PistonsNationBlog.com - Detroit Pistons News & Views

Nets (93) @ PISTONS (100) / {boxscore}

It was pretty much a foregone conclusion that the Pistons would at least make the playoffs and now it’s official.  The Pistons extended their win streak to 3 games as the continue to pick up momentum heading into the post season.

Another promising performance from the red, white, and blue ballers.  There really is no better time to start clicking then right before the playoffs.

  “I think we’re getting better and better each game,” Bynum said. “They say whomever is playing the best going into the playoffs, is pretty good.” -DetNews

Against the Knicks it was the starters that really left their mark on the victory.  Last night it was the bench’s turn.  Led by Will Bynum’s 20 the Pistons’ second wave poured 46 points on the Nets.  Jason Maxiell followed up with Will with 11 points giving the Pistons a total of 6 players in double figs.

The Piston killer Devin Harris was canceled out scoring only 1 point (0/5 FG) before leaving the game in the third with a sore shoulder.  Vince Carter was half-man, half-dozen last night only scoring 6 points in 32 minutes, but he did drop 10 dimes.

Being out of the playoff picture, it was more about getting PT for the young guys for Lawrence Frank last night.  Rookies Brooke [that's actually a girl's first name] Lopez ( 16 pts, 7 rbs), Ryan Anderson (20 pts) and MI native Chris Douglas-Roberts (16 pts) all had nice showings for New Jersey.

Rodney Stuckey (8) and Rip Hamilton (9) combined for  17 assists for the Pistons starting backcourt.

The Pistons are back to being in a 7th place tie with the Bulls.  The Pistons play the Pacers in Indiana tonight, while the Bulls are at home against the Bobcats.  They’ll play each other Monday at the Palace.  Both teams are also just one game behind Philadelphia for the 6 slot.

GAME NOTES: Rasheed with 15 pts (6/10 FG) and a pair of blocks … No starters over 32 minutes … Curry expects to keep the same 9-10 man rotation for the playoffs … These playoffs will mark the 8th straight for the Pistons … Will Bynum now has five 20 or more point outings on the season … Pistons outrebounded the Nets 41-31 … Pistons now own a 6 game home winning streak against NJ … Jeff Van Gundy sounds off on Iverson and Isiah … second straight game shooting better than 53% … Pistons never trailed … The Happiest Aussie in Auburn Hills …

PISTONS (113) @ Knicks (86) / {box score}
What the hell got into the Pistons last night?  The energy level they played with looked like first month of the season energy, not the last.  The word is that the Pistons had all the extra pep in their collective steps via a canceled morning shoot-around from Michael Curry.

The were opening a can of whoop Knicks right from the start jumping out to a 10-0 lead with the Pistons getting basically whatever they wanted.  It didn’t get any better for the Knicks who were down by 20 or more most of the night.  Apparently 3 points attempts –which the Knicks went 9/28 on– are a defense substitute under D’antoni.

The ball movement was great (25 assists) and they were definately not shy about attacking Knicks down low scoring 56 points in the MSG paint.  Points in the paint and overall great shooting netted the ‘Stonz a 53.8% shooting night.  The Pistons murdered New York on the glass 57-33.

All Piston starters reached double figures led by Rip’s 22 (10/18 shooting, 2/2 3ptrs) and 7 assists.  All the scoring and assisting gave Rip a pretty ridiculous +30 +/- stat.

Antonio McDyess recorded his team leading 15th double-double with 13 points and 16 boards.  So, in the last two games ahgainst the Knicks Dice has a combined 38 boards.  That’s putting in work kids.

Rasheed, inspired by his own pre-game break dancing, also had a double-double with  14 points and 12 boards.  He and Dice both had a pair of blocks.

With the victory the Pistons are again in a tie with the Bulls for the 7th seed.  The Pistons are one win (or one Bobcats loss) away from clinching a playoff spot.

