Will Bynum was nice enough to answer some questions for Pistons fans to give us a little insight on who he is when he’s not Thrilling us at The Palace.

N4S: Greatest Basketball Moment?
WB: I would have to say the buzzer beater shot against Oklahoma state in the final four to advance to the championship.

N4S:Favorite NBA player past or present?
WB: Tim Hardaway/ Earl Monroe both had a flair and style that I loved in their game but I could go on and on with the list of players…..

N4S:Favorite NBA Team Growing up?
WB: Pistons because of Isaiah and Joe, they were tough minded small guards that dominated the game and that’s what I always dreamed of doing.

Photo/Getty Images

N4S: Thing you are proudest of?
WB: My daughter Laila and my family.

N4S: Something you wish you could do but can’t (for most of us it’s dunk but you have that covered)?
WB: I’ve never felt like there’s nothing I couldn’t do …that’s weird but it’s true. I feel like I can accomplish anything. I am driven by people telling what I can’t do

N4S: Coke or Pepsi?
WB: Water

Photo/Getty Images

N4S: Favorite Food?
WB: Baked Chicken and Macaroni

N4S: Favorite Color?
WB: Green…lol

N4S: Favorite article of Clothing?
WB: Polo collared shirts.

Photo/Ralph Lauren

N4S: Favorite TV Show or Shows?
WB: Martin, Dave Chappelle, The First 48 and The Wire.

N4S:Favorite Movie?
WB: I am an avid movie watcher so I have a lot but If I narrow it down 8 mile,Training Day and Harlem Nights.

Photo/Universal Studios

N4S: Something you do to unwind?
WB: Watch movies/ play with Laila.

N4S:Favorite Car?
WB: I don’t have a fave, but anything that can get me from point A to point B from my house to the gym.

N4S: One thing you wish you could change about yourself?
WB: Why would I want to do that. I am a firm believer in making the best out of your God given abilities

N4S: If you could meet anyone in the world dead or alive who would it be?
WB: Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, I’d love to talk with them now in the aftermath of their sacrifices.I’d love to see what their next steps would be in today’s world. Also, Pistol Pete Maravich because I’ve watched his film and he is someone to whom I can really relate to. He had a great basketball mind.

N4S: Favorite place?
WB: Chicago

N4S: In Detroit, we think you can Dunk over YAO….can you?
WB: I would definitely try…lol

Photo/Getty Images

N4S: Thing that surprised you most about The Pistons?
WB: The organizations family atmosphere.

N4S: Thing that surprised you most about living in Michigan?
WB: Being from Chicago the weather shouldn’t have surprised me but after going to college for 4 years and living in Israel for 2 years I forgot about the winter hawk.

N4S: What (CD) is currently playing in your Car?
WB: Tupac (Old Skool)

N4S: Will the Thrill or Bynumite (I think I know the answer to this one)?
WB: Will The Thrill

I just want to thank Will again for taking the time to answer some questions that he normally wouldn’t get asked in the locker room. He was not only a good sport, he wanted to make sure that Pistons fans know how much he appreciates the love he gets from all of you and that your cheers and comments serve as motivation.

If it’s possible to root for “The Thrill” more than I already do, I will after getting to know him a bit more this Summer. In addition to doing this for Need4Sheed he sent me one of the nicest email’s I have gotten in my years of doing Need4Sheed. Will is truly one of the good guys on and off the court.

Next step….I’m trying to convince him to come join all of us on Twitter so we can get to know him even more. Come on Will, you know you want to. If you need some help, I’m sure your new teammate @CV31 will give you a hand.

N4S: As a Cavs fan, before the DET/CLE matchup was decided who was your ideal team to face in the first round?

Todd Dery: To be quite honest, I was hoping for Philly. Yes, they beat the Cavs on the last game of the season, but they did it without Lebron, Z, Mo Williams, and Joe Smith. Delonte West and Anderson Varejao only played a half, yet the Sixers needed OT to beat the Cavs third unit. I was actually scared of the Pistons. Thought they would take too much out of the Cavs for a first round series.

N4S: Who needs to play well (other than LeBron) to make things difficult for Detroit?

