Archive for the 'Preseason 2008-09' Category

Curry: “I expect Tayshaun to be an All-Star”

Published by Matt Watson on October 27, 2008 in Preseason 2008-09. 29 Comments

Michael Curry couldn’t have been more blunt with his expectations for Tayshaun Prince. From the Detroit News:

“I expect Tayshaun to be an all-star,” Curry said. “He’s been playing at that level and by taking Antonio McDyess out of the starting lineup allows more things to be run for Tay; it’s one less guy we have to worry about getting shots for.

“That and the way we want to run and play this season should produce more opportunities for Tayshaun.”

[…] “I told Tay, we want more out of him,” Curry said. “We want him to handle the ball more and make decisions. We want him to post more and score more. We are asking a lot of out Tay and in return we are asking him to help us help put him in positions where he can be aggressive and use all of his skills.”

I like Curry’s line of thinking; Prince is obviously a dangerous offensive weapon when he chooses to be, especially with that little hook shot in the post. Unfortunately, whenever he’s paired up against an offensive-minded small forward on defense, he disappears on offense. Is he capable of playing at a high level on both sides of the ball at the same time? The optimistic fan in me wants to say yes, but objectively speaking, I’m not sure. To be honest, it doesn’t sound like he’s too convinced, either:

“One thing this coach (Curry) has realized watching me the last few years is that, of all the other starters, it’s really important for me to have the opportunity to get some restful minutes during games,” Prince said.

In other words, yeah, I’ll produce, but only if I play fewer minutes. He only averaged 32.9 minutes a game last year, but in the playoffs, when his inconsistency is most apparent, he’s averaged more than 40 minutes a game over the last four years. In hindsight, the combination of increased minutes plus covering the opposition’s best offensive option (LeBron, Pierce, Iguodala, Hedo, Deng, etc) takes its toll. I know not everybody is a fan of the PER statistic, but as a snapshot of his productivity, Prince’s PER has dropped off from the regular season to the playoffs in three of the last four years.

When I think of All-Stars, I think of guys who step up their game in the playoffs, not guys who slowly fade. If this is the year he steps up his game and receives that February honor, here’s to hoping he’s also able to maintain that performance into the summer months.

Pistons host Cavs

Published by Matt Watson on October 22, 2008 in Cavaliers, Preseason 2008-09 and Previews. 52 Comments

The Pistons are hosting Ben Wallace and the Cavs tonight at the Palace, though you’ll have to take my word for it if you were hoping to watch on TV. Yet again, this one won’t be shown in metro Detroit, though (cough, cough) there may be ways around that. In the meantime, you can do it the old fashioned way, following along with the live stream or refreshing the online box score.

It’s a shame more people won’t see this, because Michael Curry plans on making this a sneak peek into the regular season. From the Detroit News:

Expect the starters to play regular season-type minutes.

“We tried to do that against Dallas the last game and give our (starters) a chance to be on the court in the fourth quarter,” Curry said, adding he wants to see his starters “get more into the minutes they’ll playing in the regular season.”

Chauncey Billups is expected to play; Kwame Brown and LeBron James will not. But big Ben Wallace will be in uniform, and despite the downward spiral Big Ben’s career has taken since leaving Detroit, Billups is convinced he’s still the same player:

“You have to have the right talent around him, and you have to know how to use that,” Billups said. “I don’t think Chicago or Cleveland really know how to use Ben. That’s why you see his numbers drop off. If he was here, I think he could pick right back up where he was at.”

What did you expect him to say, the truth? As always, leave your thoughts in the comments.

Herrmann still innjurred

Published by Matt Watson on October 17, 2008 in From the news and Preseason 2008-09. 6 Comments

From Chris McCosky:

Curry said the Pistons’ medical staff has run a bunch of tests on Herrmann and all have come back clean. What could be happening, Curry guessed, is that some cartilege has been pulled from the rib cage, which, as you can imagine, is extremely painful. I watched him try to raise himself up from a seated position in the locker room in Grand Rapids on Tuesday, and he was in great pain. Nobody knows when the pain will relent and he can return to action.

