The best news about the Pistons agreeing to a 2-year deal, worth roughly $6 million with power forward slash center, Chris Wilcox is that it means Detroit will no longer be pursuing Glen "Big Baby" Davis and Drew Gooden (Scott Pollard's African American brother).  That's not all, though.

What most basketball people don't realize is that Joe Dumars may have just found himself another under the radar player that will make him look like a sheer genius, Lloyd.

Wilcox is an athletic, and young, big man who can bang and straight up play.  A few years ago he averaged nearly 14 points per game and just under 8 rebounds per game.  Astute observers might point out his less than stellar 08-09 campaign, however look at the teams he has been playing on.  He has journeyed from the Clippers-to the Sonics, Thunder, and Knicks; all mediocre-to-terrible squads.  Hopefully, with a fresh start in Detroit, Wilcox will return to his 14/8-esque form, if not better.

Usually, "let your hair down" means to relax and do what you want.  Now that Wilcox is on a pretty talented basketball team, perhaps he can "let his hair down" and play like he's capable of.  After all, he'll be entering his prime and alongside some pretty quality players for once.

I remember, what now seems like a long time ago, Detroit brought in a no-name guy and he let his hair turn into the catch phrase "fear the 'fro."  Maybe, just maybe, Wilcox will let his braids go and turn himself into the "fear the 'fro" type player Joe Dumars acquired years ago.  If you don't remember correctly, that player (Ben Wallace) was pretty insignificant at the time, too.

Time will only tell just how significant this signing is for the Pistons.

I am thrilled about the Gordon situation to say the least.  He will be a tremendous addition to the Pistons.  Plus, it really sticks it to our intra-division rival, and more than re-pays Chicago for signing two Red Wings to contracts earlier in the day.  Hossa and Kopecky will hardly be missed by the Red Wings, who have several youngsters ready to fill their spots.  Meanwhile, the loss of Gordon is absolutely devastating to the "Baby Bulls", who were depending on Gordon to lead their resurgence.  In addition, Hossa and Kopecky can't be faulted for signing for considerably more with Chicago.  Hossa, for one, will make probably two million dollars a year more than he would have made with the Wings.  Meanwhile, Gordon has turned down contract offers from the Bulls the last two seasons worth about what he agreed to sign for with Detroit today.

I think the Pistons could have spent their other $8 million under the cap more wisely.  However, Villanueva may surprise some people.  He is athletic, young (24) and will rebound, play defense, hustle and do the little things under the boards that no one has been doing for the Pistons since Rasheed reverted to his old style of aimlessly drifting around the three point line on offense after the Pistons won the 2004 NBA championship.  

Ben Gordon is in Michigan today to talk to Joe Dumars about signing with the Pistons.  In an average free agent market, this is the one guy I would like to see the Pistons sign.  Aside from the points he can put on the board, Gordon plays hard, makes good decisions and hits clutch shots down the stretch consistently.  He has been a winner dating back to his days at UConn.  Also, even though Ben Wallace was a dud for the Bulls and was traded to the Cavs after an uneventful stint in Chicago, I would still like to re-pay the Bulls for what they thought was a coup in signing Wallace, and signing their best player would more than trump the Wallace move.  I would also like to re-pay Chicago for trying to usurp the Red Wings as the dominant team in the Western conference by stealing their players.  The Blackhawks signed former Wing Marian Hossa today to a 12-year deal reportedly worth $5.2 million a year.  They also signed another former Wing, Tomas Kopecky, to a 2-year contract.  As far as I'm concerned, the Hawks can have them.  I defended Hossa in the playoffs, but the fact is, he didn't do a whole lot when it counted.  And Kopecky missed 98% of the playoffs because he got his face smashed in after picking a fight.  I can't wait to punish these two Benedict Arnolds in the upcoming years, hopefully in the playoffs again.