GAME NOTES: The Pistons and Knicks split the season series at 2 games a piece … First time since Feb. 1983 that the Pistons & Knicks played one another with both teams having a losing record … Rip was happy to play a full game in NY after being ejected from 3 of the last 4 @ the Garden … the 27 point win is the Pistons largest winning margin of the season … Hoopsworld: Bynum on the rise … The Pistons scored 63 by the half tying their season high … No starter played over 32 minutes for the ‘Stonz … Stucky: 14 pts, 7 asts … Rick Kamala’s rant on the Iverson experiment (vid) … Everyone but Walter Shape scored for Detroit …

{Box score} If you were told after the Iverson trade was made that someone on the roster was going to break the Pistons record for points in a quarter who’d have probably thought it would have been AI right?  Well if not him then Hamilton I bet.  Nope.  A guy who didn’t even figure to see much court time has capitalized in a big way.  Will Bynum scored 26 points in the fourth leading the Pistons to victory.

With Rip tossed at the end of the third quarter after going a couple of rounds with referee Marc Davis someone had to answer the call for the Pistons in what had been a tightly contested game throughout.

That someone turned out to be Will.  He was a perfect 6/6 from the field and his dribble penetration payed off to the tune of 14 of 16 made freebies.  The “Thrill” scored the Pistons final 13 points on his way to a new career high of 32 to go along with 7 assists.  Will’s record setting quarter bested Isiah Thomas’ 25 point third quarter in game 6 of the 1988 NBA Finals. (Isiah, Dumars, and Jerry Stackhouse all had 24 point regular season quarters).

Even while having a career night Will’s focus was on helping the team that saw enough in him in the summer league to give him his first guaranteed NBA contract:

“It doesn’t matter to me,” he said. “I could have sat on the bench and scored two points. I would still stand up and cheer. We got the win. I am satisfied, no matter what happens.” -Freep

Rasheed returned to the Pistons starting lineup for the first time since March 9th.  Rasheed gave the Pistons 12 points and a season high 6 assists (+ 3 steals). He and Will joined 3 other Pistons in double figures.  Tayshaun scored 14, Rip had 13, and Arron Afflao scored 12 in 25 minutes of work.

The win moves the Pistons into a tie with the Bulls for 7th place.   Any combination of two Piston wins or two Bobcat losses clinches a playoff spot for the Pistons.

GAME NOTES: Quotable: “I set a franchise record for screens. If you don’t mention my name, I am never setting another screen.” — Pistons center Kwame Brown, yelling to Bynum across the locker room during Bynum’s interview with reporters … A Larry Brown / Iverson reunion? … ESPN Vid spotlights sports’ role in Detroit … DJ Augustin with 22 for Charlotte … BobcatsPlanet: We’re Done … Vote Bing … Bynum with a +19 +/- … GO SPARTANS!!!

Pistons (98) @ NETS (111) / {box score}

This one is pretty simple. The Pistons couldn’t stop the Nets from redeeming themselves to their home fans after getting blown out by 29 two nights prior.  The Pistons had no defense for Devin Harris (19 pts, 11 asts) or Brooke Lopez (19 pts, 7 rbs).  They were also hurt by the outside shooting Keyon Doolling who scored 23 going 5/10 from beyond the arc.

Rip shot an accurate ball all night long going 11/18 from the field, 2/3 from downtown, and 5\5 from the free-throw line to lead the Pistons with 29.  But, all of Rip’s clean stroke and his 6 assists were not enough for the Pistons.  They were never really in this one.

Iverson didn’t help his cause for more floor time.  He played like hell last night.  In 17 minutes he went 1/8 from the floor for 4 points.  His disdain for coming off the bench gets stronger after outing #3:

“I’d rather retire before I do this again,” Iverson said. “I can’t be effective playing this way. I’m not used to it. It’s tough for me both mentally and physically. If I’m able to go out there, I should be able to get it done and I can’t right now. It’s my fault. I have to be able to overcome the adversity and do what I have to do. I just have to find a way to get it done. Not being 100 percent makes it harder and you can see that I’m not 100 percent.” – mlive

I understand his frustration, especially with the level of individual success he’s achieved during his career and how’s he’s achieved it.  But, is this doing “what ever it takes” as he stated after being traded here?  Are we going to have to hear this type of bitching after every game?

The Bobcats (34-41) lost last night in double OT to the Celtics, while the Bulls (36-40) were idle.

