How good are the Pistons?

[Guest bigm350]

Maybe its just me, but I can't help but feel that the Pistons are not getting the same respect as teams like the Spurs, and even the Clippers. Now I know that the Clippers are the 'feel good' story of the early NBA season, and the Spurs are the defending champs, but I feel like the Pistons are getting somewhat snubbed. They're off to a great start, yet I see that the Heat are getting the headlines in the Eastern Conference( probably due to Riley coming back), but even before that, all the talk seemed to center around Shaq and Dwyane Wade.

 

Is it because of last year's 'Malice at the Palace'? Is it because this team lacks a true superstar player? Probably alot to do with both, but it looks like the Pistons are even better this year, than they were during their championship run two years ago, and their spot in the Finals last year.

 

I think the Pistons are the real deal, but it doesn't seem like the rest of the nation thinks so. Am I right, or wrong?

[razazteca 0]

Is it because this team lacks a true superstar player

Its a boring team, who exactly is going to give the soundclips for the media other than Rasheed? At least the Spurs has the Desperate Housewife dating Tony Parker. Chauncy, Rasheed, Ben, Tayshaun, Darko need to hit the talk radio circuit and shows on ESPN.

[MikeJordan23 0]

The Pistons are boring? Huh?

[bobobrazil1984 0]

If they win the title this year they should absolutely be considered one of the greatest modern teams. That would be one quarter short of a 3-peat.

 

This year their offense has improved by leaps and bounds... but their defense and rebounding has slipped a bit, it concerns me a wee bit because high scoring teams fall in the playoffs all the time while D and reboudns pull you through, but they are and have been my pick to win it all. If Dumars can just pull off one big trade to get a SOLID and CONSISTENT bench addition instead 3 inconsistent up n down guys, they'll be unstoppable. yes i'm a big pistons fan, and I love the starting five.

 

I also feel that they dont have superstar PERSONALITIES... because at this piont, if Chauncy or Rip were traded to a shitty team tomorrow, they'd be putting up 25 points up and be considered "superstars", so i personally dont agree with the "they dont have any all-stars/superstars" on their team. I honestly feel the backcourt is sacrificing stardom to play together and WIN. Which is why both should be on the All Star team ahead of some guards on bad teams who have more PPG.

Edited December 15, 2005 by metr0man

[snuffbox 0]

Maybe theyre underrated if you live in Detroit and expect them to have their own 24 hour channel...

[cabbageboy 0]

Honestly, it's just because outside of Detroit nobody likes the Pistons for shit. The Pistons have always been a team when they are good that a lot of people wish would simply go away. The Eastern Conf. has so much more interesting potential teams than the Pistons, like the Heat, Pacers, even the Cavs if they can ever get it going.

 

That said, I don't think anyone in the East is on their level this year.

[razazteca 0]

I think the Pistons are the real deal, but it doesn't seem like the rest of the nation thinks so. Am I right, or wrong?

Don't worry people will jump on the DETROIT BASKETBALL bandwagon when the playoff picture becomes clear. If nothing else you got John Sally from FSN to pimp them everyday but nobody really watches that channel so it won't be as big as the Lakers or Shaq bandwagon.

 

The Pistons are boring? Huh?

They got all skill and no personality.

[Damaramu 0]

Honestly, it's just because outside of Detroit nobody likes the Pistons for shit. The Pistons have always been a team when they are good that a lot of people wish would simply go away. The Eastern Conf. has so much more interesting potential teams than the Pistons, like the Heat, Pacers, even the Cavs if they can ever get it going.

 

That said, I don't think anyone in the East is on their level this year.

 

I like the Pistons starting 5.....if they broke it up I wouldn't like them but right now I find those 5 immensly entertaining.

[Rendclaw 0]

I will take all skill and no personality at any sport. I like how they're called boring because aside from Rasheed being a walking soundbite most of the time, the rest of the team is professional and handles their business.

 

The national media has always underrated the Pistons since this run began. Hell, they were giving the title to the Lakers until the Pistons blew them out in 03.. then in 04, they were still slighted, though not to the degree that most Piston fans would have you believe, and they came within 10 minutes of winning that one too. This year, everyone and their mother are predicting the Spurs to repeat, and while I won;t argue too much about that because they are a phenomenal team, the Pistons (even at a record of 17-3) are flying under the radar again. By winning, they are forcing people in the media to talk about them, as they have the best record in the league.