But back to the Pistons- if they were somehow able to sign Gordon, Hedo Turkoglu and Amare Stoudemire, which is unlikely but possible, pencil them in for the NBA Finals.  They would have to let go of Rasheed Wallace and Allen Iverson, (this is a done deal and good riddance), as well as Antonio McDyess and Rip Hamilton (McDyess is a decent bench piece but as expendable as Wallace and Iverson if you ask me, and Rip is on the down-slope of his career but would easily be the most-missed of the four) to make it happen, but they could pull this off nonetheless.  How about a starting line-up of Rodney Stuckey at PG, Ben Gordon at SG, Tayshaun Prince at SF, Amare Stoudemire at PF, Kwame Brown at C, with SG Hedo Turkoglu, PG Will Bynum, F Austin Daye and F Jason Maxiell coming off of the bench.  That is one hell of a team.

I realize this will be difficult to pull off, but not impossible, as we witnessed Boston maneuver similarly a couple years ago to sign Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen in the same off-season.  More likely, the Pistons sign two of the three, and I would gladly take Gordon and Amare and try to keep Rip if this were the case and I had my druthers.  In any case, it seems Turkoglu is being courted aggressively by Portland, and Hedo's agent Lon Babby claimed that as of today he had surprisingly not heard from the Pistons brass.  I would like to see the Pistons go after Turkoglu because he has the lethal three-point shot the Pistons lack now that Chauncey is in Denver and he is a team-player who has a track record of winning.

I also agree with the firing of Michael Curry.  He is a good person by most accounts, and he was a good player, but he had no control over the team, has no relationship with Richard Hamilton and possibly other Pistons, and clearly was not comfortable as a head coach.  Doug Collins and Avery Johnson are waiting in the wings, and either would be a huge improvement over Curry.  I favor Johnson slightly, but have the feeling Collins might get the gig.  I don't think Laimbeer is in the mix at all in Dumars' mind, incidentally. 

So sit back and watch Joe Dumars go to work, all you doubters.  It's a thing of beauty.  And haters, try to tell me in a few weeks how much the Pistons are going to suck.

After just one year at the reigns as head coach of the Detroit Pistons, Michael Curry has been fired. It was a disappointing year in which the Pistons finished with their first losing record since the 2000-2001 season. Dumars won't tolerate mediocrity and hopefully he can bring someone in who can carry the Stones back to prominence in the Eastern Conference. Among the candidates for the job are apparently former Pistons coach Doug Collins and former Mavs coach Avery Johnson.

With the 15th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, the Detroit Pistons selected Gonzaga forward Austin Daye. In case you're wondering why Daye has an extra 'e' at the end of his name, in the French language an 'e' is often added to words to make them feminine.  One problem: Austin Daye is not french or a female.  Yeah, he has the body any 6'11" French woman would want, aside from the "freak," "behemoth," and "that's a huge bitch" comments, but he is all man.  A very tall, pale, skinny, male.

Okay, so Daye, with his anorexic girly frame, "makes Prince look like the Hulk" as Jeff Van (derp) Gundy said during the Draft.  We hear loud and clear all the criticisms of this guy; mainly that he's pretty frail.  And so what if he couldn't bench press 185 pounds, close to his weight, at the combine?   He'll beef up in the NBA and even if he doesn't, teammate Tayshaun Prince (as Mapplethorpe put it nicely) is a great example of how to be strong and successful in the NBA while still not breaking 200 lbs (at their height) after a wet t-shirt contest.

Even now though, Daye is more than just skin and bones. He has tremendous potential, a ton of confidence, and is well-spoken.  After a year full of drama and players acting as if they were bigger than the team, Daye is going to instantly be a catalyst in the Pistons development of team-chemistry.

I'm excited about the prospect of Austin Daye....no... what is going on up here?  I think I've discovered Austin Daye's theme song.  If this song is not played at Pistons games before he is introduced, I'll probably throw a temper tantrum. This should be his officlal theme song 4lyfe.  The song comes from one of the greatest shows on television, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. If you haven't figured out what song I'm talking about yet, then you my friend need to get a life and watch hours and hours of Always Sunny this weekend to get in touch with reality.