GAME NOTES: 27 assists for Pistons and Nets … 16 a piece for Herrmann, Stuckey, & Prince … Brooke Lopez turned 21 … Curry unfazed by Iverson rant … Memphis writer likes Laimbeer … Uncle Cliffy’s home invaded …

LAKERS (92) @ Pistons (77) / {boxscore}

Great run in the second quarter, everything else was pretty much all Lakers.  Will Bynum (25 pts, 11 asts) is really fun to watch while we wait to get back to full strength.

Who else watched the matchup cam (aka Kobe cam) edition of this game?  I did.  I watched the whole game that way, and I would not do it again.  It would be really great if I was a big Kobe groupee, or really wanted to analyze how guys work even without the ball.

Otherwise it’s just annoying.  You hardly ever actually see the ball go through the hoop.  It especially sucks when the player they isolate is not even involved in the action, like when they would have it on Kwame Brown.  It reminds you of a parent’s home video their kid’s youth league game.  You also miss all the replays, you just get to hear them described to you.

The only way I could see this being interesting is with a picture-in-picture enabled tv.

GAME NOTES: Pistons now tied with Bulls for 7th seed … 30 for Kobe, Lakers snap 9 game Palace losing streak … Rip and possibly Rasheed returning Saturday @ Wizards …  Isiah Thomas talking with Clippers about a j-o-b … Adam Morrison DNP-CD … 17-0 Pistons run to start the 2nd quarter, 20-0 Lakers run in the 3rd … Another McDyess double-double (14 pts, 12 rbs) …

Clippers (90) @ PISTONS (108) / {box score}

I must admit I was a little giddy when reading that Rodney Stuckey had a cold and Will Bynum would get the start if he couldn’t go.  Here at PN we’ve been the Bynum-wagon since day one.

“I’ve been waiting for this, praying for this,” said Bynum when asked about his first NBA start. - mlive

To say Will made the best of his first NBA start would be putting it mildly.  Will poured in a career high 22 points (10/19 shooting) and a career high tying 6 assists.  Will plays D too so give him 3 steals for the night and he only turned the ball over twice in his team high 44 minutes.  There’s definitely a place for Will on this team, and it isn’t at the end of the bench!

“Will did a great job,” said Brown. “He came out aggressively and softened them up a bit and they started focusing on him in our pick-and-rolls. That allowed for me and Dyess to get a lot of open shots.” - DetNews

Will wasn’t the only one who’s Pistons pride was compensating for the team being without their top four scorers.

Antonio McDyess had another game that made you proud to watch.  The 34 year old Warrior led the team in scoring with 24 points (11/18 shooting), boards with 17 (5 offensive) and blocks (2).  This was Antonio’s team high 12 double-double of the season.  Antonio is a man’s man on the court.  I don’t know that there’s ever been a Piston who’s earned the RESPECT McDyess has in the second half of this season.  No matter how the season turns out I’m glad I got to watch this guy represent my team.

Antonio got help down low from Kwame Brown who had his best scoring out put, 14 points, as a Piston.  Tayshaun Prince scored 23 and dished out a career high 12 assists.

Walter Herrmann (13 points) did all of his damage in the Pistons 34 point fourth quarter hitting key triples to keep the Pistons on top of the Clippers.

Although this win came against the lowly Clippers my hope is that the effort put forth by the team’s lesser stars will encourage renewed energy for the guys who weren’t suited up last night.

GAME NOTES: The Pistons have now beaten the Clippers 13 straight times …The Pistons also did not have the services of the PA stylings of John Mason … 55.7% shooting for the Pistons, 5/10 from three … Pistons converted on 13 of their 18 4th quarter shots … Clips Nation recapper … Amir Johnson was the only Piston not in the score book … 27 assists …

KNICKS (116) @ Pistons (111) OT / {box score}

The Pistons didn’t get the W, but it’s hard to find too much fault in the way they played for most of the game.

The Pistons controlled most of the game but the Knicks were able to make a late run to send the game into overtime where momentum carried them to their second straight come from behind win on the road.

For the Pistons it came down to some tough misses, and bad foul, and a inopportune turnover in the games closing second that left the door open for the Knicks to steal one on the Palace floor.