After hearing about how Walter Herrmann stole the show at the team’s open practice early in camp, it’s disappointing that he’s spent his entire preseason hobbled by an injury that’s not showing any signs of going away. If I had to guess, I’d expect to see a lot of Arron Afflalo at small forward early in the season.

The Pistons are in Milwaukee

Published by Matt Watson on October 11, 2008 in Bucks, Preseason 2008-09 and Previews. 40 Comments

Our long, regional nightmare continues tonight as the Pistons travel to Milwaukee for yet another game that won’t be televised. Seriously, I get hundreds of channels on cable, and there’s not one that can show the game?

I get that FSN is showing the Wings tonight, but it’s a shame TV20 can no longer pick up the preseason scraps. Instead, TV20 is running with Hair Show:

A sassy Baltimore hairdresser (Mo’Nique) — on the run from the IRS — reunites with her estranged stylist sister in L.A. Innocuous comedy with Kellita Smith. Leslie Small directed; hoops star Magic Johnson served as executive producer.

Magic didn’t fake AIDS, but he still ruined my night. So instead, we’ll have to keep doing what we’ve been doing: refreshing online box scores and listening to the live feed (as suggested in the comments, sign up on NBA.com for free live feeds all season). And, of course, leaving our thoughts in the comments.

The Pistons are in DC

Published by Matt Watson on October 10, 2008 in Preseason 2008-09, Previews and Wizards. 16 Comments

If a game is played and nobody can watch it, did it really happen? Ponder that tonight as the Pistons and Wiz take the court in Washington D.C at 7 PM ET. Hopefully some of the DBB brethren in our nation’s capital will be able to attend the game and report back, since all the local TV channels are sticking it to the rest of us by refusing to air the game.

Instead, we’ll have to follow this game like our forefathers did, by hitting up ye olde online box score and tuning in to the live stream. If that’s how you’re spending your Friday evening, don’t forget to do your thing in the comments.

Pistons open preseason in Miami

Published by Matt Watson on October 5, 2008 in Heat, Preseason 2008-09 and Previews. 70 Comments

The Pistons have officially kicked off the preseason in Miami, although good luck trying to follow along — not only is the game not being televised, but it’s nearly impossible to find a good running box score online (if you’ve found one, please share in the comments). You can listen via WDFN’s live stream, though, which is better than nothing.

As usual share your thoughts (or vent your frustration about how the NBA makes it so difficult to watch your favorite team) in the comments.

More praise for Walter Herrmann

Published by Matt Watson on October 3, 2008 in From the news and Preseason 2008-09. 8 Comments

As DBB reader Diablo pointed out, Walter Herrmann “stole the show” during last night’s open scrimmage at Oakland University. A. Sherrod Blakely of MLive.com agreed, as did Rasheed Wallace and Michael Curry:

Without question, the star of the scrimmage was Walter Herrmann. The 6-foot-9 forward put on a show shooting the ball, knocking down 3-pointers from all points on the floor.

“Lighting it up,” said Rasheed Wallace, referring to Herrmann’s shooting. “Herm did good. That’s the best I’ve seen Herm shoot for a practice since he’s been here.”

Said Pistons head coach Michael Curry: “We talked to Walter today. Guys were laughing because, one of the five points this morning was that, if he’s open, shoot the basketball. Because he hadn’t shot a lot of open shots. Everybody had confidence in his shot. He can really shoot the basketball, so he was more aggressive today. That’s what we need.”

Herrmann shot .461 from long distance as a rookie in 2006-07 on a fair number (115) of attempts. His playing time was much more sporadic last year (especially once he arrived in Detroit) but he still managed to shoot .313 on 64 attempts. If you do the math, that makes him a career .401 shooter from three-point land, which certainly merits having a green light.

The role of Tayshaun Prince’s backup has been a question mark (will it be Herrmann? Arron Afflalo? Maybe a little Rip Hamilton?), but if Herrmann hits 40% of his threes this year, he’ll make this decision easy, especially considering everything else he brings to the table (energetic defense, Dr. J’s swooping layups, a keen fashion sense).

