering the confidence level of his surrounding apostles (Can you really call them "Teammates" after their staying out of the Basketball Jesus' way was the secret to victory?) will be sky high in Cleveland, I'm not confident we'll see a game 7.

I'm not confident at all.

I've never seen 1 man take on 5, and win. I can now mark that off the list

I can't believe I watched one man literally beat five. That's not overstating things. LeBron James singlehandedly beat the Detroit Pistons in game 5 of the NBA ECF, 109-107, in double overtime.

James scored, drained, hit, and dropped what seemed like the last 50 Cavaliers points. Actually, it was the last 29 of 30 points, 25 straight, and obviously every single point in the 2 OT's. Those sort of numbers don't seem real, something that you would only see in a video game. But it did happen, and it's was all too real to the Pistons.

The last time I saw something even remotely similar was the famous Bernard King - Isiah Thomas duel in the 1st round of the 1984 playoffs, which also ended in a Pistons loss. (That was the game where Thomas just took over, and scored 16 consecutive points in the final 1:33 of regulation. Isiah's performance was the damnedest thing I've ever seen...Till tonight, that is) But that was a Pistons team on the rise. This one? It's reached a plateau, and more likely, is on the downside.

I'm not sure what to make of this game. I do know this. You'll never, ever convince me that the Cavs are the better team. No way, no how. Take one specific player off that roster, and they don't finish .500.

But the Cavs have, by head and shoulders, the best player. And in the new NBA, that is more than enough.

As for the game itself? Where do you start? For the Pistons, it starts, and maybe ends, with the Antonio McDyess ejection. I have to ask, does having Antonio McDyess for the entire game make any difference in this game? Honestly, I'm not sure, and we'll never know.

As for the foul itself, without question it was a hard, hard foul. But did McDyess deserved to be tossed? Give him a "Flagrant 1," and move on. The "Flagrant 2" call was total and absolute BS.

In the 1980's, this was an offensive foul. OK, maybe a no-call. Now it's a called "Flagrant 2," and you get sent to your locker room to think about what a bad thing you just did

I won't use the term "Criminal," as it's only a basketball game, but incompetent, ludicrous, asinine, and clueless all describe the call quite well.

I can't be positive if having Dice makes any difference, as LeBron James was not of this planet, but I can think of several times during the game where his presence would have been a huge help. If McDyess is in at the end of regulation, which he would have been, James doesn't drive untouched for those 2 consecutive sick slams.

Losing Antonio McDyess wasn't the reason for the loss, but it sure as Hell hurt the Pistons, in that they could not foul ANYONE hard from then on, in fear of another "Flagrant 2."

Even though the officials incompetence hurt the Pistons more than the LeBron's, I think Cleveland and Detroit fans will both agree that this was not a well officiated game for either side.

Not that the game was about the officiating. This was not exactly a battle of head coaching geniuses.

I have a question for Flip. How do you let ONE PLAYER beat you? Literally one player.

You know James is going to take the shot. Every shot. The very few times he did pass late in the game, the other guys who wear the same color jersey as James couldn't even hit wide open 6 foot J's. (I'm looking at you, Drew Gooden) Yet, James continued to get the ball, and finish. With authority. All this while rarely going to the line, the one place where James was human.

Someone who scored every damn hoop from the midpoint of the 4th quarter on only went to the line 14 times. If you aren't going to put James on the line, you'd think that you might continually double and triple team him. Aren't the Pistons supposed to be one of, if not the best, defensive teams in the NBA? You wouldn't know it by tonight.

For the LeBron's, all Mike Brown had to do was makes sure James got the ball. The one time he did try to do something, he screwed the pooch royally in calling a TO that ended up costing Cleveland a legitimate chance at winning in the 1st OT. After that, it was James, all James, all the time. Understandably...

Maybe McDyess stops this game winning layup. On second thought, even the combination of Laimbeer and Mahorn couldn't have stopped the Jesus James train tonight

When you let one man beat an entire team, a team that is supposed to be the cream of the east, you got out coached. Flip Saunders has some serious explaining to do.