The Pistons entered the fourth leading by 10, but the Knicks kept battling and hitting shots while the Pistons were getting some tough luck misses.  Rip’s foul on Larry Hughes in the act of shooting a 3 with 10 seconds to go was the killer.  Hughes hits all three and ties the game up at 101 a piece.  Then with one more chance to win the game Stuckey’s dump off pass to a wide open Dice under the basket goes out of his hands and out of bounds.

What more can you say about Antonio McDyess?  Another ‘Ultimate Pistons Warrior‘ effort for the Dice-man.  Antonio had a man’s double-double pulling down a career high 22 renbounds (10 offensive) and putting in 21 points in his 43 minutes.  To put his performance in historical perspective; it’s Dice’s first 20-20 game since 2001, the first 20 rebound game from a Piston since Big Ben did it in 2006, and the first Pistons 20-20 since Bison Dele in December of 1997.  But, in true McDyess fashion the individual effort meant very little in a losing effort:

“It’s more disappointing to me,” we played hard, just came up short.” - mlive

McDyess was joined by three teammates who scored over 20 points.  Tayshaun scored 25 points along with 10 boards, 3 blocks and 4 assists.    Rip scored a team high 27 to go with 5 assists and 9 rebounds but he also commited a season high 8 turnovers.  Rodney Stuckey played one of hisbetter all around games  23 points, 8 boards, and 8 assists.

The Pistons, behind McDyess, owned New York on the glass.  The Pistons won the battle of the boards 64-39.  It’s hard to believe that with that big of a rebounding disparity, shooting 47% from the field, shooting 20/24 from the free throw line and getting 26 assists the Pistons lost the game.

New York took amazing care of the basketball though committing only 3 tunrovers in 54 minutes of play, whereas the Pistons came in high at 15.  The Knicks were lead by Nate Robinson who had 30 off the Knicks bench.  Nate has been on a 27 ppg tear since jumping over Dwight Howard.

GAME NOTES: The Knicks at 27-37 are in 13th place in the East, but only 1 1/2 games of the last playoff spot … David Lee racked up 16 points & 18 boards … The Pistons Care telethon raised 440,221 (including $1,000 from Knicks Quentin Richardson) for needy families … HHR with a good Bill Laimbeer interview … send your well wishes to Chuck Daly … 

Warriors (91) @ PISTONS (108) / {box score}

Well, that was refreshing.  The Pistons simply handled their business last night at the Palace.  It’s been awhile since this team has come out and just thumped their opponent.

To be fair to Golden State they were just simply too undermanned to put up much of a fight.  They were with out Corey Maggette (ankle), Andris Biedrins (personal), Monta Ellis (personal), Brandan Wright (shoulder) Stephen Jackson (hamstring), and Kelenna Azubuike (back).  They were only able to suit 8 players and to make matters worse were only able to get 10 minutes out of Rony Turiaf who tweaked his left knee.

“We got into a gunfight,” Warriors coach Don Nelson said, “and we had a knife.” - Contra Costa Times

This game was really decided in the first quarter.  The Pistons scored a season high 33 points in the first quarter.  They ended the quarter on a 20-4 run leading by 17. The Warriors shot only 5-of-23 in the opening quarter. The route was on from there.

“I thought we did a great job of coming out early, getting a big lead,” Hamilton said. “Me, ‘Sheed, ‘Dyess, too, only played two quarters. So I thought that was good for us.” -Freep

Richard Hamilton led the Pistons scoring with 22, his 5th straight 20+ scoring night.  All 12 Pistons scored in this one, and everyone but Walter Sharpe got was able to get into the rebounding column as the Pistons out boarded the the Warriors 54-40.

The one sided victory allowed the starters to get plenty of rest as a showdown for playoff seeding in Atlanta looms tonight.

After only getting 7 points against the Nuggets (all by Bynum) the bench really got to show their stuff last night scoring 48.  Jason Maxiell (16 pts, 9 rbs) brought the house down with viscous dunks, and Will Bynum (13 pts, 5 rbs, 3 stls) continues to show that he belongs in the rotation.

Was anyone else seeing this??

