Down to the wire in The Pistons home opener

by | Nov 5, 2007 | 45 comments

The Pistons needed a Chauncey Billups free throw with 1.7 seconds left on the clock to beat the Atlanta Hawks 92-91 at the Palace. This isn’t your Atlanta Hawks team of old, and they showed it by taking to The Pistons the entire night. Thanks in part to the hustle of Jason Maxiell and the Pistons ability to convert The Hawks 19 turnovers into points, they came away 3-and-0 on the season.

Chauncey takes it to the hole
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Key Points:

  • Sheed didn’t shoot the ball well but was a pest on “D”. He had 8 points on 3-for12 shooting with 5 rebounds, 5 assists, a steal and 3 blocked shots.
  • Narz Mohammed is getting minutes, 4 to be exact.
  • No sign of Amir Johnson. What’s the deal with that? Is he still hurting?
  • Flip Murray played just 12 minutes himself. Six points on 2-for-6 shooting. I see that a ton of you were a bit hard on Flip for his performance last night. Me, I’m still on the Murray bandwagon.
  • Jason Maxiell is simply a force to be reckoned with.
  • Though I missed it on the big screen, it looked like Sheldon Williams kicked Nazr Mohammed in his “sensitive area”. Technical fouls for both of them, and none for Sheed, that’s a first.
  • I say this all the time, but I saw some questionable foul calls last night. First was the Maxiell foul when pulling down a rebound. Then the foul when Rip got tied up in the fourth and was called for his sixth, then the Sheed 3 pointer to almost send the game in overtime.
  • Sheed brings entertainment to a new level.
  • Courtesy of FSN and The Detroit Pistons
  • Always clutch at the line Chauncey missed his second free throw with 1.7 left on the clock. It actually may have helped the Pistons in that it shaved some time off the clock and was left in the hands of Josh Smith to take the half court heave. Mr Big shot had 22 points on the night with 5 assists, 2 blocked shots and 4 steals.
  • Johnson led the Hawks with 23 and Williams added 22 and also threw up a halftime buzzer beater to give Atlanta a 48-45 lead into halftime.
  • It wasn’t a carefree night like I thought it would be, we were all on the edge of our seats in the entire fourth quarter.
  • NBA.com Highlights of the game.
  • Pistons shot 45.7% from the floor while The Hawks shot 45.8%.
  • Jarvis Hayes isn’t afraid to take a shot in crunch time. He hit a big one late in the fourth.
  • Tayshaun played 36 minutes, it looks like he’s going to be a iron man again this season.
  • 10 blocked shots for the Pistons.Four of them belonged the Mr. Maxiell.
  • Richard Hamilton started off strong and fast in his first game of the season. Rip put up 22 points on 10-for-15 shooting with 5 assists and a takeaway.
Rip Hamilton
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  • I know many of you are from out of town or don’t get to see the Pistons introductions in person. I will have this years version up on the site in the next day or so. A little old school with the new, plus some explosive Maxiell….. Awesome.
  • Sorry for the late update, this whole McCosky thing has had me sidelined all morning. Apparently Chris mentioned Need4Sheed on the Jamie and Brady show this morning. I caught some of it, does anyone have the clip?
  • Drew Sharp: Hamilton’ absence made the Pistons better.
  • Look you don’t need me to tell you that Maxiell had a monster night, everyone is talking about it. I will say this as a fan and being lucky enough to attend games, this kid gets the crowd going like nobody else can. Well unless your Sheed and you throw up a 60 footer.
Jason Maxiell is Amazing
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  • Highlights of the game from NBA.com
  • Someone mentioned that they said Stuckey almost ready to play on the broadcast of the game last night. Seems very quick to me, but it just might happen.
  • Need4Sheed reader Jeff K send me this link. Apparently Joe D is a little upset over the Kobe-Pistons rumors.
  • Ben and the Bulls on Thursday night’s TNT is the next time we see the Pistons in action.

45 Comments

  1. Anonymous

    3-0 yeah baby!! Keep up the good work fellas – we love ya!