Notes from the open practice

Published by Matt Watson on October 3, 2008 in Guest Writer and Preseason 2008-09. 25 Comments

I couldn’t attend last night’s open practice at Oakland University, but DBB reader Diablo was there. Just like last year, he was gracious enough to share his impressions in the comments, which I’ve re-published below:

______________________

2nd Annual Pistons’ Open Practice @ Oakland University.

One word: Impressive.

[…] Walter Herrmann and Walter Sharpe stole the show. Both guys can play some serious ball (offensively) and would be nice additions coming off the bench to rest the legs of Tayshaun Prince. Unfortunately, both play the same position. So I can expect both these players fighting tooth and nail to get every minute that the Prince leaves behind.

Positive: Sharpe is surprisingly taller than I expected, can shoot the 3, evidence to the unexpected shoot-out between him Herrmann. He also showed signs of athletism with attempts to throw down missed shot attempts and trying to dunk on 7′1 Cheikh Samb. And like mentioned above, the guy is confident with his shot (very shocking), even with a man and a hand in his face. Also, yelling out for the ball with Herrmann all over him in the post, shows you he really wants to be apart of offense.

Negative: Walter Sharpe struggled defensively getting to spots late and leaving people open. Having a defensive coach like Mike Curry should help him along the way but if he wants to be taken seriously this year as a rotation player, he needs to pick up the defense quickly.

Positive: Herrmann. Wide open or covered, the guy was just lethal. Hitting 3s when given any room and when covered well, he took it to the hole fearlessly. Back and forth, him and Sharpe really battled it out. I feel like Herrmann is taking some serious steps to get every minute Tayshaun leaves behind and maybe some at the 4. And if I had to pick between Herrmann or Sharpe, it would be Herrmann by a hair, he was just a tad more consistent.

Negative: He just could not get a good defensive grasp on Walter Sharpe’s offensive style. Don’t know why but it seemed like Herrmann never seen Sharpe play before today. Whatever it is, I know Herrmann can be a solid defender and I’m not too worried about it, since he answered on the other end with something of his own, most of the time.

“Competition brings out the best,” lets hope this is the case between Herrmann and Sharpe.

Positive: The emergence of Rodney Stuckey. Easily, Easily…EASILY, could take over a starting spot at the 1 or 2. Last year, I talked about how Stuckey wasn’t that great of a jump-shooter. Let me tell you, the jumpshot looks to be coming around which was a main concern for most Piston fans. No long-range shooting attempts tonight but why need to, when you are nailing almost every mid-range jumper and cutting through the defense to the hoop with ease. Simply put, Stuckey looked great and consistent, scary.

Negative: No. 3, had no 3s. Nothing to worry about, he is showing he is trying to perfect a certain part of his game (which it shows) before he extends out to other parts of the floor.

Positive: Amir Johnson. Active. Rebounding. Blocking shots (most notable, the one he threw half way across the court on Alex Acker). I’m still not sold on Amir getting the starting spot but he looked comfortable and well controlled with Rasheed next to him. He had a couple big dunks, one from a turnover and I believe the other one from being left wide-open in paint.

Negative: He didn’t create too much offense for himself but never really had a chance. With Rodney Stuckey, Rip Hamilton (somtimes), Rasheed Wallace, and a surprising Walter Sharpe on your team, he was bound to be left out of the offensive play calling.

Positive: Alex Acker, another confident shooter. Wasn’t as consistent as Herrmann and Sharpe from long-range but he showed he will take the shot given the opportunity. The guy can also play a little PG, which is nice to know, since he is a bigger guard we might be able to use that in certain situations.

Positive: Will Bynum, a “Lindsey Hunter clone” as far as being the smallest guy on the court and willing to get in the face of bigger guards like Billups and Stuckey on defense. Not as crafty as Hunter but will stick to his man, unfortunately, his height is a disadvantage because Stuckey really took advantage of it. If not aware, the guy is pretty fast, has a good handle of the ball and can naturally take it to the hole. Ask Rasheed what he thought of trying to defend the circus shot Bynum put up over him with the foul. He will probably say “it was Lucky” but it was still nice. :D

Negative: Both Acker and Bynum will probably be 15th and 14th men but knowing most of you, this would be a positive.