Todd Dery: It’s simple – the outside shooters have to hit their shots when the defense collapses on Lebron. Mo WIlliams, Wally Szczerbiak, Daniel Gibson, and Delonte West must keep shooting the ball they way they have over the last month or so. Gibson’s re-emergence has been a major key. His early and mid-season slumps pushed him out of the rotation for a while, but he has played his way back in by simply hitting shots. Also, Joe Smith has got to hit his mid-range shots. That gives the Cavs an extra-dynamic off the bench they didnt have when they had J.J. Hickson and Anderson Varejao as the bigs off the bench.

N4S: What do you make of the Tayshaun Prince/LeBron matchup, in that Prince is considered one of the premier defenders in the league? Do you think he does a good job on LeBron or does he need help like everyone else when it comes to stopping him?

Todd Dery: I honestly think Tayshaun is hurt. He has always done a nice job defending Lebron, but nobody can stop him one on one. Its the help defense that is the key. You must double Lebron and make everyone else beat you. The thing about Tayshaun is that Lebron has gotten stronger and quicker, while Tayshaun is starting to show signs of slowing down.

N4S: Who do you see as the biggest threat on the Pistons?

Todd Dery: Rip Hamilton is the biggest threat. No doubt about it. But Sheed always kills us. Time and time again he hits big threes late in games against the Cavaliers. He also seems to lose his cool the most against the Cavs as well.

N4S: Going into the series everyone (media and fans) seemed to look right past Detroit, do you think the team themselves are?

Todd Dery: Not a chance. This is a completely focused Cavaliers team. Lebron is on a mission. Look at the final regular season game. They had a chance to tie for the all-time best home record at 40-1 but had clinched the home court advantage already. Realistically, the game meant nothing, so the Cavs regulars all sat. When asked about why they did it, Lebron and coach Mike Brown echoed the same sentiment – the real goal is the NBA Title and everything else is meaningless.

N4S: Lastly, do you see LeBron staying in Cleveland once his contract is up and does the decision hinge on whether he wins a Championship or not?

Todd Dery: I’m from Cleveland, born and raised, so my initial response has always been to say he is gone win or lose in two years. But Lebron is a different cat. While he wants to be a “global icon,” which he already is, the thing he wants most is to win. If Cleveland is the place that gives him the best shot come next summer, then he will stay here. My gut tells me they will get a ring in the next two years and he will stay here, but on another three to four-year deal, which would give him another chance to go elsewhere at a relatively young age. When he signs his next deal, Lebron will be 25. Keep that in mind.

Thanks again go out to Todd and Waiting For Next Year for taking the time out to answer a few quiestions as well as getting a little Pistons point of view for Cavs fans.

As The Pistons get ready to put their seven game winning streak on the line in Portland, I had a chance to do Q&A with Sean Meager of Oregon Live’s Blazers Blog.

Pistons fans got a great look at what LaMarcus Aldridge can do after he put up 27 at the Palace in the Blazers win over the Pistons. He’s averaging 17 a game and he’s been called “little Sheed.” Has he hit his plateau, or is this just the beginning for Aldridge?

Blazers Blog -- LaMarcus Aldridge can’t even see his plateau from here. As good as Aldridge is right now, as you mentioned 17 ppg and 7 rebounds per game, he’s just 36 games into his third season. Sure, his numbers are similar to last year’s, but this Blazers team is better than that of last season. Aldridge, only 23-years-old, has the skill set to be one of the best power forwards in the game for a while. Critics will point to his affinity to face up more often than back down his defender, or that he needs to get more boards. Reasonable suggestions, but what makes LA so good is his versatility. He has the ability to face up his defender and go glass from 10, a la Tim Duncan, or he can catch and shoot from 17, hit the 3 or knock down the sweeping hook across the lane. What most (outside of Portland) may not realize at this point is: as Greg Oden gets better, LaMarcus Aldridge reaps the benefits.

The Blazers are packed with so much young talent, who has surprised you most with their play this season?