As do the rest of the Pistons team. Even though they did play much better than in the 2 road losses, we still saw some uncharacteristic mistakes. Or maybe we should start saying boneheaded plays are now a characteristic of this team. Tayshaun Prince had an awful turnover late in the game. In fact, the Pistons had 3 straight possessions late in regulation that ended in turnovers. Lax ball handling in the 4th quarter has become the rule, rather than the exception.

For that matter, it was great to see Chauncey Billups drain the game tying shot. Hey, it's Mr. Big Shot, just like old times! But his attempt to win the game was the all too typical dribble out the clock, and take an off balance trey. Sure, it almost fell through.

But it didn't...

I'm sure much of what I'm feeling tonight is a knee-jerk reaction. That reaction being to blow the Pistons up. NBA has once again become a superstars league, and the Pistons have a roster full of very good players. But they don't have a Dwayne Wade, Kobe Bryant, King James, which it now seems to be what you need to win a title in the David Stern-ized NBA.

I know that it's not practical, and talk of roster changes is something that should not be even be mentioned till the season is actually over. But that's the problem with such a tough loss, one that is going to become an iconic, career defining win for LeBron James.

Even with at least 1 game left to play, this loss feels like a season ender.

The more I think about this game, it's the first time in a very long time that I feel like the Pistons just aren't good enough. I've kept the faith every time they found themselves backed into a playoff corner. The majority of the time, they lived up to that faith, and won those playoff series.

But now? The faith isn't there. Why?

If you can't beat a ONE man team, even if that one man is the best player on the planet, how good of a team can you really be?

Not one good enough to get out the eastern conference this season, and possibly for some time to come.

LeBron will get all the credit, and it's undeserved

You'll hear the MSM rave how LeBron James took over, and won tonight's game for the Cavs. Don't believe it. James played well, but he's not the reason Cleveland won.

The Cavs won because the Pistons made stupid decisions with the ball. Yet Detroit still nearly won the game anyway, which makes it all the more infuriating.

I give up, I can't figure the Detroit Pistons out. I don't know what team is going to show up on game night. I sure as Hell wouldn't want to be in Flip Saunders' shoes, as this team is a fucking mystery. I doubt he can figure them out either.

What I saw was the same shit, different night. The Pistons didn't show up at all in the 1st half, as usual. They did play an excellent 3rd, as usual, but decided to throw the ball all over Ohio in the 4th quarter.

What I saw was the Pistons pissing another playoff game away. It's frustrating as Hell watching the more talented team make silly, stupid, and asinine decisions with and without the ball.

What I saw was a point guard having another bad game. What was Chauncey Billups thinking late in the game? Wait, he wasn't thinking at all, if you go his strange decision making in the final 1:30. He started the stretch with an awful turnover, then piled on that mistake with a stupid foul even though there was 1 minute plus on the clock, then jacked up an ill-advised 3 ball that misfired, then ballhanding rather than shooting as the final seconds were ticking off.

Where's the real Chauncey Billups? I have to ask, as the guy on the court is not the Billups we've seen during his entire Detroit career.

Two stats says it all about the Pistons' starting point guard. 2 assists, 5 turnovers. That's going to be your max contract player?

I saw a power forward on the verge of going off the charts insane. Does anyone think that Rasheed Wallace will make it through the entire playoffs without being suspended? I really don't know if it's possible at this point, now that he has 5 T's.

I've given 'Sheed the benefit of the doubt since he arrived in the D, but getting T'ed up in a game like tonight's is outright stupid. Blame the refs all you want, but he had a T, and probably more, coming. And don't get me going on how he let James go to the hole, and rather than take him down or chance getting posterized again, just stepped back and let James thunder through. Bill Laimbeer would never have let that happen. Hell, Jason Maxiell wouldn't have let that happen.

I saw a center that is out of gas, and has nothing left to give. Chris Webber has maybe 10 effective minutes a game left in him. After that, he's just taking up space. If I'm Saunders, I'm giving the majority, if not all, his minutes to Antonio McDyess and Jason Maxiell.