GAME NOTES: Stuckey: 14 pts, 8 asts  … 4 straight wins … 8 team steals … First win by more than 10 points since Jan. 21st … Sources: Nellie tells Crawford to opt out or he’ll be traded … The Warriors have used 36 different starting lineups this season …

Nuggets (95) / PISTONS (100) / {boxscore}

“There’s really no words that really can explain how good it made me feel,” Billups said. “I felt appreciated. I felt very, very appreciated for my years here. I want you guys and them to know that I appreciate you guys, and I appreciate the time that I spent here and how you guys all treated me. It was great. It was great to be appreciated.” – mlive

Last night was the best of both worlds for Pistons fans.  Chauncey returned to the Palace to a hero’s welcome and had a great game, but in the end the Pistons got their third consecutive win (and 3rd consecutive) as they swept their season series with the Nuggets for the 3rd straight year.  It would have considered it a win-win-win night for myself if I’d just hit for that $212 mill Mega Millions.  Maybe next time.

Chanucey was agressive last night picking up the slack for Carmelo Anthony who was serving a one game suspension from the Nuggets for refusing to come out of their previous game.  Chauncey led all scores with his season high 34 points.  There was also the business of showing the Joe and Co. what they traded away as Billups readily copped to this game not being any ordinary game for him.

Spurred on by a standing ovation and Mason’s signature B-B-B-Billups intro Chanucey went at his former running mates from the outset scoring 13 first quarter points and 21 by halftime.

“I may forget the game and what happened,” he said. “But the ovation and warm welcome the fans gave me, I’ll never forget.” – AP

The Nuggets had the Pistons down by ten at the break.  The Pistons were having a tough time finding good shots but I had a feeling that after a half with the excitement of Chauncey’s return to the Palace it would be a much better effort from hte Pistons come the second half.  It was a pretty good hunch.

The Pistons attack started to crisp and by the end of the third quarter they’d set up a 74-all tie for the 22,000+ Piston faithful in attendance.

You could tell that Rip really wanted to show Chauncey that he had the reigns of the team now as his and Billups went at each other.  Rip scored 21 (7/7 FT) and dished out 7 assists while trying to keep his good friend under thumb.

“At the beginning of the third quarter, I said, ‘OK, you done had your fun. First half, everybody yell and scream your name or whatever. Now I got to guard. Now I got to lock that thing up on you,’ ” Hamilton said. -Freep

The Piston starters had the sort of night that the Pistons Nation are used to out of their starting group.  All starters scored 16 or more points.  The two bigs Rasheed (16 pts, 10rbs) and McDyess (16 pts on 7/10 shooting, 12 rbs) both had double-doubles.

Tayhsaun Prince was solid as a rock last night.  Tay scored a team high 23 points on 9/15 shooting.  The ‘Long Arm of the Law’ also swatted 3 Nuggets shot attempts.

Was it ever nice to see a win at the Palace after dropping 10 of their last 12 at home.

“This was to me as big of a win or bigger than the two road wins that we just had because we owe it to the fans and we owe it to ourselves to come home and take care of our home court,” coach Michael Curry said. -Freep

About Iverson: There’s no timetable set for Iverson’s return.  The Pistons should know more after results Gergetown University where he’ll be undergoing tests on his back today.  This will be the third opinion Iverson has gotten for this particular ailment, but the Pistons aren’t going to rush AI.  There’s two ways of taking that.  Either they’re not going to take any chances with Iverson’s health or they’re in no hurry to rock the boat on the new found cohesion.

On a related note in the three games (all wins) since Rip has supplanted Iverson in the starting lineup he’s averaging 25.6 points on 50% shooting, and 7.3 assists.

GAME NOTES: The Pistons have beaten the Nuggets 13 straight times at the Palace dating back to the 1995-96 season … only 7 points from the bench, all from Will Bynum … Pistons has won 3 straight for the first time in 2 months … Sunday’s win against Boston made the Pistons the first team to beat every division leader … Nuggets TV analyst Scott Hastings, a former Piston, made a no-look, over-the-head shot from a chair on the sideline before the game … Jalen Rose on the game and the trade … Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post: “In a way, (Chauncey) will always be (a Piston) …

PISTONS (105) @ Celtics (95) / {box score}

Look at that.  Two in a row coming against two of the best clubs in the East on their home floors.  Yesterday afternoon’s win in Boston was particularly sweet two birds with one stone scenario.  One – it was a Sunday win, and B – it was against the Boston Celtics.  I could care less that they were without KG.  I didn’t mind not having to see his ugly mug on my TV screen.

