It didn’t matter however, the Pacers scored the next 8 points and won 102-106.

Key Points:

• I don’t care what you say there is some kind of issue going on with Rip Hamilton.  When I guy like Rip does his best “Kobe” impression by not looking for his shot and scoring ZERO points, something is up.  Rip was 0-for-3 in 18 minutes on the floor with 1 assist, 1 steal and 3 turnovers.  When he was resigned to the bench….he either looked pissed off, or he was sulking.  Let’s keep our eyes on this situation.
• Detroit had 7 turnover in the first quarter, but clamped down and finished the game with 13.
• Limited minutes for Ben Wallace who looked good in his 24 minutes.  Ben scored just one point, grabbed 7 boards, with 3 steals and an assist.  How we did miss the man.
• Ben Gordon scores 17 on 4-13 shooting with 7 boards, 6 assists and 2 blocked shots.  Great game for Ben, but when it counted late in the fourth quarter he couldn’t knock down the shot.
• Sometimes I think Gordon is still getting his check from the Bulls, not the Pistons.
• If this wasn’t a statement from Rodney Stuckey than I don’t know what is.  Rodney was on fire as soon as he checked into the game.  Not only was it good to see him play, he didn’t look apprehensive about anything considering the circumstances.  Stuckey scored 25 in 26 minutes for the Pistons with 3 assists, 3 steals and a turnover playing most all of his minutes at the 2 guard position.   Stucktacular!

Photo/Getty Images

I feel all right,” Stuckey said of his 26 minutes. “The plan wasn’t to play all those minutes, but it was just in the heat of the game. I feel fine, and my wind felt fine. Via The Detroit Free Press

• Detroit shot a shocking 50% from behind the long line.  Only bad thing about that was Indiana shot 53%.
• Jerebko with 10 points, 6 boards and 3 steals.  You can count on him each game with numbers like that or better.
• Best thing I can say about Charlie Villanueva is that he’s been a disappointment this season.
• Nine points for Will, with 4 assist in 21 minutes.
• What a miserable 3 quarters for Detroit, I was almost happy FSN didn’t broadcast this game in HD.  Who wants to see all that blood?
• We just bettered ourselves in the Lottery standings!  The Pistons are tied with the Pacers for the fifth-worst record in the league.
• Give DaJuan Summers some minutes!  Summers scores 12 points in 17 minutes on 4-7 shooting with 4 boards and a blocked shot.  Just check out his highlights.

Video Courtesy of The Detroit Pistons and the NBA

• Cavs again Sunday.

The 23-45 Pistons are in Indiana to take on the 22-46 Pacers tonight. Like it or not, this is a battle for Draft Lottery placement. You always root for your team to win, but in this case it wouldn’t be so bad if they did lose with the Pacers, who are little ahead of Detroit in ping pong ball status.

The biggest news is not the game, but who will be playing in it. Rodney Stuckey and Ben Wallace are Good to Go.

Some words from Stuckey, Kuester and Rip before today’s practice. Via Pistons.com

The Scouting Report via Pistons.com

Tip is at 7:00 pm EST and will be broadcast on FS Detroit with the radio broadcast over at 97.1 The Ticket or follow the action online over at NBA.com.

NEED4SHEED GAME CHAT

Via The Detroit Free Press

Rodney Stuckey and Ben Wallace were full participants in Thursday’s workout at the practice facility, and coach John Kuester is cautiously optimistic that both would be available for the game.

Kuester said both players looked good, but because they have missed so much time, they will come off the bench whenever they return.

“With both of those guys, they’ll come off the bench,” Kuester said after Thursday’s practice. “They’ve been out the past two weeks, or close to two weeks for Stuckey, and that’s what we’re going to do right now.”

Stuckey has missed six games since he collapsed and was carried from Quicken Loans Arena on a stretcher wearing an oxygen mask during a loss at Cleveland on March 5.

He has undergone a battery of tests looking for any potential life-threatening condition, but all tests have come back negative. He has been cleared to return to the team.

Wallace has missed eight games because of a sore right patellar tendon.

Stuckey declined to speak with reporters Thursday, other than to say, “I’m good” as he left the practice floor.

Considering the scare caused by Stuckey’s collapse two weeks ago, Kuester admitted that whenever Stuckey checks in, that scene will be in the back of his mind.

Enjoy

Video Courtesy of The Detroit Pistons

Key Points:

• Worst officiating I have seen since…well I can’t remember.  It’s one thing to give LeBron a continuation on a foul he jogged in from about the free throw line, but to miss this blatant goal-tending when the Pistons were in the ball game was horrific.  LeBron gets away with murder.