Worst of all, I saw a Pistons team that lacked any sense of urgency, and full of hubris. Then again, I've seen their "We can turn it on at will" and "It's how we roll" attitude series after series after series. Why should I be surprised?

This series is going 7 games. The Pistons have given me no reason to believe otherwise. Christ, we see another performance like this, the series is ending in 6, and the Pistons are going home to face a very questionable future.

You want a max deal, Chauncey? Then it's time to step up

If Chauncey Billups fancies himself a max contract player, tonight's the night to step up and prove it true. The last 3 playoff games have me, and I'm sure others, wondering in the back recesses of our minds if Billups is actually worth a Steve Nash type deal.

Up to this point, I've been all for giving Billups what he wants. The Pistons don't have a backup plan if Billups bolts, let alone a decent backup point guard, period.

It's been a great 5 year run for this Billups led group, but how long can it realistically continue? I'd love to see him retire a Piston, with his number in the Palace rafters. But is that a practical scenario? The question is going to be asked. How long do you ride a Billups led Pistons team?

Just watching him struggle with a trap that most JV point guards know how to break has been painful. Billups has be slow to adjust, slow to find his shot, and slow to make decisions. His off kilter game has the Pistons' offense looking as ugly as it did during the Larry Brown years. Detroit shouldn't be struggling to score 75 points.

Saying that it has me concerned is an understatement.

Let's get all hypothetical, and just say that Billups continues to stink out the joint, and to be blunt, that's exactly what he been doing during the ECF. Here we go with the "What if's."

What if his struggles are the main reason the Pistons end up going 7, or for that matter, losing, to what is basically a 1 man team, the Cleveland LeBron's? What if the Pistons have reached the limits of their ability? Being over the age of 30, when point guards normally begin to lose a step, what if Billups' skills deteriorate faster than anticipated?

Joe Dumars and the Pistons will have some tough decisions to make.

Do you keep the Pistons as they are? Meaning you give Billiups a shitload of cash, and run with pretty much with the same cast of characters that has carried you over the past 5 seasons. Joe Dumars would be saying that the core team we now see is the same core we'll see for at least the next 3 years.

Joe D would be rolling the dice, in hope that he can restock this team on the fly, without much in cap room. That is possible, if he can hit Tayshaun Prince-like (Or even Jason Maxiell-like) gold with their 2 upcoming first round picks, along with the hoped for development of Carlos Delfino, Amir Johnson and Maxiell.

He would also be betting against the core group of Pistons (Billups, Hamilton, Prince, 'Sheed, McDyess) growing old and/or stale together, as the Bad Boys group did in the early 90's. That lead to some ugly mid-90's seasons, with the Pistons becoming a NBA afterthought. Remember the days of Ron Rothstein, Don Chaney, and 20 win seasons? I try not to...

The next few games playoff games will tell us plenty. It will go a long way in determining if the Pistons, as they are now put together, are a team that will continue to be a NBA title threat for the next few seasons.

It's funny how watching a soon to be free agent point guard play well below his capabilities can suddenly give thought to so many different questions. But if Chauncey Billups and the Pistons handle the LeBron's as they should, and quickly end this series, most of the above questions go away. Continue to struggle, as Bullups and the Pistons have, and the questions get louder.

No pressure, Chauncey...

Foul? What foul? There was no foul.

The Pistons 79-76 victory over the Cavaliers LeBron's came down to 2 possessions.

Rasheed Wallace didn't commit an offensive foul on his game winning shot. When 'Sheed made his move towards the baseline, Anderson Varejao Sideshow Bob went flying as if shot out of a cannon. In other words, he flopped like a fish out of water. Soccer players would have been proud of Bob's flop. It was a bigger flop than "Basic Instinct 2." Floppers won't get calls, so when you live by the flop, you die by the flop.

Sideshow Bob died by the flop.

