UPDATE:
Pistons 114 Timberwolves 122 (Box Score)

Defense…. We knew it was going to be a problem, and I know it’s the preaseon, but when you score 114 points that is usually an indication that you won the game.

Video Highlights

The 3-3 Pistons host their last preseason game a tonight at 7:30 PM at the Palace of Auburn Hills tonight against (YES) Bill Laimbeer and the 1-5 Minnesota Timberwolves.  Yes I know Bill’s not the head coach nor is he playing, but it’s nice to mention his name whenever I can.  Check out his return video interview at Pistons.com.

The game isn’t on television, but you can listen to it from your radio on WWJ AM 950 or follow the gamecast over at NBA.com.

And if you cant do either…make sure you read a little on one of my favorites Antonio McDyess (Ice 4Dyess).

The season is right around the corner and PISTONS WEEK starts this Sunday at FSN!
CLICK HERE for the Full FSN Schedule.

The Pistons will host the Cleveland Cavaliers this afternoon for what could be their last game of the season. Down three games to the Cavs and showing little or no signs of life, more than just an early playoff exit is at stake for this Detroit team.

Familiar endings and new beginnings.

With the team missing their swagger (as well as their leader) all season long this group will most likely be playing its last game (or games if they can pull it out today) together. So enjoy this game for whatever it is Pistons fans, your favorite players just may be playing their last games in red, white and blue.
Michael Curry

“Guys are down, but that’s anywhere when you’re down like this in a series and it’s tough. The biggest thing is getting just focused on one game. What you tend to do when you’re down in a series is go back over the whole season. So you start looking at things that you have no control over.” Via The Detroit Free Press

Tip off is at 3:30 and will broadcast nationally on ABC. If you can’t watch the early afternoon game, you can listen over at WDFN 1130 AM or follow the game live over at NBA.com.

Feel free to leave your thoughts in the Comments or Chat Live at gametime.

Yes the Pistons are now on the brink of an abrupt end to what turned out to be a painful NBA season. Down 0-3 to the Cavs after their 79-68 loss Friday night at the Palace, they are in jeopardy of a first round Swiffer if they don’t win Sunday afternoon at home.

Key Points:

• This one started out just right, Detroit came to play and even started the game in glorious fashion with this Richard Hamilton steal that lead to a Rodney Stuckey dunk, which led to an 8-0 Pistons run.

Video Courtesy of The NBA, The Detroit Pistons and ESPN

• The Pistons showed some heart, played defense and controlled the tempo of the game and held the lead until the Cavs took a 33-31 lead with five minutes left in the half.
• Yes the Cavs have went to the line a whopping 100 times this series compared to 40 times for Detroit. Don’t point all the fingers at the refs or David Stern, you don’t go to the line when you shoot jumpers, it’s as simple as that.
• Tayshaun Prince played hurt and was responsible for helping the Pistons start the game strong. He finished the game with 7 points, 5 boards, and 2 assists in 33 minutes.
• Rasheed….well Sheed either has lost more than a step or checked out before the series started. Sheed scored 5 points, with 7 boards and a steal. With similar numbers this whole series and for the later half of the season, it’s fair to question if Sheed still has it at all or for this team.
• Though Dyess had trouble knocking down his shot (4-for-10), he still put his heart on the line and was pivotal in Detroit’s third quarter run. He finished with 8 points, 2 blocks and 8 boards.  Unfortunately it looks like No Ice4Dyess.

Photo/Getty Images

• Two Pistons in double figures is disastrous.
• The Pistons are on Life Support.
• This one wasn’t hard to watch, they came to play but are clearly outmatched.  Tied at the end of the third quarter and then settling for Rip Hamilton jumpers in the fourth maybe was a mistake.
• Rip led Detroit with 15 points on 6-for-17 shooting with 6 assists, 8 boards and 2 steals in 41 minuets.
• “This is killing me, I can’t even lie,” Hamilton said. “Knowing how great we were, and then being down 0-3 and being the eighth seed and watching them celebrate shot after shot, it’s hard. It’s a terrible situation.” Via The Detroit News
• This was actually the first time in the series that Detroit was in a position to win the game but a horrible 4th (something that haunted them all season long) was the cause.
• Just 6 points for Bynum in 18 minutes but it was this leaping steal that made me rewind the game about three times.

