<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Better? Or just different?The Pistons' roster, with the addition of center Nazr Mohammed and guard Flip Murray , appears to be set. They don't make the Pistons stronger. They simply give them a different look.Coach Flip Saunders said he will dust off plays he felt he could not use last season because of the offensive liabilities of Ben Wallace ."The playbook was probably half of what it was because of that situation," Saunders said. "Now we will be able to have an offense where we can utilize everybody. We are going to have guys who are going to come over and trap and cheat over early because they are going to have to guard all of those guys. I think some of our guys are going to be more effective because of Nazr and Flip, because offensively they are able to do things."</div>Detroit News is the source. I think besides Piston fans I'am the only one who think they will still be a good team. The same defensive team? Not at all but they still have a loaded offense and that was one of the main reasons they won so many games this season. For the future it's also good to not have long, fat contracts clogging up your cap. What do you guys think?
I think they will be a different team, and when the offense is not firing, they will struggle to win. It's a lot easier to control the consistency of the defensive end. I think they will look like world beaters some nights, and more often, will look average. It will depend, more than ever, on the competition in the Eastern Conference, more than their level of play. It's very difficult to pinpoint where Cleveland, Chicago, and Miami will be in regards to the Pistons. It's comparing the Pistons to those teams that makes me wonder if they are good enough to win another Conference title.
I think people are really giving Detroit the short straw nowadays. They'll come back and do alot better than most ppl expect. They still have their 3 best players (Billups, Rip, Sheed), and Tayshaun is getting better all the time. Nazr is a decent guy to have around, and Flip can flat out shoot. I'd be shocked if they got less than 50 wins.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (nba dogmatist @ Jul 21 2006, 10:35 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I think people are really giving Detroit the short straw nowadays. They'll come back and do alot better than most ppl expect. They still have their 3 best players (Billups, Rip, Sheed), and Tayshaun is getting better all the time. Nazr is a decent guy to have around, and Flip can flat out shoot. I'd be shocked if they got less than 50 wins.</div>I completley agree. I think that people are forgetting all of the talent that this team has. Replacing an offensive liability in Ben Wallace wont hurt as much as you guys expect. They picked up Nazr who can run the floor for a big man and his free throw shooting isnt a liability like Wallace's is. I am expecting them to still get about 55 wins this season.
Ben Wallace is still a huge loss, but I think we can trust Nazr Mohammed to take over the center position. Plus, Detroit isn't even done in the off season. Al Harrington could come here, and Delfino wants out. Flip wants a more offense-oriented style of play. It's not Piston going to work style, but it will result in W's anyway.
I think the pistons will actually be better. You still have 3 all-stars, Tayshaun Prince and a center who will be able to put the ball in the basket. Then we have depth again with Murray and Dupree on the bench with Delfino, Maxiel, Dyess and Amir. The pistons style will be more run and gun than defense but will still put up good defensive numbers because they still have the great defenders in Prince and Billups and then Sheed is so long its hard for other players to shoot over him and Rip is getting better all the time.I hate to say it and soundl ike such a homer but i think we will do better this year than we did last year. If the heat can win the title with Jason Williams and Walker on the same time then i really think defense is over rated in the NBA and not as needed to win as they make it sound
I still think they are an elite team, anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themself. I just think the offense is a little inconsistant but hopefully with the playbook opened up it will be different.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (GrandMasterA @ Jul 23 2006, 09:10 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I think the pistons will actually be better. You still have 3 all-stars, Tayshaun Prince and a center who will be able to put the ball in the basket. Then we have depth again with Murray and Dupree on the bench with Delfino, Maxiel, Dyess and Amir. The pistons style will be more run and gun than defense but will still put up good defensive numbers because they still have the great defenders in Prince and Billups and then Sheed is so long its hard for other players to shoot over him and Rip is getting better all the time.I hate to say it and soundl ike such a homer but i think we will do better this year than we did last year. If the heat can win the title with Jason Williams and Walker on the same time then i really think defense is over rated in the NBA and not as needed to win as they make it sound</div>Billups is not that type of point guard in which you run and gun. It won't offensively at the level the Pistons want in expense to all the defense lost with Ben Wallace. I say the Pistons are a 50 win team next year.
As you can tell the only people on this site with any level of intelligence still consider the Pistons contenders, and that is just what they are. We have 3 All Stars, and 1 who will be one this year. I don't think our defense is gonna suck next year, it will have a dent in it but it will still be Top 10. The O will improve with Nazr and Flip, the Pistons are in fine shape.
The signing of Flip Murray gives them another decent bench option. I'll go from my prediction of them getting 53 wins to 55 and maybe passing the Bulls. I don't really have a prediction for the Bulls but the Pistons can be good enough to get 2nd. That's a tough division for them though. 3 of the top 4 teams are in there. I wonder how that will turn out.Thanks for calling me unknowlegable. I don't see them having much of a chance to win it all. They will struggle in the 2nd round. I'm going to take out the anger I have, from no one giving the Suns a chance, on the Pistons.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Pistonfan11 @ Jul 24 2006, 01:26 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>As you can tell the only people on this site with any level of intelligence still consider the Pistons contenders, and that is just what they are. We have 3 All Stars, and 1 who will be one this year. I don't think our defense is gonna suck next year, it will have a dent in it but it will still be Top 10. The O will improve with Nazr and Flip, the Pistons are in fine shape.</div>So anyone that says the Pistons are going to struggle without the DPOY are unknowledgeable? Mohammad is not good defensively as what I've seen. He is out of position a lot and a center is the anchor in what makes a good defense.
Quote me on this, the pistons will go further than the bulls. I flip flopped on this issue but with their new additions, i think their a top 3 team in the nba. Ben is not as important as people might think, they'll miss his 2 blocks and 2 steals but they won't miss his missed freethrows, his constant pouting and his horrible offensive game. I'm actually rooting for the pistons now to prove everyone wrong.
theyre still gunna be contenders but I don't think Nazr will be as much of a presence when it comes to the boardsi hate the pistons but theyre still a great teamyou say Ben Wallace leaving isnt a big deal but he was the one grabbing the rebounds and dishing the ball to the other players on the team so they could work their offensive magic..they're gunna have a harder time taking control of the pace of the game without Big Ben
