The 21-40 Pistons are in Cleveland to take on the Cavaliers tonight. Good news for Pistons fans not in the local area…finally a nationally televised game for you. Bad news, it’s the Cavs.

This is what it has come to, this is an outtake for NBA.com’s preview of this game.

Another inferior opponent awaits the Eastern Conference’s top team, but this club won’t be in the bidding for the reigning league MVP.

Detroit used the money it freed up in last season’s franchise-altering, Chauncey Billups-Allen Iverson deal to sign Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva, who are now relegated to reserve roles. It could now take a couple of seasons for the Pistons to again be competitive.
Detroit allowed a season-high for points as its losing streak continued with a 128-104 loss to the Knicks on Wednesday.

Another defensive effort like that could spell trouble for Detroit as the Cavs are averaging 114.8 points on 52.3 percent shooting during their winning streak.

The Scouting Report via Pistons.com

Ben Wallace is still listed as Day to Day.

Tip is at 7:00 pm EST and will be televised on ESPN. For the radio broadcast tune in to 950 AM or follow the action over at NBA.com.

NEED4SHEED GAME CHAT

So not to ruin your Thanksgiving Holiday, I’ll give this little Dunk to you.

Happy Holiday!

The 5-9 Pistons are finally home from their not so wonderful West coast to play their first game back on their home court they get to face the 10-4 Cleveland Cavaliers.

With Tayshaun out, Jonas gets the task of guarding LeBron.

“You can’t do much on that fadeaway,  Jerebko shrugged after Tuesday’s practice, the first for the Pistons at their practice facility in 11 days.  He’s the best player in the league Everybody’s seen LeBron – he’s a great player. I’ll just try to do the best job I can on him.”

As for nod to DaJuan who looks to have moved past Austin Daye in the rotation, Kuester says we shouldn’t look too much into it.

“Chris Wilcox and all of our young players have worked real hard in practice and deserve an opportunity,” he said. “We just gave Chris an opportunity the last two games, but Kwame is a big part of this picture we have. And so don’t read into that. Same thing (with Daye and Summers). Don’t read into that because all these guys deserve an opportunity.” via Pistons.com

As for Shaq, he will not play tonight against Detroit.

The Scouting Report via Pistons.com

Tip is at 8:00 pm EST and will be televised on Fox Sports Detroit. For the radio broadcast tune into 950 AM or follow the action on NBA.com.

For those of you who missed the chat room, it’s back! You can again talk Pistons during the games.

NEED4SHEED GAME CHAT

1. Suicidal Thoughts – Notorious B.I.G.
2. Bad Day- Daniel Powter
3. Life’s a Bitch – NaS
4. Say Goodbye – Chris Brown
5. All Falls Down – Kanye West
6. Heartbreaker – Led Zeppelin
7. Dazen and Confused – Led Zeppelin
8. Karma Police – Radiohead
9. You Shook Me – Led Zeppelin
10. I’m On A Boat – The Lonely Island-Feat T-Pain
11. Say Goodbye Hollywood – Eminem
12. Same Song and Dance – Eminem
13. Walk and Don’t Look Back – Peter Tosh
14. Cry Baby – Janis Joplin
15. Dead and Gone – TI
16. Move Along – All American Rejects
17. Boulevard of Broken Dreams – Green Day
18. Come Sail Away – Styx
19. New York City Boy – Pet Shop Boys
20. Dancing Queen – ABBA
21. King of Pain – The Police
22. American Idiot – Green Day
23. Human – Human League
24. Big Girls don’t cry – Fergie
25. Black Superman – Above the Law
26. Selfish – Slum Village
27. Bittersweet – Kanye West
28. Its over – GhostFace Killah
29. Losing My Mind – The Black Crowes
30. Misunderstood – Common
31. Someone Saved My Life Tonight – Elton John
32. Waitin’ For A Superman – Iron and Wine
33. Cinders And Smoke – Iron and Wine
34. Ordinary People – John Legend
35. When The Levee Breaks – Led Zeppelin
36. A Conspiracy – The Black Crowes
37. Stop Crying Your Heart Out – Oasis
38. Knives Out – Radiohead
39. Don’t Panic – Coldplay
40. Bullet Proof … I Wish I Was – Radiohead
41. Climbing up The Walls – Radiohead
42. Don’t Cry – Seal
43. Lost My Faith – Seal

What’s on his iPod right now??? Looks like Don’t Cry by Seal!

Thanks to all of you for the suggestions for LeBron, I had a blast adding mine (most of which are at the bottom of the list). Feel free to keep them coming. And in case you were wondering…this really got to Cavs fans.

Photo/Getty Images

1. King Nothing – Metallica
2. King Without a Crown – Matisyahu
3. Kryptonite – 3 Doors Down
4. Heartbreak Hotel – Elvis Presley
5. New York, New York – Frank Sinatra
6. The Takeover- Jay-Z
7. Sucks to be You – Prozzac
8. Lose Yourself – Eminem
9. Loser – Beck
10. Cruel Summer – Bananarama
11. A New York State of Mind – Billy Joel
12. Help! – The Beatles
13. Close But No Cigar – Thomas Dolby
14. Alone Again (Naturally) – Gilbert O’Sullivan
15. I’m Going Slightly Mad – Queen
16. You Got Another Thing Coming – Judas Priest

I blew up the picture so we could clearly see his iPod and from the looks of it on track 3.

Good job El Patron!

If know of any additions to LeBrons playlist, by all means leave them in the comments and if you didn’t get a chance to read this little piece on the “King”, by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports….I suggest you do so.