Video Courtesy of The Detroit Pistons and the NBA

“They know it’s a bad call,” Pistons coach John Kuester said. “They know that. It’s a shame. That was a momentum-breaker. So we had it going, but, hey, that’s the NBA.” via NBA.com

• I caught Will’s post game interview after he was told the refs admitted it was a goal-tend, his answer “it’s too late now.”  Yeah it is…
• It’s enough that you have to deal with probably the worst fans in the world when the Cavs come to town, you also have to deal with the cockiness of the team, especially Mo Williams at the end of the game when he hit those late threes, he was jumping around like a fifth grade girl.
• Give it up for Jason Maxiell who was eating Ohio babies all night long.  His steal on LeBron for the dunk what a highlight but his late game basket and blocks help this team be competitive all game long.  Jason with another double-double, 10 points, 15 boards, a steal and 2 blocked shots.  It’s official he’s back.

Photo/Getty Images

• Jonas Jerebko played well in his 27 minutes, but everyone else seemed to get hot which limited his minutes.  He had a couple of really nice hustle plays (not like that’s unusual), just wished he was out there when Cleveland went on a few runs.  Jonas finished with 10 points, 3 assists, 3 steals and 5 boards.
• Didn’t think we would see Tayshaun Prince at all, let alone for 44 minutes.  Prince was clutch all night long whether he was playing the point, playing defense or knocking down the shots.  Tay finished with 15 points, 8 assists, and 7 boards.  Just happy his injury wasn’t serious.
• Tayshaun Highlights

Video Courtesy of The Detroit Pistons and the NBA

• Nice work from Charlie Villanueva, who had some clutch three’s when the Pistons really needed them.  Charlie played 21 and scored 16 points with 4 boards a steal and a blocked shot.  Add that and a little paint presence and things would be all good.
• Huge three from Austin Daye, who never seems to be afraid to take a big shot.  He was a presence in his nine minutes on the court.
• Six Pistons in double figures.
• Out-rebounded 48-40.
• This game had 10 lead changes and 21 ties…that tells you something.  The Cavs biggest lead 12, Detroit’s 6.
• They let LeBron go off in the second half.  He scored 29 total, 5 in the first half.
• I still hate Anderson Jarejao.
• Rip Hamilton led Detroit with 24 points and his hot hand started early.  He’s playing the way he is accustomed to, coming off the screens and knocking down shots.

Photo/Getty Images

• Horrible, horrible officiating.  When you have to count on Bennett Salvatore as your savor, that says quite a lot.
• Just frustrating to see the effort one night and the total non effort another night.  Does this mean this team has underachieved because of heart?  Not all season, but id has come into play.
• Will Bynum finished with 12, with 4 assists 3 boards and just one turnover. He’s turned it up since he’s been put in the starting lineup and is really helping his free agent status.  I sincerely hope Joe D shows him the money.
• Highlights of the Game via NBA.com

• Not an easy week for this team.

The 23-44 Pistons are hosting the 52-15 Cleveland Cavaliers tonight at the Palace.  One hopes that they will at least put up a fight after last night’s debacle against the Celtics.

If you didn’t look at the front page of NBA.com, you missed this headline and article.
Davidson’s death, rough economy lead to Pistons’ demise
A lot of truth there and pretty fitting after the Pistons performance last night.

Ben Wallace is still listed as day to day.
Rodney has no timetable on his return.
No conformation whether Tayshaun will play or not.

With Jonas Jerebko now starting at power forward, Kuester would have to go in another direction for Prince’s replacement – perhaps Austin Daye, who has a pair of starts already under his belt. Daye totaled 29 points and 11 rebounds in starts on Nov. 27 against the Clippers and Jan. 18 against the Knicks. He scored a career-high 16 points at New York. Via Ryan Pretzer at Pistons.com

The Scouting Report via Pistons.com

Tip is at 7:30 pm EST and will be broadcast on FS Detroit with the radio broadcast over at  97.1 The Ticker or follow the action online over at NBA.com.

NEED4SHEED GAME CHAT

The 23-43 Pistons are in Boston tonight to take on Rasheed Wallace and the 41-24 Celtics. I realize the Pistons aren’t the team they used to be, but this particular opening sentence to the NBA.com preview of the game sort of made me mad.

“It was a rough week for the Boston Celtics. A visit from the lowly Detroit Pistons to open a brief home stretch could help them get back on track.” Via NBA.com

Lowly….really? We aren’t New Jersey just yet.