Despite Bob's theatrics, Wallace had to still hit the shot. And that was one Hell of a difficult shot 'Sheed drained. Falling away, behind the backboard, yet he hit nothing but the bottom of the net. A great shot by a great (when he wants to be) player. 'Sheed's overall play in the 4th quarter was THE difference tonight.

AUBURN HILLS,MI - MAY 24: Rasheed Wallace is caught listening to his Rosetta Stone CD, "How to speak 'Sheedish to the media"

As for Cleveland's controversial final possession, as LeBron James tried driving the lane on Rip Hamilton, I swear I could hear the screams of "FOUL" from that state to the south. Just as loud were the screams of "NO FOUL" in the great state of Michigan.

What did I see on that play?

LeBron forced the contact, and Hamilton gave him plenty of body. It could have gone either way, so a no-call was the correct call. It was the only call the refs could make. If anything King James held the ball too long, losing any chance of another possession.

More upsetting to this Pistons fan was seeing Larry Hughes finding LeBron's miss landing smack dab in his hands, and having a short, uncontested jumper. Hughes short armed his follow up, barely getting any rim. He missed as badly as Donyell Marshall did on his attempt at the end of game 1.

That's the difference between the 2 teams. The Pistons don't miss that shot. The Pistons convert at crunch time, and so far in this series, LeBron and his caddies haven't come close.

The Pistons are now up 2-0, and to be quite honest, they are lucky to have control of the series. I'm still waiting for a few Pistons to show up.

Chauncey Billups had another ugly, turnover filled game. He picked up his game considerably, as Billups almost always does, in the 4th, but he has to play better for the Pistons to win in Cleveland.

Tayshaun Prince had his worst ever postseason game. 1 point? He was invisible most of the night. Chris Webber wasn't much better, it was obvious he was forcing the action. Antonio McDyess still can't by a hoop.

Just as Rip Hamilton carried the Pistons early in game 1, the baby eating Jason Maxiell, of all people, carried the Pistons in the 1st half. I did not see that coming. Maxiell brought an energy that both the Pistons, and the Palace crowd, were sorely lacking to that point.

Even though the Pistons are winning these tight games, it would be nice to see them play a full 48 minutes. They changed things up in game 2, and only took the 2nd quarter off, leaving them to stage another 2nd half comeback. Sooner or later, this living dangerously is going to catch up with them, and the comeback won't happen.

I fully anticipate King James to get the benefit of the doubt from the officials on his home court. So if we see the same sort of on/off/on performance in Cleveland from the Pistons, they will be coming back to the Palace tied 2-2.

There are two things that I can guarantee will come from another of the Pistons' low scoring wins. Expect the next 3 days to be filled up all sort of hairbrained NBA anti-LeBron conspiracy theories, and for the MSM to continue bitching about the "Boring" Eastern conference style of basketball.

It's all about the Rust Belt

The time has come.

This weekend, it's a battle royal for bragging rights...

DETROIT

VS

CLEVELAND

The Tigers take on the Indians for the top of the American League central division, and the Pistons are up against the Cavaliers in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals.

May the best pair of teams win.

These are two old school, rust belt, mostly ignored, thought to be downtrodden cities. Both areas are considered bad jokes by the rest of a very smug nation. They are continually described as the worst of large US cities. In the rest of the country, the only Midwest city that exists their minds is Chicago.

As someone who lived quite safely for several years in Detroit, and also spent quite a bit of enjoyable time in Cleveland, the rest of the nation doesn't know what they are missing.

You hear the same old cliches. Detroit is the "Murder Capital of the World." Cleveland is "The Mistake on the Lake." Neither is true, not that the rest of the country cares. Because (Sarcasm on) there is nothing at all wrong, bad, silly, old, awful, funny, strange or scary with other areas of our country. (Sarcasm off)

It's much easier to just keep Detroit and Cleveland as the butt of jokes.

For the next few days, Detroit and Cleveland are the epicenter of the sporting universe. But will the media treat it as such? Probably not.