• To start off my weekend I ran into Steve Yzerman at Starbucks, and can you believe the place was packed and nobody but myself realized it was him? Besides my stalking charge it made for a beginning of a great few days, especially after two Wings wins!
• Thank you Dwight for not only being a joy to watch, but taking down those awful Cavaliers.  Seeing the Magic stun the World and send the Cavs fishing was just the medicine that this Piston fan needed.
• LeBron….a spoiled sport taking after those Bad Boys . I noticed him bolt off court right after the buzzer sounded and thought the same thing. “It’s hard for me to congratulate somebody after you just lose to them,” James said. (Hat Tip Matt Watson)
• Pistons are the front runners for Carlos Boozer? “Apparently, rising free agent-of-choice Carlos Boozer is telling confidants he’s either going to Detroit or New Jersey — only way the capsized Nets pull that off is by doing a sign-and-trade. Word has it Jersey will have but three assistants next season and all must take pay cuts.” The New York Post (it is coming from Peter Vecesy so take it as strictly RUMOR)
• If the Pistons actually pick up Boozer, can Arnie keep him in uniform all season long?
• Sorry Chauncey.
• Ben Wallace to Retire?
• Walter Herrmann might return to Spain?
• Great Pre-Draft roundup from Dave Dial over at MLive.

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.

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.

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• 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.

Key Points:

• Dyess says it all “They are the best team in the league and they are at home, but at the same time, we’ve got to play with some type of heart,” We’re just going through the motions, it seems like.” When asked why that was, McDyess said, “Your guess is better than mine.” Via The Detroit News
• If you watched just five minutes (besides when the bench made their comeback) of the game you could see the flat performance Detroit put forth.  A carbon copy of Game One eerily like most of the season for Detroit.  Is it that they just don’t care or are they just outmatched?  Maybe 50/50.
• 14 first quarter points, 18 second and third quarter points aren’t going to will you any ball game let alone a playoff game against the #1 seed.
• The Cavs were up by 29 points in the fourth quarter until their bench blew most their lead against Detroit’s bench courtesy of Will Bynum.  James had to return to hold off the Pistons and secure the win.
• Rasheed Wallace, who scored just 8 with 4 boards in 25 minutes on the floor scored zero points in the paint and quite honestly looked like he wanted nothing to do with what was going on Tuesday night. To me he looked like he checked out as soon as he stepped on the court. The fire is obviously gone. Wasn’t it Sheed who claimed they needed to Knuckle Up?  What happened?

Photo/Getty Images

• Though I tried to watch the local broadcast in favor of TNT, High Def won out and I heard something that I hoped wasn’t the case but just might be form Doug Collins when he said “It looks like Detroit doesn’t’ want to come back to the Q for a game five.” It sure looks that way now doesn’t it?
• At this point you can cry Fire Curry all you want, but he’s not the one on the court playing like he doesn’t give a damn.
• Four Pistons in double figures and two of them are Afflalo and Bynum.
• Amir Johnson on his Tech after shoving VareJOKE: “I wasn’t going to let him punk me. I did what I had to do.” Via The Detroit Free Press Good for you Amir, too bad you couldn’t slap that smirk off of that clowns face.
  
• The opposite of small ball when Curry put a lineup of Tayshaun Prince,Rip Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace, Kwame Brown and Antonio McDyess. That didn’t work either.
• Start Will Bynum at point is the chant I’m hearing from Pistons fans, and quite honestly they have nothing to lose at this point.  Bynum once again was the spark for Detroit sparking a 27-5 run in the fourth quarter. Sure it was without LeBron on the floor for the Cavs, but it put Detroit back in striking distance. Bynum finished with 13 points in 18 minutes adding 5 assists, 4 boards and 2 steals.

Photo/Getty Images

• Was it just me or did most of the game consist of either Rip taking a jumper or Stuckey trying to drive the lane or settling for a shot. Rip or Stuckey….I wanted to scream for them to move the ball and try something else because it clearly wasn’t working.
• “Our bench played well,” McDyess said. “As far as the starters, we didn’t come out and do the job we were assigned to do. It’s like they were doing anything they wanted on offense. We weren’t giving no resistance to stop them or making it tough on them. Via NBA.com
• Rally comes up short.
• The Cavs held the Pistons to 39.5% shooting and outrebounded the Detroit 43-34.
• I used to appreciate Mo Williams, but it seems as though he’s caught come cockiness now that he’s in Cleveland.
• Rip Hamilton led the Pistons with 17 points on 7-for-16 shooting. But but that isn’t saying much either, he was a -30 for the game

Photo/Getty Images

• Tayshaun Prince, another less than stellar game (and that’s being kind). Prince went 1-for-5 for 2 points and three boards. Dana Gauruder of the Oakland Press “Prince is a more maddening case. He seems to be full of excuses every postseason. Before, he’d decline in the conference finals. This year, he’s gone into the tank from the start. He’s averaging 6 points in his last six postseason games.”
• Aggressive in game 2….nope! Detroit was 13-for-16 for the line. Cleveland….32-for-43. LeBron once again went to the line more than the entire Detroit team going 13-for-17.
• Huge Piston Roundtable over at Pistons Powered with all of your favorite Pistons Bloggers as well as Newspaper columnists.
• The Cavs have now won six straight playoff games over The Pistons.
• Highlights from NBA.com if you dare.

• You can will them to Win all you want, but if they don’t come to play how does that help? I will support the Pistons no matter what, but being confident in a team that hasnt even shown heart is another thing altogether. You may feel different, but this team hasn’t showed me much to beleive in. How do you feel after game two?