The light for the Iverson apologists is growing dim.  It’s very easy to see that the Pistons are getting back to playing team basketball.  Less defensive liabilities, better ball movement with less standing around.  They bared a striking similarity to the team we’re used to seeing.  Just ask Doc Rivers:

“That’s the old Pistons we’re playing now,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. “The ball is hopping. They are playing together and I knew we were going to have to really compete. They had a lot of fire tonight.” - DetNews

Allen Iverson is right now listed as questionable for Tuesday’s tip with the Nuggets with his strained ego back.

Rip has gone out and shown Pistons brass he doesn’t just speak about it, he is about it. The Ripster again did his leadership thing propelling the Pistons attack with 25 points, 9 dimes and 6 boards.  Rip shot 6/12 from the field, 2/3 from beyond the long line and 11/12 from the charity stripe.

“We played our type of basketball,” he said. “That’s the thing for me with Tayshaun, Rasheed [Wallace] and [Antonio] McDyess, I always know they’re going to be at all times.” – espn

Rip Hamilton got help from fellow starter Tayshuan Prince.  Tay cashed in 8 boards and 15 points, 6 of which came on back-to-back triples late in the 4th that helped put a nail in the coffin of Boston’s aspirations of sweeping their season series with the Pistons for the first time since 1992.

Big contributions from Walter Herrmann and Will Bynum in the first half.  Herrmann had 11 first half points, 8 in the second quarter.  Bynum scored 9 and had 3 steals.  Two of his steals came off open court strips of new Celtic acquisition Stephon Marbury.  How about that?  Defense at the guard position for the Pistons.

The Pistons bench finally got the better of Boston’s, 30-21.

Marbury, by the way, had a very forgettable game in Celtic green.   Zero points, 2 turnovers, 4 fouls and 3 assists in 12 minutes.

The Pistons are now back to .500 with their next game being Chauncey’s homecoming tomorrow night.

GAME NOTES: This was the Celtics first home loss to an Eastern Conference opponent … Pistons converted on 34 of 40 free throws, a season high … 3 rebounds for the second unit, all by Maxiell, none defensive … Maxiell 6/6 free throws … only 6 turnovers … Should the Pistons handle Iverson’s back like the Lions did Kitna’s? … Sheed 15 points, 6 boards, 1 tech (15th on the season) …

PISTONS (93) @ Magic (85) / {box score}

Show of hands of those surprised how much better the Pistons have looked after 1 3/4 games without Iverson.  You, Iverson groupies in the back, put your hands down please, this is a poll for Pistons fans.

Rip Hamilton, back in his starters role, led the Pistons to a desperately needed win over the Magic.  Rip scored a game high 31 points leading a second half surge that ended the Pistons 8 game skid. Heck, even Michael Curry gets it:

“Rip carried us offensively with good shots and good decision-making,”- mlive

Did Rodney Stuckey hit the sophomore wall or was it just the lack of freedom playing alongside Iverson.  Well, last night’s 22 pointing out would suggest the latter.

The Answer for Detroit is not (and never was) Allen Iverson.  AI is not a cancer with the Pistons, he just doesn’t fit the team.  It’d be the same as asking Tayshaun Prince to lead the And1 team.  It’s two different schools of basketball.

Is Iverson a bad guy?  Not from what I’ve seen.  Does he give it 110% on the court everytime. Seems to.  But that’s like trying your damnedest to fix your car with the wrong tools for the job.  Good luck getting anywhere.  And just to reiterate this is not Iverson’s fault.  I put the blame on Joe Dumars for trying to present this trade for anything other than a money move.  If he knows his team, and he knows basketball like he claims he knew Iverson was not a good fit.  And Michael Curry should have sacked up and made this move ages ago.  Given the situation Rip should have never have been asked to come off the bench in favor of Iverson.