What is going on between these two forgotten cities should be treated with the reverence that the worldwide leader in sports did the recent Red Sox - Yankees series, which was not nearly as compelling. The Yankees are 9.5 games out, for chrissakes! That series didn't mean much of anything in the big scheme of things, other than to rile up the constantly on the verge of hysterics, always wanting the center of attention, Red Sox Nation. Because, as you know, (Sarcasm on) Boston fans are the best in all sports. (Sarcasm off) They'll even tell you as much!

The big story in sports is what will be going on at Comerica Park starting tomorrow, and continuing at Jacobs Field next weekend. That battle will be going along with the high stakes action at the Palace tonight, and the Quicken Loans arena Sunday. (I do have to say that "Quicken Loans arena" doesn't roll off the tongue nearly as well as "The Gund.")

It doesn't get better than that, especially for two similarly thought of rust belt cities. Not that the MSM cares.

In hoops, the story won't be about Detroit vs. Cleveland. The story the MSM will prefer to push is LeBron James vs. the world. "OH MY GOD, WHAT WILL LEBRON DO?! Will he pass or shoot? He'll pass! No, King James will shoot!"

Christ almighty, it's more about the Pistons forcing LeBron into making those decisions, and what the Cavs will do to counter. But that's not nearly as compelling in their small MSM minds. The NBA is about stars, and how boring eastern conference basketball is when compared to the west. (Even though those high flying west teams never win in the playoffs. Look at the recent NBA title winners. The Spurs, who play in more of an east style, and 2 eastern teams, the Pistons and Heat. But that's another post...)

As for baseball, next weekend the Yankees will once again find themselves being pounded by the Red Sox on the same weekend the Tigers visit the Indians. Which series do you think will be the better story? On the field, it's easily the Tigers and Indians, but in the MSM? It's all about their east coast bias, so screw the flyover cities. You know all media eyes will be on Fenway.

That's a damn shame, as the more compelling season long race will be in the Central, not the East. Just as the more compelling NBA playoff series is in the east, especially when compared to the Spurs methodological destruction of the Jazz.

But it's the Western conference, just as it's the Eastern division, so they must be more entertaining, right?

Even if the rest of the country has no clue, the next two weeks should be a first class, white knuckle, E-ticket ride for both Detroit and Cleveland.

I had Robert Horry flashbacks

First off, it's doesn't get much uglier than 79-76.

I'm sure we'll hear nothing but bitching and moaning from the MSM and bloggers over how they would much rather being watching Phoenix or Golden State score 120 points each, than a defensive walk-the-ball-up, eastern conference slugfest.

I couldn't care less about the media bitching.

The only thing that counts is Detroit taking a 1-0 lead over the Cavaliers LeBron's in the ECF. A win is a win is a win for the Pistons.

Considering LeBron James' bad game (even if he had a near triple double, James was held in check), it would have been a shame to lose a game where James is shut down so effectively. Any game where Anderson Varejao Sideshow Bob arguably has a bigger impact than King James, that's a game the Pistons have to win.

The Pistons dodged a bullet. A huge bullet. A snub nosed, hollow point, .357 caliber bullet. The LeBron's were one missed Donyell Marshall trey from stealing home court in game 1 of the ECF.

The question Cleveland fans have to be asking is why didn't King James take the final shot? He was in the lane. If he doesn't make it, he''s probably fouled on the play. Yet he dishes to someone who's not half the player he is. Admittedly, Marshall was wide open, but also 23 feet away from the hoop, compared to LeBron's 5.

I have to admit that when I saw Rasheed Wallace leaving Marshall, hustling down into the paint to help on a driving James, and then looking back to see Marshall standing all by himself in the corner, I had Robert Horry flashbacks. Bad Robert Horry flashbacks.

For 'Sheed's, and the Pistons' sake, unlike Horry's shot, the 3 ball caught all iron. You don't get a more wide open shot than Marshall's opportunity. Then again, who would you prefer with the ball when the game in the line? James? Or Marhsall? I'll take Donyell Marshall 100 times out of 100. I want the ball out of James' hands.