I introduce to you, Austin's official theme song:

Daye-man!  Woah-oh-ohhhhhhh

He's Austin Daye-man.  Fighter of the Night Man.  Champion of the sun. You're a master of karate and friendship for everyone.  Daye-man.

Detroit Pistons General Manager Joe Dumars is looking for history to repeat itself.  In the 2002 NBA draft, Dumars took Tayshaun Prince from the University of Kentucky with the 23rd pick in the first round.  At the time, many criticized the pick, as Prince was as skinny as Kate Moss during an extended coke binge.  The 22 year old Prince looked like Mary Kate Olsen on a hunger strike.  People were understandably doubtful about Prince's ability to match up physically with rugged NBA forwards and endure seasons which can exceed 100 games including the playoffs.  However, it didn't take long for Prince to prove the naysayers dead wrong.

Prince only appeared in 42 games during the regular season of his rookie year, and played sparingly in the first 4 games of the first round of the playoffs that year.  However, with the Pistons down 3 games to 1 to the Magic, coach Rick Carlisle inserted Prince into the starting line-up as the small forward for game 6.  Prince responded with two huge games to propel them to a series win.  John Mapplethorpe was at the Billy Joel-Elton John concert at the Palace during the game 6 in Orlando that year (unreal show btw), but would sneak away during shitty songs like "Crocodile Rock", "Candle in the Wind", and "Uptown Girl" to watch the game at the concession stands while picking up yet another tall boy.  John was back at the Palace a couple days later for game 7, and Tayshaun was the only reason the Pistons advanced to the second round that year.  Every key possession down the stretch, Tay would go iso on the wing, and put points on the board with a baby hook, a short fade-away jumper, or an up-and-under lay-up.  He had 20 points in 24 minutes that game, and was equally as impressive the next series against the 76'ers and in the conference finals against New Jersey.  He has been a starter for the Pistons the last 6 seasons, winning an NBA title and playing in 2 NBA Finals and 6 conference finals.

Tayshaun has faded a little the last few years in the playoffs, but I think it's safe to say he has had a great run with the Pistons.  With the 15th pick in the first round of today's 2009 NBA draft, the Pistons selected Austin Daye from Gonzaga.  This kid is a Prince clone.  He has Prince's physique (see above) at 6'10" and 190 lbs to go along with his skin tone.  He has a similar game, with his best asset being his ability to drive, shoot or pass from the triple-threat position with the ball.  He is long and has a 7' 3" wingspan like Prince.  His current weaknesses include being passive at times, his propensity for going through extended cold stretches offensively, and allowing himself to be pushed around at times close to the basket.  This was the same scouting report on Prince coming out of Kentucky.  One major difference is that Daye is 3 years younger than Prince coming out of college, with two fewer college seasons under his belt.  So expecting him to reproduce Prince's rookie season emergence is not realistic.  Another noticeable difference is that Daye does not look like Curious George.

Regardless of what happens with Daye, the Pistons are far from being the big losers in the NBA right now.  Several teams have left me throwing my head back in laughter, mocking their decision-making.  Let me give you a short list:

5.  Cleveland Cavaliers:  The Cavs traded for the shameless Shaquille O'Neal in a desperate bid to win the first championship for the city of Cleveland since the Civil War.  Unfortunately, I don't think they stopped to consider that Shaq Diesel is 53 years old and will NOT take them to the promised land next year.  I realize Super Man had some decent numbers last year, but have you seen him play recently?  His knees look about as strong as Chris Webber's right now, and he is as fat and out-of-shape as Al Roker pre-gastric bypass.  Also, the Cavs took some guy who was playing basketball with a cantaloupe and a wicker basket in the Congo with their first round draft pick.  Come on, Danny Ferry.