 

My personal opinion is that if they get the homecourt, their chances of winning the title back from the Spurs go way the hell up. I love watching them play as it is basketball how it was played back in the 60s, where almost everyone got to touch the ball and set up their teammates. That's why I loved the Showtime Lakers of the 80s, because while they all could put the ball in the basket, and they were not selfish. If Ben Wallace was more of a scoring threat, they would be the most unstoppable starting five of this era.

 

Let everyone else go with the sexy, chic picks to win it all. I like my chances with the Pistons.

[Kurt Angle Mark 0]

Honestly, it's just because outside of Detroit nobody likes the Pistons for shit.

 

I actually think that they are now one of the more popular teams in the league.

 

Example: about 40% of the crowd were cheering for Detroit when they played the Clips and Suns on the road.

 

Either that or many people from Detroit got out of town as soon as possible and headed to the sunny west coast.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

^ i was listening to the Clips game on the radio, which I do somewhat regularly on wdfn.com since i'm out of MI these days. Usually the announcers are usually a little slow to call the play until a few secs after it happens, since its radio, so I was sort of listening to the crowd to guage whether the home team scored or whether the Pistons scored, and its usually easy to tell, but that Clips game I had no idea, since you'd hear a loud cheer whenever anybody scored.

[The Czech Republic 0]

They were the last team to lose a game this year, and were one win away from a repeat. Who the hell is underestimating them?

 

I will take all skill and no personality at any sport. I like how they're called boring because aside from Rasheed being a walking soundbite most of the time, the rest of the team is professional and handles their business.

 

The national media has always underrated the Pistons since this run began. This year, everyone and their mother are predicting the Spurs to repeat, and while I won;t argue too much about that because they are a phenomenal team, the Pistons (even at a record of 17-3) are flying under the radar again.

Let everyone else go with the sexy, chic picks to win it all. I like my chances with the Pistons.

Oh great, the Pistriots.

 

By the way, basketball doesn't lend itself to radio. It's the opposite of baseball in that regard.

[dh86 0]

Pistons are still being disrespected..I still hear people mentioning Miami as the team thats gonna beat them..its gonna definitely take another title for the respect to pour in

[Guest Vitamin X]

Please tell me you're joking.. Miami isn't even close to Detroit's level, even the ESPN analysts will tell you that.

[The Czech Republic 0]

Pistons are still being disrespected..I still hear people mentioning Miami as the team thats gonna beat them..its gonna definitely take another title for the respect to pour in

Did the Pistons move to Boston overnight and not tell anyone? JESUS CHRIST THEY'RE THE BEST TEAM IN THE LEAGUE NOBODY IS DISRESPECTING THEM

[J. Hungerford Smith 0]

I don't understand how anyone can call the Pistons a boring or unexciting basketball team. Just because they don't really have a "marquee" player like a Kobe or an Iverson, doesn't make them boring. In fact I think it's more interesting because they're a bunch of scrappy underrated players that always play hard and leave the flashy dunks and passes at home.

 

I'm surprised the users here aren't all about them, because if you think about they're the guys in the NBA like people like Benoit are in WWE, ridiculously talented but underappreciated and overlooked.

[The Czech Republic 0]

Anyway, I don't think the Pistons are being disrespected, it's just that they don't get an abundance of fluff pieces and media blowjobs. I think all the analysts are willing to say they're the best team in the league. I haven't been watching TNT lately so I dunno if they are or what. At any rate, I wish you'd all shut up about being "disrespected." You sound like you're in the mob or something.

[razazteca 0]

"Chauncey Billups is the best player on the best team in the NBA and should be considered a MVP candidate"

[bobobrazil1984 0]

i would agree that this season they are not being disrespected. i would also agree that they were slightly before the season began, being ranked as 4th, i can see a proven winner feeling a little disrespected by that, but now they are getting their due, with such an outstanding record, anybody who doesnt looks like a fool.

[alfdogg 0]

I think they were saying 4th as in they can't go any higher if they don't win their division. Surely no one really thought the Nets or Cavs would be better.

[Rendclaw 0]

double post

[Rendclaw 0]

I was listening to my favorite sports radio show this morning, and the host was talking about how the NBA is missing the boat by selling the players instead of the teams, something I agree with.