Ben Wallace is still listed as day to day and as we know Rodney has no timetable on his return.

The Scouting Report via Pistons.com

Tip is at 8:00 pm EST and will be broadcast on ESPN with the radio broadcast over at 950 AM WWJ or follow the action online over at NBA.com.

UPDATE

We had to Cancel Celtics Late Night Show tonight.  Sorry I won’t be able to take your calls after the game but I am sure we’ll do it again soon.

NEED4SHEED GAME CHAT

Game Highlights via NBA.com

• Since many of us didn’t get to see this one, the highlight will just have to do. Although if you’re a Pistons fan I doubt if you would consider them high-lights.
• One thing that stood out for me in the box score, the Pistons allowed the Hawks a season high 63% shooting percentage. Another telling sign as to what Ben Wallace has been to the team all season long.
• Every Piston, besides DaJuan Summers who played just 1 minute, were in the minus on there +/- stat.
• Bynum and Kuester with techs.
• 16 turnovers…ugh.
• Detroit was down by as much as 28.
• Go Jason, Maxiell scored 11 of his team high 19 in the second half.

Photo/Getty Images

• After building a 28 point lead at halftime, the Hawks watched the Pistons pull to within nine points early in the fourth quarter.
• Maybe this was a good one to miss.

The 23-42 Pistons are in Atlanta on a second game of a back to back to take on the 41-23 Hawks tonight. Unfortunately this game will not be televised locally, so the only way you are going to catch it is with NBA League pass or by watching online.

Can Will “Thrill” us again tonight? I’m sure he can, Bynum had one of his best shooting performances this season in the last game against the Hawks, scoring 19 points off the bench while making 8 of 13 attempts.

As for Ben Wallace, he’s still listed as day to day and as we know Rodney has no timetable on his return.

The Scouting Report via Pistons.com

Tip is at 7:00 pm EST with the radio broadcast over at 950 AM WWJ or follow the action online over at NBA.com.

NEED4SHEED GAME CHAT

Key Points

Disclaimer – This will be a Bynum filled recap.

• Things just started good in this one, Will had a handful of assists in what it seemed like a few minutes and Rip was on fire.
• Regardless of the fact the Washington is not a great team, this team looked great and Will just dominated.
• One of those pretty Rip to Tayshuan alley oops that reminded me of the good old days.  You can thank Maxi for it too!

Video Courtesy of the NBA and the Detroit Pistons

• Speaking of Maxiell, he seems to be back! A double-double with 10 boards, 12 points, a steal and 2 blocks.
  Haven’t had that much fun at the Palace in quite a long time, thank you Will.
• Tay and Rip both finished the game with 18 points.
• I’m amazed every game with the amount of fans gained by Jonas Jerebko.  18 points for the Swede with 3 steal, 8 boards and a heck of a lot of swagger when Singleton got in his face.  That’s the kind of technical foul I like.  Jonas = he anti Sheed.
• Will just looked like he had eyes in the back of his head and made a point of getting the ball to his teammates in any manner that he good.  The career high 20 assists where the most from a Detroit Piston since Isiah Thomas on April 12th 1985.
• “That means a lot to me,” said Bynum, a Chicago native like Thomas. “I grew up watching Isiah play, and to do something that he did is huge.” Via The Detroit Free Press

Photo/Getty Images

• Will’s Bynumite Highlight Reel.

Video Courtesy of the NBA and the Detroit Pistons

• Can’t tell you how excited the crowd was, we knew something special was going to happen as soon as he hit his previous mark of 14.  The crowd went nuts after each one…I almost lost track.
• Even the few points Bynum did score were pretty.
• When will was at 18 the bench never sat down and when he kept feeding DaJuan Summers and he was missing it we all could feel the pain.
• I really didn’t think he was going to pull off 20, but Ben Gordon finally made Pistons fans smile when he knocked down the last shot.  Here is the last play of the game, Will’s 20th assist.

Video Courtesy of the NBA and the Detroit Pistons

• Love how Maxiell handed him the game ball.
• Will Bynum post game interview.

Video Courtesy of the NBA and the Detroit Pistons

• At the end of the first quarter, I thought I had a chance to get Kevin Porter’s (team) record of 25, but I don’t think the coach and I had the same mindset,” Via The Detroit Free
• A meaningless game just turned into something special for Will and a whole lot of Pistons fans. Something tells me if you leave Will a message in the comments, he might just see it.