4.  Orlando Magic:  Vince Carter?  Enough said.

3.  Phoenix Suns:  Ben Wallace should retire as he previously planned.  His tank is empty.  So basically the Suns traded Shaq for Sasha Pavlovic, a low draft pick and an expensive dinner?  I know this was a cap move setting up next year's free agency run, but Phoenix could have done much better than that.

2.  Boston Celtics:  I don't care if the head of custodial services at TD Banknorth called the Palace inquiring about the Pistons' interest in trading Rip, Tay and Stuckey for a decrepit Ray Allen and an undersized Rajon Rondo.  That's just ridiculous.

1.  Minnesota Timberwolves:  They drafted 3 undersized point guards with their first 3 first round picks.  Apparently, they are going to trade Ty Lawson to Denver, but this still makes no sense.  The Timberwolves' drafting philosophy may be more mystifying than the Detroit Lions', who took wide receivers in the first round of the NFL draft for like 8 years in a row.  This is probably why Minnesota managed to accomplish absolutely nothing while having Kevin Garnett at center for the majority of his lengthy career.

Finally, John Mapplethorpe has close ties to the University of North Carolina and would like to congratulate the Tar Heels, who had 3 players from their national championship team drafted in the first round of the NBA draft, Tyler Hansbrough at #13, Ty Lawson at #18 and Wayne Ellington at #28.  6 players from the state of North Carolina were among the first 28 picks.  Also, Bobby B. was right on the money with his hestiations about BJ "Special Ed" Mullens.  Apparently, the Dallas Mavericks felt the same way about the Buckeye.  They traded him to Oklahoma City soon after drafting him.

The NBA Draft is just around the corner of "get a map" and "eff off."  With it approaching so rapidly, it's time to start speculating who the Detroit Pistons could possibly snag with their No. 15 overall pick.  For your information, the last time Detroit had a No. 15 pick it was 2007 and they chose a guy named Rodney Stuckey.

This year, the draft is not particularly loaded, but there is a long list of guys that should be available come Detroit's turn; almost all of whom I'd be totally cool with the Pistons drafting.

Except for one.

Rumors have been circulating this past week that the Pistons have made a promise to Ohio State University's Byron (B.J.) Mullens, that they would pick him with the 15th overall pick should he still be available.  Rumors are just rumors, so I don't typically put too much stock into them.  I used to start dirty rumors in high school all the time just for fun, so it doesn't necessarily make them true.

This particular rumor doesn't seem to make much sense to me.   What if, for some crazy reason, a guy like Stephen Curry slipped to No. 15?  It's never going to happen, but just go with it.  If the promise is true and Mullens is still available, with Curry, that means the Pistons would pick Mullens instead of a guy like Curry?  I don't believe it for one second.  I've seen guys slip in drafts before and promising a player before the draft starts that you'll take him, in the middle of the draft no less, does not seem logical to me. Yeah, these promises are not legally binding, but still.  The only time I think a draft promise is acceptable is when the player is a cut above the rest.  That does not seem to be the case here with Mullens.  I wouldn't be surprised if Mullens started this rumor himself.

If the rumor is true then I urge all Pistons fans to cross their fingers, toes, and legs and pray that some other team before the 15th pick thinks highly enough of Mullens to waste a pick on him.

My first concern with B.J. Mullens is not exactly a legitimate reason to dislike the guy as a potential center for our hometown basketball team, but I still think it's worth mentioning that the Ohio State player has been on record as saying he hates the state of Michigan.  Granted it was right before an Ohio State/Michigan game, but is that really the type of guy we want bringing fans to the Palace as our "loveable rookie"?  Further, when Mullens was asked to sum up his opinion of the state of Michigan with one SAT word, Mullens responded, "Boo."  So he hates Michigan and didn't do very well on his SAT.  Not a good start, in my book.

Now there is promise with Mullens.  First of all, he's an athletic 7'0", 260 lb center.  That alone could have most teams drooling over him.  Enter the Detroit Pistons who always seem to be in dier need of a big man, Mullens might seem exactly like the type of guy we'd want and should grab if he's available.