Positive: KWA-MAY Brown! (Stephen A. Smith style) With a reduced role and reduced minutes, holds less responsibility than being considered the next KG. I can see him fitting in well, filling in as a 5th big man for defensive purposes. He guarded Rasheed and anyone that was put on him well. As long as no one expects him to explode on to the scene (like the other organizations he was with) I think he will do just fine.

Negative: Passes too much. Most of you might see this as a positive but when you have good position in the post I wish you would make an attempt to make a basket. He even has some good post moves but doesn’t use them to his advantage. He will make a good post move but when you think he would put up a shot, he would awkwardly pass it out to the perimeter or Mcdyess (who was paired with him). I hope he grows out of this, quickly.

Also, shame on those who booed the guy when he was introduced.

Positive: Cheikh Samb, rebounding, knocking down some jumpers, and being a big body were his advantages.

Negative: Didn’t seem to enforce his will on offense but the team he was on was usually the weakest offensively. So the offense really didn’t set up plays for him. Not too disappointing for me because I’m not a person who has his hopes up on him.

Negative: Arron Afflalo. Where were you man? I felt defensively he did his job as best as a second year player could do. But offensively, it just wasn’t his night. Missed open shots, caught traveling, and missed a couple free throws. The season hasn’t started yet, let’s hope Aaron finds his groove somewhere from now and October 29th.

I didn’t want to evaluate Maxiell because we already know what to expect from him (I consider him a starter). But he did what I expected from him and that was solid D with some thunderous dunks. And if it wasn’t for a hard foul by Rasheed Wallace, Rasheed would of got eaten alive.

Matt W. I would of took some pictures but I forgot my camera and my phone’s camera kind sucks. I had a couple friends with me and they were taking pictures, I will see if they have any pictures I can share with all you.

Any other questions or concerns about the Open Practice, just ask and I will answer.

Max and Cheikh

Published by Matt Watson on October 2, 2008 in Preseason 2008-09. 4 Comments

From A. Sherrod Blakely’s sidebar today:

One of the reasons Curry has sprinkled his starters among three different five-man units, is to see how certain combinations work together. One tandem Curry might take a closer look at as training camp progresses is 7-foot-1 center Cheikh Samb and 6-7 forward Jason Maxiell. Both are young, long-armed players with a nice touch offensively.

That’d be fun to watch, as would Samb and Amir Johnson. I’m not sure you could use that tandem for extended minutes against an opposing team’s starting frontcourt, but they’d pretty much shut down the paint as long as they’re in the game.

My guess is that Samb spends most of the year in the D-League yet again, but after watching him in the summer league in Vegas, I’m curious to see what he can do in the preseason (which, holy crap, starts Sunday!)

Curry sets the tone with first practice

Published by Matt Watson on October 1, 2008 in From the news and Preseason 2008-09. 13 Comments

Curry put the Pistons through a three-hour practice on Tuesday, the first day of training camp, and from the sounds of things, he’s already making headway in changing the team’s identity. From A. Sherrod Blakely:

During Tuesday’s first practice of training camp, Detroit Pistons forward Amir Johnson had to pick himself off the floor after unsuccessfully battling Kwame Brown for a rebound.

Moments later, Arron Afflalo put Richard Hamilton on his back.

Soon after that, Afflalo suffered a few scratches on his shoulder and forearm while being defended — and at one point, was stripped of the ball — by Will Bynum.

And that was just the last 30 minutes of practice.

[…] “Our big thing is, we want to be the aggressor,” Curry said. “That’s our No. 1 thing in everything we do.”

What exactly does being the aggressor entail? Chris McCosky explains:

The Pistons are going back to playing rugged, man-to-man defense. They will mix in some zone coverages, but predominately, they are going to lock in man on man. They will trap more than they have in the past, especially when young players such as Rodney Stuckey, Arron Afflalo, Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson are on the floor.