Blazers Blog -- I respond to this Q the same every time. You may not know his name (yet) but rookie Nicolas Batum has quickly showed Portland fans why Kevin Pritchard and Co. did so much wheeling and dealing on draft day to acquire the forward out of France. Watching Batum in the Las Vegas Summer League, I wasn’t sure he was ready for the WNBA let alone the NBA. Maybe not that harsh, but the kid really opened some eyes during training camp and in the preseason. Starter Marell Webster goes down a few games prior to the season tip and Batum immediately steps in and provides an insurance policy with his fearless (yet smart) play, instincts and length (at 6′9″ kid has a 7′4″ wingspan). It’s not that Batum does any one thing exceptionally well, he’s just pretty solid all around. The fair comparison would be to your own Tayshaun Prince. He’s similar to Prince at Kentucky, with maybe a little less offensive propensity.

Portland is 20-14 and have lost their last 2 with All Star Brandon Roy sitting. We know what they did last season without Oden, but can they win without Roy?

Blazers Blog -- The Blazers also beat Boston without Brandon Roy. Regardless, it’s much harder for this team to win consistently right now with Roy on the bench. Roy is so vital to the flow of the offense. He’s a facilitator. When he’s on the court, he puts all four teammates in a better position to succeed. There’s only a handful of players in this league I would feel as confident about with the ball in their hands and the game on the line.

Brandon Roy or Rodney Stuckey? If you can have only one, which do you pick?

Blazers Blog -- Roy. Don’t get me wrong, I love Rodney Stuckey (have since his days at EWU) and would probably give up anyone else on the roster not named Aldridge or Oden for Stuckey. But Roy is one of the top 10 or 15 players in the league right now. So … Steve Blake and Sergio Rodriguez for Stuckey?

It must have been hard to watch Oden sit his rookie season, are you impress with what he’s done this season or did you have higher expectations? Given his play as of late, do you agree with the push by some folks in the blogosphere and your own paper for Przybilla to start and bring Oden the bench?

Blazers Blog -- I think Oden is about where he should be at this point. Only playing one year in college; a year removed from the game; battling back from a significant surgery. Expecting him to come right out of the gate and post 20/10 a night is like hoping for college football to scrap the BCS and move to a playoff system. Not happening. Most rookies come into this league having played basketball non-stop leading into that rookie year. Oden spent his “rookie” season rehabbing a knee, getting healthy . So not only is he just learning the NBA game, and he’s only 28 games into his rookie season, but he’s getting back into playing shape. Prior to the season, general manager Kevin Pritchard said we probably wouldn’t start seeing the real Greg Oden until the All-Star break (and that was before the minor setback at the start of the season that kept him out 6 games). But we probably won’t start seeing the true Greg Oden until the start of next season. This season is all about the young man learning to play in the NBA, learning to play with his teammates, with NBA talent, against NBA talent, a full 82+ games, and most importantly, staying healthy.

Blazers fans have a love hate relationship with Rasheed, do you think it’s more hate than love? And do you resent the fact that he changed his attitude after coming to Detroit and helped the team win a Championship?

Blazers Blog -Sheed is a sensitive subject here. I personally have, and always will, love Sheed. He’s one of the most talented big men ever. Yes, he caused his own problems, but he was also vilified to a degree. Do I wish he had the drive to be the best player in the league? Eff yes. I don’t know that he necessarily changed his ‘tude when coming to Detroit, he was just in a better situation, put on a championship team needing a missing piece. As far as the love/hate ratio for Sheed in the Rose City? It’s probably 2 to 1, hate to love. Most people probably don’t care that much. I still have my red Blazers and Bullets Sheed jerseys.

Thanks to Sean for the Q&A, he asked me a few questions about Detroit and the matchup tonight, you can check out my thoughts over at Blazers Blog.

We should have Sheed back for this one, but it looks like Rip is still down for the count.

UPDATE: Sheed will not play.

I will say that I’m not too thrilled with the Pistons’ intro’s this season. I don’t know why they took a step back, but last year’s and the previous ones were so much better in my opinion.

Portland has some pretty darn good ones themselves. Senior Team Need4Sheed member Steve DiLullo caught a game at the Rose Garden last year and made sure he caught them for our enjoyment.

Tip off is at 10:00 P.M. and will be locally broadcast on FSN . If you can’t watch the broadcast, tune into 1130 AM The Fan. Can’t do either? Follow the game on NBA.com.