However, take a look at Mullens profile on Draft Express, probably the most credible and thorough analysis of draft prospects on the internet.  You might be surprised to notice that on the left side there are 9 strengths listed for Mullens and 24 weaknesses!  That's not an instant deal breaker for me, but it automatically has me as skeptic as any time I'm at the club and I see a rash on a girl's lip.  It could be fixable, but something tells me it's permanent and infectious.

It's not the number of weaknesses that necessarily perturb me, though.  It's the actual weaknesses.  "Basketball IQ," "Commitment to playing defense," "work ethic," "ability to contribute immediately," and "not productive enough," are just some that really irk me.  Detroit has prided itself in the past decade on having teams that work harder than anyone at defense and know the game like the back of their hand.  Mullens would seemingly fail miserably at this.

Furthermore, the whole idea of Dumars trading Billups was to free up money and go out and purchase free agents that could help the Pistons win immediately and help the franchise avoid the same downtime that Dumars experienced as a player in the early-90s.  Scouting reports say Mullens is a good 2-3 years away from being a contributor to any NBA team.  There are players in the draft ready to contribute to NBA teams, so why would Joe contradict himself and take a gamble on a guy who not only will not be ready to help them for another 2-3 years, but also may not even pan out at all.

To me, this potential pick has "Darko Milicic" written all over it.  In case you forgot, the Pistons took Milicic, the 7'0" 260 lb center, with the 2nd pick in the 2003 draft.  Milicic, who was supposed to develop into a perennial center in the league, wound up becoming nothing more than the "Human Victory Cigar."  Like Mullens, Milicic had a lot of weaknesses coming in, but all the promise in the world.  Unfortunately, Milicic's work ethic never kicked in and he spent more of his time smoking cigarettes, drinking, and hooking up with local Catholic school girls rather than getting into contributing shape.  I can't help but feel a similar path is in store for Mullens.

Joe Dumars is a proud GM and he'll do what he thinks is best for the team, despite what the media and fans might think of his decisions.  Time after time, he defended his pick of Milicic in 2003, only recently admitting he may have made a mistake. Whatever he decides to do with the No. 15 pick, I'll trust him, but a Mullens pick might have me doubting Joe for first time since he took over the job at the beginning of the millennium.

Why make the same mistake twice?

Go out and grab the best, NBA ready talent available and forget about promising risks like Mullens.  The work ethic and his attitude should be a red flag alone, but there are numerous other weaknesses to Mullens' game that should be enough cause for concern to ultimately pass on B.J. Mullens and go with someone else.

For me, all it would take is knowing he went to Ohio State, that stupid interview of him bashing Michigan, and that terrible B.J. tattoo he's displaying above for me to say, "No thanks, I'd rather have a different B.J."  Then again, I'm not an NBA GM.

We all know Ron Artest.

Ron Artest was involved in one of the, if not the, biggest brawls in sports history in 2004 when he ran into the crowd at the Palace of Auburn Hills and proceded to pummel on some guy he thought had thrown a beer cup at him.  Artest running into the crowd started an absolute melee as several Pacers players wound up fighting with several different fans, both in the seats and on the floor.  This resulted in the game ultimately being called and Pacers players getting beer and everything imaginable dumped on them as they were escorted back to their lockerroom. A despicable display on all accounts.  (see video at very bottom).

Due to the events of that evening, Ron Artest quickly found himself on the "Most Hated" list in Detroit--if he wasn't already-- which is highlighted by guys like Claude Lemieux, A.J. Pierzynski, and Matt Millen.  He was suspended for the season by the NBA and officially ingrained the brawl into the Pistons and NBA's memories4lyfe.

With an event such as this, I will forever be able to answer the question, "where were you when Artest and the Pacers tried to fight 20,000 people at the Palace?"  The answer for me: Drinking cheap bourbon in an undersized college dorm room with way too many dudes (it's not gay because we were drinking whiskey and watching sports, okay?).