Video Courtesy of The NBA, The Detroit Pistons and ESPN

• Sick and tired of “Andy” AKA CLOWNFISH getting in everyone’s face. I’m not one for violence but I wouldn’t mind clocking the dude myself. Yes he’s and energy guy bla, bla, bla….he’s a punk. And as Mr. Blaha said, ” Don’t the referees even watch this guy?” He pushed Kwame and Brown gets a tech. Great.
• Speaking of Mr. Kwame Brown, he’s been the surprise of the series. Bringing energy and banging down low ever time he steps on the court. Kwame scored 4 points in 13 minutes with 3 boards and 3 blocked shots. And he won’t let you get in his face either.

Photo/Getty Images

• Something so wrong at the Palace – Who was the genius that decided to get Cavalier phone service to sponsor the thundersticks so CAVALIER is written in bold across the thing?
• “Right now, we have to have a focus that is a game-winner, every possession,” Detroit guard Arron Afflalo said. “Just looking at a lot of the teams in history that are good teams, they played with a certain intensity, a certain focus, and a certain energy level, every possession. And being down 3-0, that’s what it’s come down to.” Via MLive
• What is really more to say, at least they tried. The Cavs are a better team and quite honestly it hurts much less to loose to them this year than it did in 07 when Detroit was the better team. I’m not giving up, but a Sunday home game looks daunting.

The Pistons are down 2-0 in their first round series with the Cavaliers. While things have looked less than inspiring off the court, Pistons fans should do wonders (crossing fingers) for them on the court as Detroit plays it’s first Playoff game of the year at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

It’s actually still not sold out, so if you can muster your way down (or up) to Auburn Hills, you may get a chance to witness see a playoff game on the cheap. Our Pistons can use all the support they can right now.

I have to say this is a must win for the boys in Blue, Red and White tonight. If they go down 3-0 with the fourth game in the afternoon Sunday at the Palace….well, you do the math.

Tip off is at 7:00 pm and will thankfully be broadcast in HD on FSN locally and ESPN Nationally. If you can’t catch either broadcast you can listen over at WDFN 1130 AM or follow the game over at NBA.com.

For those of you who are heading out…LOUD AND PROUD!

Leave your thoughts in the Comments or Chat live during the game.

The Pistons are down 1-0 in their first round series against the Cavaliers. Things must change if Detroit plans on sneaking out The Q with an upset, and they know it.

Will Bynum:

“We got to be more together, It’s not going to take one person to stop LeBron. It’s going to take all five of us, and maybe the coaching staff — and the bench. We got to do what we got to do to stop the guy and try to make other players beat us.” Via MLive

Michael Curry:

“What we have to do is be more aggressive at whatever we try to take away. We got to be aggressive with it. If we trap him, we have to be more aggressive. If we try to contain him and make him shoot contested jumpers, we got to do exactly that.  We have to keep him out of the paint. He was 8-of-9 in the paint, hit the half-court shot and then was 4-of-10 outside of the paint. That’s where we got to try and keep him. We didn’t have LeBron’s (isolations) or post-ups good enough. We got to do a much better job of that, and get the ball out of his hands and makes some of those other players make plays.” Via MLive

Easier said than done when it comes to LeBron but as long as some adjustments are made Detroit has a chance to upset the Cavs in a building they just don’t lose in. Also important, Detroit has to stay in this game from start to finish and not let the Cavs build a daunting lead.

A little smile before tip:

Some old school history between the Cavaliers and the Pistons back in the 80’s you may not be aware of. Here is a little video history lesson courtesy of a Rick Mahorn elbow and a Bill Laimbeer, Brad Daugherty fight.  The good old days….

Tip off is at 8:00 PM and will be nationally broadcast on TNT. Good news for those of you missing the local flavor or George Blaha and Special K, Fox Sports will also be broadcasting the game on FSN Plus (download channel numbers). If you can’t catch either broadcast you can listen live over at 1130 AM WDFN or follow the game through your computer at NBA.com.

Feel free to leave your thoughts in the Comments of Chat Live at game time.

The Pistons start off their brutal road trip in Cleveland tonight to face LeBron James and his 42-11 Cavs.

“We lost again,” guard Rodney Stuckey said. “I don’t know. I really can’t explain anything anymore. We just keep losing, and now we’ve got some great teams to play.” Via NBA.com

Stuckey has averaged 8.2 points during the Pistons current skid, and has totaled five points in his last two games.