    Reply
  2. Julius

    This was a great game to make. I’m also still on the Murray bandwagon, I Didn’t think he was that bad. Some of the foul calls were not questionable but down right terrible, however Chauncy after one whistle bounced the ball toward the basket. He may of just been trying to be silly, but as of last season that’s an automatic tech and instead he just got a warning, you could see the ref mentioning it. So I’m not sure the refs are just out to get the pistons. It was good to see the bench played as deep as it was. As far as billups missed free throw at the end of the game. It was clearly on purpose. Flip seemed to shot something to him and he rimmed the shot out, exactly what you wanna do if you’re trying to run the clock and force the other team into a very difficult hail mary half court shot. The difference of 2 points or 1 point up at 1.9 seconds really isn’t going to be very big if there isn’t an option for time outs.

    Reply
  3. Anonymous

    Hey, I’m all for Murray if he gets enough time. That’s probably one of his very few flaws in his game; takes him a bit to get going and bad decisions at times. But besides that, he’s a very good back-up for Chauncey.

    About Maxiell: One word – UNREAL!

    About Sheed’s Warm-Up Antics: I love it! He really caught me off guard with the knee-slapping ho-down. I was laughing hard as I can. LOL.

    About the New Intro: GET IT UP! I’m absolutely fascinated about the new one, especially Maxiell is getting so much show, especially with the “Explosion Dunk” at the end. And Natalie! Can you make the intro downloadable? I want to put it on my PSP so I can watch it anytime if it’s possible? PLEASE? I’ll give you a Sheed Sugar Cookie. ^,^

    -BabyBen

    Reply
  4. Anonymous

    please can someone post that video of everyone punching Afflalo in the locker room before tha game. U know how Rip goes around punching people, well Sheed found Afflalo and grabbed him and tha whole team just came and started punching him i thought that was hilarious….please Natalie please post that…i want them to do something like that 2 Stuckey too….way too funny when i saw that…hhahahahaha..i still remember that. Oh yeah Sheed dance was just too funny, i vote Detroit most humorous team in tha NBA!!

    Reply
  5. Anonymous

    OMg i forgot 2 post my famous signature…..
    LET”S GO PISTONS AND LET”S GET THAT SHIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2007-2008 IT”S OUR TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    ALL BOUT DETROIT BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Reply
  6. claire

    good to see that Joe D is mad about the Pistons-Kobe rumors. But Sheed’s clip really made my day!! I totally didn’t expect what Sheed did right before the circle breaks up. I was literally laughing out loud. As Babyben up there points out, a sheedtastic “knee-slapping-ho-down.” and i seriously cannot wait for the intro video, that’s the best part of being a pistons fan: awesome intro!!

    Reply
  7. claire

    After a closer look, I think Sheed’s new routine is more of a feet-stomping-ho-down. Regardless, the Automotion should recruit anytime soon now! preferably after he retires as a Piston

    Reply
  8. Altan

    do uhav the intros plz….

    Reply
  9. Anonymous

    dude she said she would have the into’s up in a day or so… Give the girl a break!

    Reply
  10. Anonymous

    i don’t know wat sheed was doing but i thought it was way tooo funny, and tha whole bench was laughing @him which makes me smile…tha player introduction was soo sweet, especially the Max dunk and tha FIRE!!! OMG it scared me but it was just tooo hype in tha Palace …tha whole crowd was loud and was heard all around tha city of Detroit!!!! I LOV THIS TEAM/ CITY/ and OUR SPORTS!!!!

    LET”S GO PISTONS AND LET”S GET THAT SHIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2007-2008 IT”S OUR TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    ALL BOUT THAT DETROIT BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Reply
  11. Ashley

    I can’t wait to see the Pistons in action at the United Center on Thursday! It’s always a great atmosphere in that arena because there are so many Pistons fans in the area. It’s going to be awesome.

    Reply
  12. Junior

    Natalie…
    I am not sure if this has been brought up or not.

    I know McDyess has a record of getting off to a slow start, then finding his groove as the season goes on.

    But what do you think of sending him back to the bench and having Max replace him in the starting lineup.

    Or do you think it would hamper Max’s game.

    Dyess just looks uncomfortable to me.

    Reply
  13. jacqueline

    That was a fun game to watch, I was on the edge of my couch in the fourth quarter, it was so intense in the end, my boo-boo Chauncey ame through in the end, I was so scared when he missed that free throw, it was great to watch the time tick away as they scrambled for the rebound, that was cool, I love the new introductions video, J-Max is the right choice to make things blow up, so cool, Rasheed is so damn funny, its riduculous, I laughed so hard at his new dance, thats the “Roscoe Schuffle”. oh my God, I love the Pistons, they are fun to watch and I love watching them win!!!!!