Rehashing old memories of the brawl was not the main purpose for this post, though.

As some of you may already know, Ron Artest will be a free agent this summer.  With the Pistons, it seems pretty clear that an era has ended and a new one will be built this summer.  Interestingly, Ron Artest's availability and the Pistons rebuilding might correlate.  It's been just over a week and a half into the unofficial offseason and I'm shocked to hear that a fair number of fans would like to see Ron Artest in the red, blue, and white next season.

If you haven't heard this before, then take a moment to let it soak in.  I'll talk amongst myself while you're verklempt.

I'm not understanding how this would be a good move.  First of all, the PIstons are supposedly doing a semi-youth movement and Ron Artest will be 30 next season.  Not exactly adding youth.  Secondly, he comes with multiple carry on bags and we all know you can't do that on airplanes and it'd cost too much to check them all.  In other words, that brawl (and all the jokes and drama that come with it) will, or should, forever preclude Artest ever becoming a Detroit Piston. That's like Claude Lemieux becoming a Red Wing or Parkman becoming an Indian in Major League.  One didn't happen and the other didn't work out.  Case in point.  Total facial, LaFleur.

However, these same fans seem to think we need to get over what happened nearly 5-years ago and realize that Artest's bulky 6'7" frame will benefit the Pistons when playing the likes of Lebron and Paul Pierce in the playoffs.  And this is a decent point, but I'm still not buying.

I would rather continue to lose to Lebron than sign Artest to a contract he's not worth, especially at his age, and risk the non-stop "brawl jokes" and potential failure of such an erratic signing.  Honestly, this guy is a mental case, character hazard, and a haymaker to a front-row fan waiting to happen.  It doesn't help the nerves knowing the first two things that come up under his name on a Google search are "fight" and "brawl."

Yet, some people have forgiven him.  Some people are willing to move on for the better of the franchise and many believe he will benefit.  I might be on board of getting over the fight, but I still think it's more than reasonable to believe because that happened, he'll never be on our team.

Ron Artest has already given his many takes on the fight over the years.  To him, it's old news and not that big of a deal.  Of course it's not a big deal. If it was a big deal, and he was somewhat smart, it would have never happened in the first place.  John Green, the guy who threw the cup, probably feels differently about it since he's been banned from the Palace4lyfe.  Artest on the other hand, he still makes millions, will make even more this summer, and has no problem with what happened back in the day.  In fact, recently Artest joked about going into the stands during a Rockets/Blazers game and mentioned that beer was offered to him (start around 55 second mark):

Surprisingly, I laughed at this.  Mostly because of Yao's comments, "not home this time, not at home this time."  Yao laughs like a little kid laughing at one of his elder's jokes.  I digress.

Artest also jokes about how he wanted to take a drink of the beer offered to him by one of his fans.  He says he didn't take a sip because there were too many cameras.  Really?  So you were cool with running into the crowd in a nationally televised game and beating on someone because he was being "disrespectful," but you can't consume a beverage, that you're technically legally allowed to do during a late TNT playoff telecast because there were too many cameras around?  I know it's not the right thing to do, but it sounds as if his logic is just a tad contradicting, eh?

Well, I think I discovered the real reason he didn't want to drink any beers in front of the cameras. We know someone who saw Artest at a bar in Portland, drank with him, and even snapped some photos of him and...who is that guy??  Artest got a little drunk, to say the least.