Pistons (87) @ HORNETS (90) / {box score}

“I said I would come off the bench as long as we win,” Hamilton said. “But we’ve been losing. We are 4-12 with me coming off the bench. Something’s got to give. Something’s got to change. I am on board with doing whatever for the team but coming off the bench and we’re not winning, that’s something totally different.” -DetNews

I was relieved when I read this quote.  Finally a break from the company line. Finally a break from a  “we’ll be fine we just need to stick together” line.  It’s painfully obvious it’s not working and it’s about time someone on the team acknowledged it.

I’ve always thought the Pistons have a better chance of winning with Rip/Stuckey.  I don’t think it should be lost on anyone that the Pistons played better team basketball after Iverson went out with a stiff back.

The offense had a purpose and defense was more aggressive.  They actually had opportunities to win this game down the stretch but didn’t get the breaks (read key defensive rebounds) you need as opposed to lack of effort.

There were still issues.  Like the perimeter guys not crowding CP3, instead letting him survey the whole court and pick the Piston’s poison for them.  The also did a poor job of containing the Hornets on the glass with David West and Tyson Chandler combining for 27 boards.

It also didn’t help that Rasheed (16 pts, 7 rbs) threw in the towel, literally.  Rasheed’s towel pitching earned him a second tech for the game and 16th on the season which of course means an automatic one game suspension.  But hey, it’s not like we could use him down low against Dwight Howard right?

Keep that back stiff Iverson.  We’re counting on you.

Pistons (91) @ HEAT (103) / {box score}

Well, the Pistons are now on a 7 game losing streak and are now a game below .500 which hasn’t happened this late in the season since 2001.

They seemed to have a little more fight last night, but still didn’t look anything like what they should with the talent that they have on their roster.

The deployed some zone defense last night but the Heat just simply shot over it.  Daequan Cook (16 points) hit 4 triples of the Heat bench helping to bust that zone. The Pistons kept it close for 3 1/2 quarters, but then it was all Miami.

Dwyane Wade scored a game high 31 points and got his Heat teammates into the action with him with a career high 16 assists.

Allen Iverson led the Piston scoring with 22 even though it seemed like he never converted when getting to the rim.  It’s (past) time to take the emphasis off a player who’s only passing through town.  Rodney Stuckey continues to leave his body impressions all over that sophomore wall.  Stuck played 30 minutes totaling 8 points and no assists.  We coluld really use something more from Stuckey.

Pistons (78) @ CAVS (99) / {box score}

The Cavs wanted to wear one of their umpteen alternate jerseys leaving the Pistons to their home jerseys at Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena.  They might as well been white flags.  The Pistons were never in this game as they dropped a season high 6th straight game.

We’ve been talking about the Pistons playing .500 ball for a long time and last night they went out and made it official.  The effort, well there was no effort.  The defense was token if you’re being polite.

“We stunk the gym out,” Allen Iverson said. “We usually play together on the road, but we just acted like strangers out there. We didn’t get it done.”

Even that is understating it.  I was also wondering how The Answer The Contract has come to be the team’s official spokesman after every game?

In lieu of the blow out we got to see Walter Herrmann (13 pts) in action.  He was actually pretty aggressive so look for Curry’s next epiphany to be moving him to the starting lineup.

HAWKS (99) @ Pistons (95) / {boxscore}

Defense continues to be a major problem (along with cohesiveness, playing at home, playing on the road, beating subpar teams, beating good teams, consistency, energy, pride and coaching) with the Pistons.  Last night they gave up 99 points to the Hawks on 51.4% shooting at home where the Pistons have lost 6 of their last 7.

Everybody clap your hands for former Piston Flip Murray for sticking it his former team for 23 points on 10/18 shooting off the Atlanta bench.  All-Star Joe Johnson added 27 points of his own for the Hawks cause.

Allen Iverson returned to the Pistons lineup after missing Tuesday’s game with flu-like symptoms. but still was not 100% despite his game high 28 points, 15 of which came in the fourth.

“I actually threw up at a timeout, so I was struggling,” he said. “I was really weak.” - mlive

So the Pistons will trip into all-star break on a three game losing streak and with not much to build upon for the second half of the season.