    Reply
  14. Anonymous

    mcdyess just doesnt take many shots he forces nothing he just wnats to rebound play solid defence in the post, and hit open shots, i think he fits well at doing that and as the season goes on he will just get better and better, and plus i love the type of time maxiel is getting

    Reply
  15. Anonymous

    The reason NAZR isn’t playing is because he sucks! can’t fault flip for that although u can blame him for a number of things

    Reply
  16. Julius

    McDyess was solid. He pulled down a LOT of boards and good boards at that. He shoots consistently but doesn’t take many shots. I’m shocked to hear this sort of thing here because lets face it, Detriot is Defense and McDyess plays his part. Probably he doesn’t want to be played for minutes like Prince is because Dyess is older, but I think he does his role great.

    Reply
  17. Anonymous

    the highlights link from NBA.com…
    had me a bit confused. At the end they talk about how Smith needs to mature as a player, and he should have called a time out once he rebounded the ball from chauncey’s last foul shot. I didnt get to watch the game, but on the radio, i believe they said that Atlanta had no more time outs. They also said that Rip and his wife, had a baby. Is he married?

    Reply
  18. Eitan

    Pardon my language, but what the f*** is Sheed doing in that clip?
    He’s like having a spazz attack.

    Reply
  19. Anonymous

    is rip married ???

    Reply
  20. Anonymous

    hey nat what did u were to the game?? did you were a cownboy hat??

    Reply
  21. Anonymous

    **cowboy

    Reply
  22. Anonymous

    i don’t think rip is married. In fact, I’m possitive. Anyway, exciting game. It was an interesting game to watch. Chauncey did not purposly miss the shot! The interview after the game, he didn’t intend to miss the shot, and you could tell he was dissapointed that he did. The beginning of the game for rip was incredible!!! He was so good, and i was really impressed with everyone.

    I love this team more than anything! <33

    Reply
  23. Junior

    I think that is my point. McDyess is too good of a shooter to only take a few attempts. I mean playing with 4 other legit scorers, we are not able to get the most out of him like we would with him coming off the bench. Its not a demotion or a knock on his game. Its about getting the most out of your players.

    Reply
  24. Anonymous

    Jarvis Hayes SUCKS! He and Nazr should be benched…Amir and Max need more minutes (very deep big men attack) so when sheed is having his inconsistent games, there will be help for him.

    Reply
  25. Amanda

    I think it’s best that Maxiell comes off the bench rather than start because of the energy boost he gives the team. But he’s definitely starter material.

    And like Anony 8:26 said, Rip is not married, but the mother of his baby is his girlfriend. And I also heard Chauncey say he did not mean to miss the second freethrow and he said he wished he had made it. Not sure why, considering it worked out fine but I hesitate to question the Captain…

    I know fans aren’t supposed to take stock in the Power Rankings on ESPN.com but I’m a little upset about the reasoning that the Spurs are #1:

    “It wasn’t the toughest competition, true, but the champs were the only team in the league to play three games in the first four days of the season. And the so-called fogies didn’t look so old to us.”

    I’m pretty sure Detroit played its first 3 games in 4 days as well and the Pistons played against, in my opinion, much better competition.

    It just erked me so I thought I’d share it with you guys.

    Reply
  26. Amanda

    Oh my God, ‘Sheed is fucking hilarious! That video is laugh out loud funny! It’s like he takes a few seconds to either catch his breath or make up his mind what he’s going to do next and BAM! He does…that. How do the players in the circle not start cracking up right then and there? lol Oh, I have GOT to get to the Palace at least one time this year!

    Reply
  27. Anonymous

    don’t know how many of you guys were at the game, but right before tip-off Sheed grabbed a mic at center court and thanked the fans for their support for the past 50 years and urged us all to make it another great 50!

    another key fact learned to only the select few at the game was courtesy of the blonde girl that interviews people during timeouts. According to her, in the past 20 years no other professional sports team has made more conference championship appearances than the Bad Boys!!!!

    great site Nat, keep up the good work!!!

    -Elliot

    Reply
  28. Anonymous

    to amanda 9:11 p.m

    Sheed seems to catch his breath, and u can tell that AA and Hayes were laughing through tha whole thing. And then u can c Super Dupe and Lindsey cracking up……question? does Rasheed do that every game or thats just home games??