After a long layoff, I'm finally back and boy does it feel good.  A lot has happened since I last talked to you loyal readers at Detroit4lyfe.com.  This may surprise you, but today I want to discuss a team that disappointed many this past year.  The Detroit Pistons backed into the NBA playoffs as the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference and were promptly sent fishing in four blowouts by Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.  This series had a vintage 1991 feel to it.  The 1990-1991 Detroit Pistons had a roster of guys who had battled together through the 1980's, proudly wearing the red, white and blue.  Their team was the 8th straight Pistons team to make the playoffs, and they made the Eastern Conference Finals for the 5th straight year.  They were the two-time defending NBA champs, and had made the NBA Finals three straight seasons.  However, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls caught up with and passed the Bad Boys in one fell swoop in the spring of 1991, leaving the Pistons behind in their rear view mirror as "Trader" Jack McCloskey's dynasty crumbled.  After being swept by Jordan and a surrounding Bulls cast that was coming of age, SG Vinnie "the Microwave" Johnson moved onto San Antonio to finish his wonderful career with an anti-climactic season with the Spurs, and PF James "Buddha" Edwards headed out west to play for the Clippers.  In the next two years, C Bill Laimbeer, PG Isiah Thomas, SF Dennis "the Worm" Rodman and PF John "Spider" Salley followed suit and played their final games as Pistons.  The Pistons were 0-4 in playoff series the rest of the 1990's.

Similarly, the 2008-2009 edition of the Pistons was on the tail end of a successful run.  6 straight Eastern Conference Finals, 7 straight playoff appearances, 2 NBA Finals and an NBA title in 2004, all with the core of SG Richard "Rip" Hamilton, PG Chauncey "Mr. Big Shot" Billups, SF Tayshaun "I'm not anorexic I just have a REALLY good metabolism" Prince and PF Rasheed "I'm trying not to complain about every call, but I just can't help myself and what is the deal with this weird bald spot anyway" Wallace.  Yet, Wallace has not been the same since his first magical year with the Pistons when he helped them to a title after being traded from Portland (with a brief stop in Atlanta) at the trading deadline.  Tayshaun has routinely disappeared in the playoffs.  Rip has slowed a couple steps.  And, of course, General Manager Joe Dumars backed up his promise to make "major changes" after the Pistons failed to show up for the 4th quarter and blew a lead in game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against Boston in 2008, trading Chauncey Billups in the first week of the '08-'09 season to Denver for Allen Iverson.  Iverson quit on the Pistons, deciding to spend the last couple months of the season harrassing dealers, refusing to tip waitresses and being banned by local Detroit casinos instead of hogging the ball and jacking up 25 horrendous shots every night on the court.  Chauncey has taken the Nuggets to another level and is poised to lead them to a Western Conference Final showdown with the preseason favorite in the West, the L.A. Lakers.  Meanwhile, the 2008-2009 Cavs, who are eerily reminiscent of the '91 Bulls team with Lebron playing Michael and Mo Williams playing Scottie, smelled blood in the first round against the overmatched Pistons, and dismissed them unceremoniously in four games.

The key difference between the Pistons' current situation and their situation in 1991 is simple:  they have a GM at the helm who is both extremely sharp and unbelievably driven, and they are in financial position to rebuild immediately instead of being saddled with a nursing home lineup of decaying talent.  You see, there was one guy who didn't jump ship after the Pistons were swept by a clearly superior Chicago team in 1991.  Joe Dumars played throughout the entire 1990's with the Pistons, proudly leading by example despite some lean years, and never compromising his class.  So it is not surprising to me that it has been the same Joe Dumars that has led the Pistons through an amazing stretch over the last decade as their GM.  And he will take them to the top again, and very soon.  The Billups trade was unpopular, as Chauncey was a beloved leader in Detroit.  He has thrived in his hometown of Denver, while AI was an embarrassment here both at the Palace and at the craps tables at the Motor City Casino.  Yet, the Billups trade was a move for the future, as this offseason AI and 'Sheed's contracts come off of the books, and the Pistons could clear more cap space by letting go of McDyess and Rip, and possibly even Tayshaun, whose games are all on a steep decline.  The Pistons are in position to sign two or even three big time free agents.  Ben Gordon and Chris Bosh are just a couple players who would look really nice with the block Detroit across their chests.  The future is bright for the ballers in Detroit blue, because in Joe we trust.