Offensively, Curry is adamant about pushing tempo and getting quick offense off turnovers and missed shots, but in the half-court he is dead set on establishing a consistent low-post presence.

“We are going to be really good defensively and offensively we are going to be a team that can beat you 120-110 or we can beat you 80-70,” Curry said.

In addition to the team’s playing style, Curry has made a couple of key changes to the way the team prepares. For one, Arnie Kander will be more involved. From Keith Langlois:

Curry has been banging the drum since the first days he was named as Flip Saunders’ successor in June. “We’ve got the best in the business in Arnie Kander,” he’s said repeatedly, “and we have to do a better job of taking advantage of him.”

During Curry’s planned three-hour training camp practices, more than the first hour will be devoted to film work and Kander’s unique training methodologies. Kander is known best for nursing injured players back to health quickly – and for preventing injury in the first place – but Curry thinks left untapped has been Kander’s expertise in tailoring conditioning programs to ensure each player gets in peak physical shape and stays there over the course of an NBA season. That last part, he says, is what he expects to be different this season.

Langlois also noted how Curry had the team working in three five-man groups, with each group containing at least one starter instead of the traditional first-string, second-string and third-string units. On Monday, the groups were:

Red – Tayshaun Prince, Antonio McDyess, Cheikh Samb, Will Bynum and Alex Acker.
White – Rasheed Wallace, Amir Johnson, Walter Sharpe, Rodney Stuckey and Rip Hamilton.
Blue – Kwame Brown, Jason Maxiell, Walter Herrmann, Chauncey Billups, Arron Afflalo.

Curry explained his reasoning to Blakely:

“We’ll do that all the time,” he said. “I don’t see a need in you’re starting five playing together everyday, because you don’t have that all the time in games. The reality is, we have to have different matchups out there on the court.”

I couldn’t help but notice that Rasheed Wallace and Amir Johnson were paired together. Might this be confirmation that Johnson has the leg up on the starting job? Perhaps, but I’m guessing it’s just a coincidence and that the practice groupings will probably change frequently. If these initial groups were supposed to offer a hint at the regular season rotation, Rodney Stuckey and Antonio McDyess would probably have been paired together, as well.

10/1 Update: Today (Wednesday), Curry switched the groupings up again, though interestingly enough, Amir and Rasheed stayed on the same team. From Dana Gauruder:

Orange Team - Rasheed Wallace, Amir Johnson, Walter Sharpe, Arron Afflalo, Rodney Stuckey
Blue Team - Kwame Brown, Antonio McDyess, Walter Herrmann, Alex Acker, Chauncey Billups
White Team - Cheikh Samb, Jason Maxiell, Tayshaun Prince, Richard Hamilton, Will Bynum

*****

I’m excited to hear that the Pistons are hoping to play a little more up-tempo this year, but it bears mentioning that we heard almost the exact same thing last year. Here’s what I wrote for HOOPSWORLD last October:

The Detroit Pistons have long favored a slow and methodical brand of basketball, eschewing the fast break in favor of clock management, limiting possessions as well as mistakes. Quite literally no one put the brakes on more frequently, as the team ranked dead last in offensive pace in 2006-07.

While it’s too early to say that they’ve ripped that strategy out of the playbook, it was quite clear in the first preseason game against the Miami Heat the Pistons are trying to open things up.

“I think it’s something we’ve stressed in our training camp was our ability to be aggressive and not let teams take breaks,” Flip Saunders said after the game. “Push the ball up, and if you don’t have something, then get into a quick attack. Don’t turn down open shots when you have them, but make quick decisions with the ball and not hold the ball.”

The difference, though, is that Curry is hoping to push the tempo on offense by forcing mistakes on defense. Also, instead of players taking the first available shot, Curry is preaching the importance of scoring in the paint, whether it’s a big man down low or Billups or Stuckey penetrating. Only time will tell if his strategy yields different (and consistent) results.