Larry Brown wouldn’t have lost four in a row to the Cavs.

You don’t have to like him, to acknowledge that he’s a better coach than Flip Saunders will ever be, and that not keeping him here was the biggest avoidable mistake the Pistons organization has made in this long, great run of 50+ win seasons.

Plus I hear he can kick Chuck Norris’s butt.

I certainly do have your back that game 1 was in no way the Sixers A game. Not even close, except for their defense in the 2nd half.

LB, we disagree on details, but agree on the big picture. I also consider it a success for the Sixers if they win 2 games. The difference is I expect 2 games. I also agree with you regarding the Pistons bench that some many of your fellow fans are hyping. At least against the Sixers, I haven’t seen it.

Lastly, as both Sixers and Pistons fans, we can agree that Larry Brown is about as narcissistic as they come, and at this age should be avoided like the plague.

That said, I stand by the coin flip comment.

What has many of us criticizing sharply the team and the coach is watching the Pistons underachieve. Yes, Flip´s record during the regular season in Detroit is outstanding. The playoffs are a different matter. THAT´S when a team shouldn´t plummet and crash. It happened the last two years. Let´s hope it doesn´t happen this year. So far, nothing conclusive, in one sense or the other. I do agree declaring the Pistons dead is awfully premature, and quite unfair. Every win should be praised as it deserves, because we as fans shouldn´t ever become jaded, be it with wins or losses.

–
knuckleheads, inc.

Detroit better make sure this doesn’t happen in the first road game.

DJ: Flip’s winning percentage has seen a solid increase by virtue of getting three seasons under his belt as Pistons’ head coach. He inherited a team that was within minutes of winning back-to-back titles. Even the worst of coaches were guaranteed 50 wins for at least the first season. Flip hasn’t done the most stellar job in previous playoffs, but I believe, moving forward, he can get the job done this season and bring us another Larry O’Brien Trophy. I think we all feel that he’s never had a cupboard this full since taking over.

Using Flip Saunders v. Chuck Daly in a comparison of regular season winning percentage is a ridiculous argument. While Flip’s career regular season record may be marginally greater (.598 to Daly’s .593 NOT .590, is a small difference), their postseason records show the real story.

Saunders’ postseason record: 38-45 (21-15 in Detroit). Daly’s postseason record: 75-51 (70-42 in Detroit). Daly is classes above Saunders when it really counts in the NBA. You have one coach who has 2 titles and another finals appearance on top of that going head-to-head with a guy who has no finals appearances. You can take Rick Carlisle to buttress this argument. Few people (if any) on this blog would claim Carlisle is a HOF coach and certainly none would mark him better than Daly. However, with your logic, Rick Carlisle’s career winning percentage of .654 (.610 in Detroit) puts him in a class that far exceeds Saunders and Daly. We all know that saying Carlisle is better than Saunders isn’t true. Why? Carlisle’s playoff record is 22-21 (12-15 in Detroit). A HOFer he is not. And neither is Flip Saunders. Q.E.D.

Each coach puts his signature on a team, Flip, an offensive minded coach was provided a championship wining defensive minded team, he taught them how to play offensive basketball while maintaining their defensive prowess, if you look at the players Joe D. has drafted and traded for they are (primarily) defensive players, Flip is charged with teaching them how to score, he does that, Afflalo is the perfect example of this, he is a strong defensive kid, with great upside, but as of this date, he has not figured out to score consistently in the NBA, a couple of years under Saunders, and he will develope into Tayshaun type defender with the scoring ability of Rip (imo), his roll will probably be Tayshaun’s back up and some 2 guard, he can already defend both positions, and he has shown he is not afraid to drive the lane, nor is he tenative to spot up outside the arc, he needs a little time to develope. Stuckey is no slouch on defense either, the difference is Stuckey has an NBA ready offensive game (limited range though). Maxiell, is an excellent defender who, under the tutleage of Flip (and asst coaches too) has greatly improved his offense, he already had a post game, now he is regulary naliing mid range jumpers. Amir, decent offense in the D-league and in garbage minutes in the show, defensively, he is HUGE, again, Flip’s coaching will mold him into an offensive plus. Mike commented earlier that he sees Amir more as an Amare S. type player, personally I see him more as a potential Rasheed, if he adds the 15-20 pounds, and maintains his quickness, he is going to be dynamite, time will tell though.

Flip Saunders is an excellent coach whose body of work is HOF worhty.