:: BULLDOGS and BRONCOS ::

The Pistons lifeless? Say it aint so. That is the reason I’m begining to HATE the Pistons. They are the most inconsistent winners in all of sports. Their egos barely fit into most stadiums and thats how they play. They beat teams when they want to, and when they don’t feel like playing they lose. Most days they just play well enough to win and it gets them by. I think it has to be one of the worst tickets in basketball; I can’t believe people would pay the “World Champ” prices for tickets to come out and MAYBE see a hard playing Pistons team. There is NO reason they should have lost last years conference finals exept for very poor attitudes and lack of emotional play. Do I think they have a good team…Yes, when they want to play basketball, but how often is that?

I think the Cavs series is going to be a REAL test whether they are ready to make a SERIOUS run at the championship like they’ve been talking about all year. They’ve pretty much said that they have something to prove about LeBron (that he’s not all that), so I guess we’ll see if they can bring it each night.

There is NO reason they should have lost last years conference finals exept for very poor attitudes and lack of emotional play.

I don’t agree. The Pistons were TIRED (their fault, since they were taken to seven games by the Cavs), and Rasheed was hobbled by a sprained ankle (we both know what those are like). Yes, the Pistons have looked like slackers at times this season, but they are definitely coming into this playoff run more rested than they were last year. Let’s see if it pays off.

One thing is for certain: WHEN they face San Antonio, they can’t dog it, or it’ll be over before they knew what happened.

All I have to say is 82 WINS & a World Championship. Being “tired” is no excuse…nuff said.

82? Hmmm…now those Bulls were good, but not THAT good!

I don’t think anyone will compare that Bulls team to the current crop of Pistons.

My bad–”72 Wins”. The point was not to compare this years “rag-tag” Pistons team to the BEST team in NBA history. The point was simply that the godd teams can play hard every game and still have enough left in the tank to win playoff games and not use the regular season as an excuse for losing in the playoffs. As long as there’s a team in Detriot there will be a million excuses for why they don’t win.

Now, now…let’s not get testy!

The Pistons had a lot of problems last year (gosh, Pat Riley must be a GENIUS to figure out that fouling Ben Wallace during the last five minutes of a game can be a good strategy). But don’t tell me that that the regular season can’t tire a good team out, especially when you don’t have a reliable bench (not true for the Boys in Blue this season). Geez, look at the Bulls’ lineup in ‘96: Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc, Kerr, Harper, Longley, Rodman, Edwards, Salley, Wennington, Buechler…geez. That was a DEEEEEEP team.

so the Heat were smarter than the Pistons? Where was the Hack-a-Shaq if fouling Ben was the Pistons downfall? Just to get things straight…If you have a deep bench, then it’s ok to play hard all season long and go deep into the playoffs. But if you don’t have a reliable bench then it’s exceptable for the starting five to just coast and play when they feel they can expend some energy? Another agreement between us; that we shouldn’t compare this years (or any years) Pistons to the ‘96 Bulls. They were just that good!

Smarter? Maybe!

Flip Saunders didn’t have his squad under control. Rasheed and Ben hated fouling Shaq, and when they finally tried it, he made his shots (sort of like when Miami started fouling Ben this year, and he made HIS). I think Flip understands his team a little better this year (I’m sure their slacking has caused him some sleepless nights), and I know his team understands him better (they’ve willingly adopted a zone defense).

Is it acceptable to coast? Never. But that’s why teams lose. I won’t make EXCUSES for the Pistons losing last year, but I will point out possible reasons why they blew their chance. The same thing goes for this year: the Pistons CAN win it all, but do they have the intensity to do it?

I believe that they WILL beat Cleveland, but the Spurs will be a whole new challenge. I look forward to the rematch, but I won’t be predicting a winner. I’ll just keep my fingers crossed.

IF they make it (BIG IF!) Spurz in 5…