Te 2-4 Detroit Pistons take on The 3-2 Sixers for an early afternoon game at the Palace of Auburn Hills.  As you know by the numbers, this is the Pistons worst start to a season in quite some time and the fact that they will now be without Tayshaun for what could be a long time,  makes things that much worse for Detroit.  The Pistons have dropped four of its first six for the first time since 2000-01. That start is due in large part to injuries to Hamilton, who’s status is still up in the air and Prince who’s back injury was much worse than expected.

I care not to remember the Pistons 4-12 record on Sunday’s from last season.  A win tomorrow without Rip and Tay on Sunday would do wonders for Detroit.

Tip off is at 1:00 PM and will televised on Fox Sports.  If you can’t catch the matinee on TV, listen live on 950 AM WWJ or follow the game over at NBA.com.

Bad news Pistons fans:

“The Pistons say forward Tayshaun Prince will be out of the lineup indefinitely due to a small rupture of a disc in his lower back.

The team said Saturday that the injury was confirmed following an MRI exam and evaluation by team doctors this week. The Pistons say Prince will continue to receive treatment for the injury.” Via ESPN

I’m not going to try to put a bigger cloud on this than there already is, but I know from first hand experience that ruptured discs are nothing to sneeze at (literally a sneeze can take you down).  Now it all depends on how serious it is, and if there are nerves involved, but trust me when I say Tayshaun isn’t gong to be on the court for some time.

Best case scenario is rest and some Arnie physical therapy, and worst case is surgery. Only time and more evaluations will tell, but it looks like Jonas Jerebko and Austin Day will probably be more important draft picks than we could have ever imagined.

This is so NOT Tayriffic.

Get well soon Tayshaun.

The Pistons third pre-season game tips at 6 PM at the Palace of Auburn Hills.  The 2 and 0 Pistons take on the 1-0 Atlanta Hawks.  No television broadcast, but you can listen to the broadcast on the radio at 97.1  The Ticket or trough your computer over at NBA.com.

The Piston we are all waiting to see (Charlie Villanueva) is expected to miss his third consecutive preseason game because of hamstring injury.

Can’t say I didn’t see this coming.

“Detroit Pistons President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars announced today that guard Allen Iverson will miss the remainder of the season. The all-star guard missed 16 games between February 27 and March 28 after exiting a game at New Orleans with a sore back on February 25.

“After talking with Allen and our medical staff, we feel that resting Allen for the remainder of the season is the best course of action at this time,” said Dumars. “While he has played in our last three games, he is still feeling some discomfort and getting him physically ready to compete at the level he is accustomed to playing this late in the season does not seem possible at this point.”

Iverson returned to action on March 29 versus Philadelphia and scored eight points with two assists and two rebounds in 21 minutes. In his three games back since the initial injury, he has averaged 7.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 18.7 minutes per game.

Acquired by the Pistons from Denver on November 3, the 6-foot-0 guard has appeared in 54 games this season (50 starts) averaging 17.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 36.5 minutes per game.” Via Pistons.com

Personally I thought Allen wasn’t going to return on his own after the injury, so when he did I was surprised.  I was even a bit more surprised when the Pistons made mention of Iverson’s post game comments after the Sixers game, so the fact that he’s been shut down after his retirement comments is no shock.  Say what you will, but my money is not on a medical issue being the reason for AI sitting out the rest of the season.

What the situation has done to what’s left of this season remains to be seen.  Everyone has their own AI opinions, but with what has been going on, this might be the best for the team right now.

Iverson may be back early – The Detroit Free Press

“I’m disappointed that the soreness I’m feeling in my back is going to force me to miss two weeks of action,” Iverson said in the statement. “After talking with the doctors at Georgetown yesterday they have told me that treatment and rest is the best course of action right now. Hopefully my back with heal and I’ll be ready to go following this two-week period.”

Iverson also said he had no problem with returning as a reserve.

“My goal is to help this team win a championship and I’ve said that from the first day I arrived here in Detroit,” he said in the statement. “I’m going to do whatever it takes to help us achieve our goals as a team regardless if I’m starting or coming off the bench.”

Allen Iverson is saying all the right things, lets just hope he fully recovers and flourishes in his new role on the team.  AI off the bench can be deadly, lets just hope he buys in.

:

“The Detroit Pistons announced today that guard Allen Iverson will miss the next two weeks due to a sore back at the request of doctors at Georgetown University. Iverson’s condition was evaluated at Georgetown today and it was recommended that he suspend basketball related activities for two weeks. He will not travel with the team to prevent stress on his back and will be re-evaluated again by the doctors at Georgetown following the conclusion of the two-week period.

The doctors at Georgetown University have been in contact with the Pistons’ medical staff and Iverson will begin treatment for his sore back upon his return to Detroit on Thursday” Via Pistons.com

One question….
Will Iverson play another game in a Pistons uniform?
Bash me all you want….I smell something fishy.

Your update on Rodney Stuckey: He didn’t make the trip to California.

“When the Pistons boarded their flight to Sacramento on Monday morning, they were another point guard short of a full team. One week after the Pistons traded Chauncey Billups in the deal for Allen Iverson, Rodney Stuckey stayed home for further medical observation after a bout with dizziness during Sunday’s loss to Boston.” Via Pistons.com

Wait, does this mean more BYNUM?

Video Courtesy of The NBA, The Detroit Pistons and FSN Detroit