I think it's going to be a tough series... expecting a lot of fouling, dragging out of the game. it's not going to be pretty, that is for sure. i expect there to be some chippy chippy fouls, ones that will get Malone's wrath. Keys to how I see the Lakers winning: Force the Pistons to have Big Ben take a lot of open shots - Leave Shaq in the paint, Malone floating to double on maybe Chauncey or Hamilton. But for God sake, don't guard Ben on the outside... it would work to the Lakers advantage. Opponents like to pull Shaq from the hoop by having their big guys do pick and rolls at the top of the key... when the Pistons try that, have Shaq stay close to the paint and the guy cover the guy who Ben is settin the pick for. This in a way could guarantee that Ben will get the ball and need to take a 15-20 footer. I could live with that. Have Kobe guard Chauncey - I know I know Richard Hamilton is doing well and well you would want SG on SG.. but when Kobe has to play suffocating D on a star player like Hamilton, it'll detract from his offense. I think it would be best to leave the defense to Payton. It could potentially work cuz Billups runs the offense and Kobe has been effective in disrupting the offense when guarding smaller guards. Guard the paint and get those damn defensive rebounds - Other than Shaq and Malone, I want to see everyone crashing those boards to get the defensive rebound cuz Wallace squared have long arms. The Lakers need to win the margin in 2nd chance pts cuz the Pistons are scrappy. They play off of their energy and hustle. Keys to how I see the Pistons winning: Guard the paint from Kobe and others (not named Shaq) - it's given Shaq will get his 20-30 pts but the Pistons will have to protect the paint from layups and dunks from Kobe and company if they want to win. They're going have to be putting up a block party. Get Wallace square/Prince involved - the Pistons surprisingly have the offensive power to match the Lakers. In Billups/Hamilton- they have a great backcourt offense machine. But they get contributions from wallace square and Prince. If Rasheed and Ben can start hitting those putbacks and outside shots, it'll open up the rest of the court for Billups and Hamilton. Having Prince on fire is like having Rush ram 6 big ones down your throat. You don't want the guy confident cuz he's dangerous. I want to see if the Pistons resort to Hack a Shaq cuz helll we can do that too with Ben Wallace. Imagine the Pistons hacking Shaq and he makes one and they get the ball back and immediately we hack Ben.. like ha! we can be bastards too!
OK you said it all. Now lets hope that the Lakers do this cause i think Phil Jackson will say the same but its different when you are on the court. But over all i liked what you said. Good view of the series
I think this is going to be a tough series, but, in the end, I think the Lakers will take it in 5 or 6. The Pistons absolutely have to score more than what they did in the ECF. Now, I realize that Indiana is a good defensive team, but, if they play that bad against the Lakers, the Lakers will destroy them. The Lakers are not Indiana. They are a veteran team with players that know how to win. Detroit struggled against a young team who hasn't quite got to that point yet. I don't see the Lakers having as much trouble scoring as Indiana either. The Pacers only have one REAL offensive threat in Jermaine, whereas the Lakers have a bunch that can score. The Pistons, I think, in order for them to do anything in this series, they're going to have to find a way to stop Shaq. The TWolves didn't do a half bad job, but, they obviously didn't do a good enough job because they're sitting at home now. The Pistons, I think, if they can find a way to stop Shaq from getting position, they could do something in this series. They also need someone to help out Rip. Rip, in the Pacers series, got hardly any help. He was accounting for 32% of that teams offense in the series. They need to help him in this series because he's going to end expelling a lot more energy cause he's going to likely be guarding Kobe and that's not an easy defensive assignment to say the least. People like Billups, Rasheed, Tashaun, all need to step up and help him out. We know the Lakers will likely have at least 2 people contributing 20+ ppg so the Pistons are going to need some way to answer that. The Pistons also have to not fall asleep on people like Fisher and Rush. Those two are the catalysts so to speak, coming off the bench. They provide a lot of energy for this team and, in some cases in the playoffs, have provided instant offense for them. So, there are a lot of things the Pistons have to worry about here that they didn't have to worry about against the Pacers. I really don't think that the Pistons can win this series. They have to find a way to contain Kobe and Shaq, which, is very hard. They do have the depth at center to keep Shaq on his heels with who is defending him, and you know, hack the life out of him if it comes down to them having to do that. But, in the end, the tandem of Kobe and Shaq and a few other of the role players will be too much for the Pistons. The Pistons, in the end, just don't have enough offensive fire power to beat the Lakers. The Pistons rely far too much on defense to win games, and, though that will work in the East, it won't against the West. The Lakers are far different than any team the Pistons have encountered this year in the Playoffs. They are far better offensively than the Bucks, Nets, and Pacers. The Pistons have gotten by with not having to score, but, won't happen in this series. The Lakers will win this series in likely 6 games. I think the Pistons can win a couple, but, in the end, it comes down to the fact that they just don't have to offense to win. And, if the Pacers series could be any indication of the way they may play offense, they might not even win 2 games. But, nonetheless, Lakers take series 4-2 and Kobe is the Finals MVP.
I'm looking Forward to this series,as i think it has potential to be a really,really great championship series I Believe the Lakers will win it,but i believe it's going to be a grueling task to do so..so let the fun begin this weekend
In 1989 (?) the lakers came in favorite to beat the pistons also...Then magic messed up his ankle and poof....no championship.... I think as long as the Lakers stay healthy, they got this in the bag...but history has shown that anything could happen
I think it will be a good series...Piston's bench...Okur as a backup?? Hunter with energy off the bench..? Wiliamson able to foul out without affecting rotation?? Then you add Wallace x 2..plus Ripper .. and a clutch PG and a hard working skinny guy with a big head able to shoot from anywhere?? and block??? I think this will be a great serie...people will be surprised..Detroit only needs to win 1 .. they got 3 straight at home...if they don't win 1 in the first 2 games you might as well kiss it good buy..I doubt they win at LA...even tough I think this serie will depend on Malone...Sheed and Wallace could team up on Shaq...leaving Malone open...I just beleive in "Defense Wins Championships." Pistons in 5 or 7 after being up 3-2..
I Doubt that this will be a repeat of "89".. This Lakers team currently is better than the 89 Squad,and if they focus and play like they have been playing lately,this won't be a problem for winning YET Another NBA Title.
