Flip Saunders doesn’t seem the type to intimidate. And despite the Pistons near-perfect play for much of the regular season last year, you wouldn’t expect him to be big on discipline. But apparently the less-than-perfect results in the final third of last season — coupled with the Eastern Conference exit from the playoffs — has spurred some changes in Flip’s second season at the helm.
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One of the first victims: Rasheed
From today’s Detroit News:
Flip Saunders wasn’t kidding.
He told players before camp that buses and airplanes would leave on time. No more waiting for laggards.
The chartered bus left for practice at promptly 9 a.m. Monday — without Rasheed Wallace . Wallace had to find his own way to the Coliseo de Puerto Rico, which he did, arriving about 20 minutes late.
“I overslept, that’s all,” he said.
The article goes on to say that Joe D gave the final okay to leave ‘Sheed in the dust and that it was Joe D who planned to have a long talk with ‘Sheed.
My hope is that this decision was made by Flip, and that in his second season, he is feeling comfortable enough to install some of his own team rules; to take back some of the asylum from the inmates. My suspicion is that this came down from Dumars in an attempt to rectify some of the recurring issues from last season.
This front office/coaching staff thing may be a subplot worth following should the Pistons stumble out of the gate this season.
Time is the essence [Detroit News]
i think its about damn time. our players have wayyyyy to much freedom and that usually leads to laziness and average playin.
I am one of the biggest Sheed fans and seriously he’d be the first one i would have a talk to. yes hes a great player and all that but how he goes about it, the whole process sucks.
players no matter how long they’ve been in this league need discipline. besides flip was too soft on the players last year, hes the coach for cryin out loud. he should be the one making decisions not the players sheesh and im not even a big flip fan.