<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">He got the big ring and the big contract. He got the big house for his family in suburban Detroit. Rasheed Wallace finally found everything he was looking for, which should make him the most content person on the planet, right? Ah, of all the mistakes made trying to figure out Wallace, this might be the trickiest. Do not ? do not ? confuse happiness with contentment. In fact, if you ask any of the Pistons about contentment, they?re liable to get downright contentious. ?Don?t get me wrong, the money is nice, but it?s just not what I?m playing for,? said Rasheed, who changed his uniform number from 30 to 36 for personal reasons he declined to discuss. ?I?m playing every night to win, and win another championship. Playing for this team, that supersedes any amount of money.? After an improbable championship and a career revival, Rasheed Wallace hasn?t given us any reason to doubt him. We don?t plan to start now. </div> Full Story
what a great article when you look back at dynasties, the thing that seems to stick out is how tight-knit the teams were and how much they loved playing with each other. of course, the Pistons need to win another championship to even be considered a dynasty, but i love how the character of this team has become synonymous with "team first, me second". selflessnes is the norm. anyone coming in with a "me attitude" will quick be shot down by vets who now know what it takes to win it all. awesome.
This shows what a great player this man is. Even though i dont like the Pistons i hope he has a excellent year. This man is a champion all the way. Even though he was quite a 'bad boy' in the past I think that is over now. He has grown into a excelltent player. Wish him the best this year and in his career
Wow. I hadn't read that article yet. That was good, but a little short. I can't wait to see what he does with a full year with us. He and Ben really clicked for the short time he was there last year, so I expect Wallace X2 to make an even bigger impact this year!!
'Sheed always trys to down play it but he was truly the missing piece to Detroit's Championship puzzle. I'm also anxious to see what a full year with the Pistons yields for Wallace. Thank you Danny Ainge. Pistons fans are eternally grateful.
the pistons have a really nice team attitude. not like some players out there that decide to go to the highest bidder.
Hmmmm... he clearly can say that because he's on the Pistons, the best team in the L. I hope the Pistons do utilize their roster and coaching staff to its fullest before they ever break up and win as many championships as they can. My critic: it's interesting to see how well they defend their championship though. They have been saying all along they are one team with no egos and do play hard "hard work pays off". Well, it's true as they proved it by winning the championship last year... but I'm wondering if they can repeat this attitude. No matter how down-to-earth or egoless these guys may be, being on the top will envitably put some of those killer attitude in some players. Believe me... it's envitable !!! It's interesting to see how well they respond to "I'm on the top" feeling. Being underdog is much easier, because people don't put too much expectation on you, you're pissed, you're hungry, you wan to prove them wrong so bad, you're committed to the coaching and everything listed to be successful. But being on the top is much harder because you have to know all the tricks to stay there... I want to see how egoless these guys really are.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting PupMelo:</div><div class="quote_post">Hmmmm... he clearly can say that because he's on the Pistons, the best team in the L. I hope the Pistons do utilize their roster and coaching staff to its fullest before they ever break up and win as many championships as they can. My critic: it's interesting to see how well they defend their championship though. They have been saying all along they are one team with no egos and do play hard "hard work pays off". Well, it's true as they proved it by winning the championship last year... but I'm wondering if they can repeat this attitude. No matter how down-to-earth or egoless these guys may be, being on the top will envitably put some of those killer attitude in some players. Believe me... it's envitable !!! It's interesting to see how well they respond to "I'm on the top" feeling. Being underdog is much easier, because people don't put too much expectation on you, you're pissed, you're hungry, you wan to prove them wrong so bad, you're committed to the coaching and everything listed to be successful. But being on the top is much harder because you have to know all the tricks to stay there... I want to see how egoless these guys really are.</div> this may be a homer statement, but i don't see the attitude of the Pistons changing anytime soon....no matter how inevitable you may think. there's no way anyone new to the team will try to become "the man" (delfino, mcdyess, coleman, etc), because vets like Ben and Sheed will quickly shoot them down. also, there's no way larry brown will stand for it. he's not shy about benching a guy who doesn't want to play as a team (remember carmelo riding the pine during the olympics?).
'Sheed has changed his ways and hopes for another ring and I hope he gets it, the Pistons proved everyone wrong and I think they can do it again this year the only major obstacles will be Minnesota and Houston but in the finals Detroit will only have to play one of the 2. One thing intrigues me why did 'Sheed change his #?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting iamme:</div><div class="quote_post">this may be a homer statement, but i don't see the attitude of the Pistons changing anytime soon....no matter how inevitable you may think. there's no way anyone new to the team will try to become "the man" (delfino, mcdyess, coleman, etc), because vets like Ben and Sheed will quickly shoot them down. also, there's no way larry brown will stand for it. he's not shy about benching a guy who doesn't want to play as a team (remember carmelo riding the pine during the olympics?).</div> I didn't mean that some of the Pistons will try to be the man. I meant collectively, this team is on the top, they're the champs. Will they keep taking their opponents lightly like they did (Ben Wallace himself admitted) against the Raptors today? Here's the recap of that game: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/bask...s.ap/index.html <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Ben Wallace acknowledged the NBA champion Detroit Pistons took the Toronto Raptors lightly. "We thought it was going to be a cake walk," Wallace said.</div> Good thing they realised it and it is how well they respond to this game and bounce back that makes them great. I think they could but I expect Detroit to struggle for a little while (Brown missing the team is not an excuse) until they are finally able to start taking opponents more seriously. Like I said, being on the top inevitably makes you feel on the top and it could mean destructive to your perfromance. This game against the Raptors was an evident example. I expect more games of this from the Pistons but they'll be alright by late December.
They took teams lightly last year as well. Doesn't mean they are suddenly different players who have ego's. All the championship teams do it, which won't ever change. Hell Spurs did It alot last year. Honestly looking at the Piston schedule for the first month of the season, I expect a slow start. Most NBA champions do have average starts to the season. Certainly when you have a bench still trying to find their roles on the team.