 

In a couple of cases, you have to sell the player because the team is complete shit, but the networks and the league were selling individual matchups before Jordan ascended, and in the end it takes away from the actual matchup. That's why a match between the two contenders for last year's title got short shrift compared the the overblown and overhyped soap opera which is the Lakers vs. the Heat....

 

Like I said before, the Pistons record is forcing people in the sports media to talk about them. I saw a stat where there have been only three teams in I think the last ten or twelve years that have had a better record at 25 games. That's just unbelieveable when you think about it.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

I think people are confusing "respect" with "coverage amount". no question the Pistons are getting respect. They're just not getting the coverage that average-to-good teams with "superstars" get.

 

At this pace, the Pistons are on track to become not just a "good" or "great" team, but barring a collapse or injury they are on track to become a LEGENDARY team... now is the amount of coverage they're receiving consistent with that? The Nets going on a hot streak gets the same or more coverage. In that sense, there's a very real gripe, not quite "respect" but something close to it.

 

Personally I'm happy with it because it just fuels the Pistons players, and the NBA is shooting themselves in the foot by not making the Pistons the centerpiece of NBA coverage b/c if they get back to the Finals, well then everybody will whine about how they don't care, whatever. You woulda thought they'd learned this lesson with the Spurs but apparently not. again i dont care, the only finals matchup that matters to me is seeing a Det vs SA rematch.

 

I think they were saying 4th as in they can't go any higher if they don't win their division. Surely no one really thought the Nets or Cavs would be better.

well first, some analysts (though the minority) were actually picking one of the two to get past the Pistons, and yes, to the Piston players, saying "The Detroit Pistons will not be as good as the Miami Heat or Indiana Pacers this year" was a sign of disrespect to what they've done the past 2 years. McDyess has been recently quoted as saying it made him ill to see them being ranked as 4th or 5th during the off-season, so it definetly fuels the players (i just hope they dont wear themselves out going on a regular season tear).

Edited December 28, 2005 by metr0man

[Guest Vitamin X]

In a couple of cases, you have to sell the player because the team is complete shit, but the networks and the league were selling individual matchups before Jordan ascended, and in the end it takes away from the actual matchup. That's why a match between the two contenders for last year's title got short shrift compared the the overblown and overhyped soap opera which is the Lakers vs. the Heat....

 

Yes, and which one turned out to be the better game?

 

Pistons are playing at just too incredible a level right now to even think the Spurs would have a chance in Auburn Hills. Lakers-Heat features two great superstar players who feuded publicly with two legendary Hall of Fame coaches going at each other with similar records.

[Rendclaw 0]

In a couple of cases, you have to sell the player because the team is complete shit, but the networks and the league were selling individual matchups before Jordan ascended, and in the end it takes away from the actual matchup. That's why a match between the two contenders for last year's title got short shrift compared the the overblown and overhyped soap opera which is the Lakers vs. the Heat....

 

Yes, and which one turned out to be the better game?

 

That's the point I was making. The game turned out halfway decent almost by accident, considering there were stretches where neither team could throw it in the ocean. When TV analysts were "jokingly" calling the previous game the JV game, I just had to shake my head. I heard an opinion that the Pistons-Spurs game was treated as a three hour pre-game show for the Lakers-Heat, and I couldn't agree more. It wasn;t even about the game itself for all the backstory that were doing between Riley, Jackson, Shaq and Kobe. Just cover the game itself instead of asking the question "Will Kobe and Shaq acknowledge each other?" five thousand times. I wouldn;t have been all that interested even if they squared off at half court and started throwing blows. The look that Shaq gave Lisa Salters at the end of the game spoke volumes. Even he is tired of it.

 

This is the seedy underside to the NBA that both the networks and the league itself have cultivated. For all the clamoring people do about the mega-hyped, spoiled brat modern-day athlete, they sure get bored easily with a good defensive, teamwork-oriented game.

 

Pistons are playing at just too incredible a level right now to even think the Spurs would have a chance in Auburn Hills. Lakers-Heat features two great superstar players who feuded publicly with two legendary Hall of Fame coaches going at each other with similar records.

 

Its getting to the point where the fans are talking about the Pistons negatively in a joking manner. Hell, the record itself is like playing 2k5 or 2k6 or Live.... Now everyone is gearing for the letdown, even going so far as to say that they might drop the next two against the Heat and the Cavs. The Heat maybe, if Shaq and Wade go off and actually shut the Pistons down defensively which I can't quite see, unless Riley breaks out the Thug Ball style for this game.