Props go out to Rip Hamilton, who was the Pistons' only consistent offensive option. Rip's big game makes the Cleveland Plain Dealer's position matchup series preview even more laughable. The LeBron's beat writer called the shooting guard matchup...even?

Let's look at the SG stat lines...

Rip Hamilton: FG- 11-21, 3pt- 2-3, Rb- 3, Ast- 7, Stl- 2, Pts- 24

Sasha Pavlovic: FG- 4-14, 3pt- 1-3, Rb- 0, Ast- 0, Stl- 0, Pts- 9

That sure is one even matchup. I'd like to try the drugs the Cleveland beat writers are taking, it must be fun in their world...

Dale Davis saw the floor, but not in garbage time. He entered in the 1st half, with Chris Webber in foul trouble, and was damn effective in his limited playing time, coming up with a couple of big hoops in the paint.

Chris Webber actually made an in game appearance, after being all but invisible for the last 3 games of the Chicago series. C-Webb was nowhere to be seen in the 1st half, had a great 3rd quarter, and then just as suddenly disappeared back into witness protection.

'Sheed was 'Sheed. He was everywhere on defense in the 4th quarter, and hit some big time shots down the stretch. Though I'm still recovering from a near heart attack caused by his leaving Marshall all by his lonesome...

Chauncey Billups, to put it bluntly, had an awful game. You aren't going to win many games when your point guard has more turnovers than assists. Billups' performance, or lack thereof, is another reason I feel the Pistons' win tonight was huge. They won with their best player having his worst game of the playoffs.

Tayshaun Prince wasn't much better, going 1-11 from the floor. But Prince was effective in other ways, with 6 boards, a team leading 9 assists, and his normal rock solid defense on that guy Cleveland is all a witness for, or whatever is this post seasons' marketing gimmick...

I wouldn't expect LeBron James to continue to put up Larry Hughes-like numbers, so I doubt the Pistons could get away with this sort of game thievery again.

It can't be said enough, the Detroit Pistons dodged a bullet, stole a game, used up one of their 9 lives. Any metaphor you can think of for winning a game they easily could have lost fits this awful performance.

I'd break down the Detroit Pistons - Cleveland LeBron's series, but it's a waste of time

A waste of time? Why would I say that?

It's not due to my thinking that the Pistons will win the series. It's not because the Pistons have better personnel at 4 starting positions, and a deeper bench. It's also not because the Pistons won their regular season matchup 3 games to 1. It's also not due to the fact that when it comes down to 5 against 1, you always take the 5.

It's obvious that the Pistons are better and deeper team. That doesn't guarantee anything, as we've seen in other playoff series. This series comes down to 2 things, and 2 things only.

1. Can the Pistons stop LeBron James?

2. Will the Pistons stay interested?

If the Pistons can keep James somewhat under control, don't allow a superhuman effort, they'll win. Just refer back to the game the LeBron's won against the Pistons this season. James scored 41, and the LeBron's won in OT. In the other 3 games, the Pistons held James to 26, 21 and 20 respectively, all Pistons' victories.

As for staying focused, you would think that wouldn't be an issue for the Pistons. But somehow, it almost always is one. The LeBron's will be in this series as long as the Pistons will allow. When the Pistons decide to impose their will upon a game and/or series, not many, if any, teams are capable of stopping them.

I would not be surprised in the least if we saw this series turn out much as Pistons - Bulls. The Pistons will be the far better team, take a sizable series lead, then take a 2 or 3 game mental vacation. It's their M.O. It's in their DNA.

As a Pistons fan, their having to keep their backs against the wall is frustrating as all Hell, but it's almost expected at this point. We've seen their disappearing act all too often. The biggest fear is that they wait too long to wake up. It very nearly happened last season against the LeBron's.

If the Pistons manage to keep their motivation, and not buy into their own hype, it'll be their series to win.

So that's the breakdown.

Stop LeBron.

Stay interested.

It's that simple.