    LET”S GO PISTONS AND LET”S GET THAT SHIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2007-2008 IT”S OUR TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    ALL BOUT DETROIT BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Reply
  29. Anonymous

    I think he does that for every game, but they only show it during Home Openers and Finals Home Games. That’s probably the only times that they’ll broadcast the introductions to the teams.

    -BabyBen

    Reply
  30. Anonymous

    Good stuff Nat. However, I am pretty sure C-Bill missed the last free throw on purpose.

    JC

    Reply
  31. Anonymous

    Nat even though i dont have nba league pass, i do watch my Pistons online.. for free and it comes in PERFECT.. so happy about it

    – Vin
    Connecticut

    Reply
  32. Amanda

    Haha Seriously, Natalie thank you so much for posting that video of ‘Sheed. I’m pulling an all-nighter in order to finish a paper and visiting this site to watch that video every so often has helped in a big way. ‘Sheed can always provide a healthy dose of comic relief. Thanks, again!

    Reply
  33. Amanda

    lol it gets funnier and funnier the more Mountain Dews you slam…

    Reply
  34. Natalie

    No problem Amanda, the best part of the Sheed dance is that he does a different one every game. Good luck with the paper.

    Someone had asked if I was wearing a Cowboy hat at the game on Sunday, the answer is no.

    Reply
  35. Anonymous

    bring up the intro nat 🙂

    Reply
  36. Amanda

    That’s amazing. A new dance every game? Where does he get his hot moves? I’d be out of ideas by like game 3. haha…Yeah, I can’t dance.

    Oh wow. Awesome idea for one of those “How to Dance” DVDs you can buy at stores: A montage of ‘Sheed dance clips! Somebody could take us through the moves, step by step and we could all cut a rug like ‘Sheed. I’d pay money for that!

    Reply
  37. Amanda

    I don’t know about the rest of you, but when I read this, it hurt.

    “Big Ben hurting; Noah may see extra playing time as a result

    More matter-of-factly than maliciously, Bulls coach Scott Skiles hinted at reducing Ben Wallace’s playing time further as the veteran center continues to be bothered by a sore left ankle.

    “If he’s injured and can’t get it done out there, we have to get somebody in there who can,” Skiles said after Monday’s two-hour practice at the Berto Center.

    Expect rookie Joakim Noah to take some of Wallace’s minutes if the veteran’s jumping ability continues to be hampered. Wallace, who is averaging only 3.7 rebounds in 30 minutes per game, admitted as much Saturday night in Milwaukee.

    To illustrate Wallace’s ineffectiveness, Ben Gordon has 20 defensive rebounds to Wallace’s three in the Bulls’ 0-3 start.

    “If he’s not injured at all, he never gets treatment, and he’s still getting treatment,” Skiles said of Wallace. “He came in (Sunday, a day off) for treatment.

    “There have been times he’s been injured and not gotten treatment because he knows he can play through it. So it’s obviously still bothering him.”

    –K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune

    There was a time 2 summers ago when I border-lined hated Ben and would secretly smile at this type of news. Now, if he wanted to come back to Detroit, I’d welcome him with open arms.

    Reply
  38. Anonymous

    Vin –

    How are you watching the games without league pass? Share the wealth!

    Reply
  39. claire

    I do miss Ben as a Piston. Yesterday, I was watching a Ben and Sheed mix, and man, it makes me sad that’s he’s no longer a Piston anymore. I hope things are better than what they seem for Big Ben.

    Reply
  40. Anonymous

    I hope the rest of the guys are paying attention to what is going on with Ben… not the injury or whatever, but I don’t think he is happy in Chicago and I think he regrets making the move no matter how big his paycheck is. Just goes to show that money can’t buy happiness.

    GO PISTONS!!!!

    Reply
  41. Anonymous

    thursday night is taking forever to come.

    Reply
  42. Anonymous

    i was at that game

    Reply
  43. Anonymous

    I think it was a bad move for chauncey to leave the last play up to the refs, if they didn’t call that we would of had to deal with the pistons whining all week long rather than take the game into their own hands.

    Reply
  44. gee gee

    halirous oh my goodness. sheed never ceases to amaze me that was so funny. I am so glad that he is on our team. Let’s go pistons

    Reply
  45. gee gee

    oh yeah i will be rocking that dance in the club, please believe me lol

    Reply

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