Now they want to be on the road?

“I never say it’s a relief to go on the road,” Pistons coach Michael Curry said. But Curry admits, “this group of guys have had tendencies to not play as well at home, for whatever reasons.” Via MLive

Rip is awe, like the rest of us.

“It’s crazy,” said Detroit’s Richard Hamilton. “If you look at our record, that’s kind of insane to me. “The season is far from over. We have a tough schedule coming. We have to take it one game at a time, and hopefully get a win.” Via MLive

Remember my whole blind date analogy? Well the way Detroit is playing of late a win on the road against the Cavaliers is like a guy waiting for his fix up and Giselle Bundchen walks in hopped up on roofies, picks up the tab and insists on taking you home with her. I know…I’m horrible.

The Good/Bad/and More

• No More ‘FRO, you will see a new look Ben Wallace tonight.
• The Cavaliers, who own the NBA’s best home record at 24-1, have lost four of five to Detroit at Quicken Loans Arena.
• Detroit hasn’t lost six straight since Feb. 3-17, 2004.
• Delante West is back for The Cavs.
• Detroit is one game over 500, a loss tonight gives them a 27-27 record while fighting for the 6th seed with with Sixers.
• Michael Curry may decide to stick with his 7 man rotation since the starters got all that rest because of the TNT timeouts.

Tip off is at 8:00 PM and will be Nationally televised on ESPN and locally broadcast on FSN.  If you can’t catch the game on TV, or are gearing up for the Oscars, you can listen locally at WDFN 1130 AM or follow/listen to the game at NBA.com.

Leave them in the Comments.

Now Rip, there is nothing to be ashamed of when it comes to Hammer Time!

(more…)

In the latest episode of the Pistons running series Teammates we learn who the messiest Piston is.  And many of you know the ones closest to you can be quite brutal at times. Does Amir Johnson smell like cat litter?

Its funny, I always pictured him as a puppy dog person.

On their second game of a back to back the Pistons host the (better than they are) Atlanta Hawks. The 30-21 Hawks have lost seven straight at the Palace, but like most of us know stats like that mean nothing to this Detroit Pistons team, who struggles with just about every team that they play. And this Hawks team is nothing like the Atlanta teams of old.

Good New/Bad News and More:

• Last game for Detroit before a MUCH needed All-Star Break.
• Lost to the Hawks in their first meeting but won a season high seven straight after that. They are 6-12 since that seven game miracle.
• Atlanta has won 3 of their last 4 games.
• The Pistons are guaranteed their fewest wins at the All-Star break since 2001-02, when they were 26-21.
• Chuck Daly thinks this talented Pistons team needs more time.  But do they have it is the question.
• I had nothing to do with this… FireCurry.com
• No news yet on Stuckey, who tweaked his ankle in the closing minutes of the Pistons loss to the Bulls.
• Allen Iverson will be reevaluated today after missing yesterday’s game with Flu like symptoms.

Tip off is at 7:30 P.M. and will be locally televised on FSN. If you can’t watch the broadcast, tune into 1130 AM WDFN The Fan.  Can’t do either? Follow the game on NBA.com.

Comments and  Chat.

Saying that tonight was something special is truly an understatement.  I know the Pistons finally put up a win, in dramatic fashion by the way, but what happened for our new friends from Austria is something to remember.

Special thanks to George Blaha and Gregg Kelser who were kind enough to take time out of their busy pre- game schedule ….

And then to Shout out Vladan and Martin on the broadcast.

What you don’t hear or see on that clip is what David Wieme of The Pistons did to make the boys’ 5000 mile trek something they couldn’t possibly imagine or forget. Thank You Dave, you’re kind of a big deal.

And thanks to all of you who emailed, and commented on the site so we knew it happened minutes after it happened.  Team N4S is quick!

So don’t get in his way.

The latest installment of The Pistons new series Teammates poses the question “Who is the teams biggest eater?”

Funny stuff from Sheed, Tay, Rip, Stuckey, Maxiell, Amir and Aflac.

Did Rasheed get a replacement for his prize possession? Kwame thinks he needs a one.

The Pistons tell us the perfect Christmas gifts for their teammates.

Who knew Amir had skin problems? After his comments about Rip’s hair he may have to watch his back today.