Game 48 Preview

PG: Well, the Bucks are going to miss Luke Ridnour. Maybe they put Sessions here, which wouldn't be a drop-off, but he was already playing in Redd's spot

Advantage: Pistons

SG: Sessions is a good distributor, but I am not sure if he is a good shooter or defender. I'm not betting on it

Advantage: Pistons

SF: I think Richard Jefferson is one of the most overrated players. He doesn't really do all that much but score about 15 a night

Advantage: Pistons

PF: Villanueva has the skill set to be an All-Star, but he seems indifferent to how he performs. Regardless, Amir is going to have his hands full, but what else is new?

Advantage: Bucks

C: The Bucks also really miss Andrew Bogut. Sheed should dominate tonight

Advantage: Pistons

Overall: I liked the Bucks team at the beginning of the season, but now, three of there top 5 players are down and out. We are definitely playing them at the right time. I think we should win by at least 10.

Trade Needs: Eastern Conference

With another off day for the Pistons, I am bored. Since every NBA fan is in a tizzy about the trade deadline coming up, I figure I might as well try to figure out what each teem needs. I will start with the Eastern Conference. Eventually, I will do the Western Conference, and then later, I will look at what each team is willing to give up.

Atlanta Hawks:
I believe with one more piece, this team could be legitimate. They got valuable playoff experience last year and I think they could win at least one playoff series this year. Currently they would be matched up with the Pistons. I believe that this team needs an actual center to contend. Al Horford could slide down to power forward, and Smith could be a SF.

Boston Celtics:
They really don't have a major need, but the Lakers just exposed them. If anything, I think they should add a veteran PF or C, just in case KG gets in foul trouble. However, they should be set with Powe and Big Baby

Charlotte Bobcats:
I think this team has a good shot at making the playoffs. If the new guys start to play together well, they are an average team. I think they would be better if they added a PF or C. Okafor can play either, but Diaw is best at SF, or coming off the bench. They also need a bench wingman.

Chicago Bulls:
Just looking at the Bulls roster, they have one of the largest collections of starting caliber players of any team. They are of course missing a legitimated big man. Noah has not proven that he can play center. Other than that, there is no reason why they shouldn't be winning games, other than Vinny Del Negro

Cleveland Cavaliers:
I don't see this team making a trade before the deadline, but they could really help themselves out if they did. I think they could definetly upgrade at the SG position. Sasha Pavlovic plays defense, but a threat at that position would make them very dangerous. However, Delonte West will be back shortly

Detroit Pistons:
The Pistons sadly have many needs. First and foremost, a big man. They need somebody who will bang in the low post and grab double digit rebounds every night. If not that, then we need a distributor, a point guard that is not shoot first. Also, we could use a back up point guard.

Indiana Pacers:
Like almost every other team, the Pacers need a good big man. It could be a a PF or a C, because they have complementary big men, Jeff Foster and Troy Murphy who are capable of starting, but are not good scoring options. A first rate shooter would also help this team out.

Miami Heat:
Even with this team's vast improvement, they still have two big holes. One is a good starting point guard. Not necessarily a distributor, but a good ball handler. Chalmers can start, but if they are serious, they need a better point. Even more of a concern, they need a center. They do not have one decent center. Udonis Haslem can't do it all by himself.

Milwaukee Bucks:
Well this looked like a playoff team, but I don't see them getting there without Michael Redd. I think they would be best off at just trying to get younger and athletic. They should not view themselves as contenders. A young SG or C would be nice

New Jersey Nets:
This team could make a playoff push. But they are not even closer to serious contenders with the current forwards they have. I don't think they should try to build a good team at the deadline right now either because they are more than a few pieces away. Their whole bench is pretty underwhelming too.

New York Knicks:
I think this can be a legitimate playoff team...next year. Mike D'Antoni is starting to work his magic, but they need to get some playoff experience before they can make some serious noise. If they don't trade Lee, I think he is okay at C. I would like him to play PF, but with him there, they are quick. However, they really need a SG. This would allow them to put Q-Rich at SF and Jared Jeffries to the bench.

Orlando Magic:
This team is playing well beyond their expectations. I don't think I would mess with that. I would just hope that Jameer Nelson's return is the boost they need for a playoff push. A backup big man would help for the playoffs too.

Philadelphia 76ers:
The Elton Brand experiment did not work this season. I think I just throw out this season and hope that next is better. However, I think they should consider trading for a SF. Iguodala should be a SG, and Willie Green should be benched

Toronto Raptors:
Well, so much for my prediction about the Raptors going to the Finals. Jermaine O'Neal has been a huge, huge disappointment. If they can get a SG or SF for him, than I would pull the trigger. They need to set up an inside-outside threat, somebody that can slash. A backup PG and PF are needed as well

Washington Wizards:
The Wizards are in a really weird situation. They think they have the current team to compete in the East, but Agent Zero keeps screwing them over. They really need a center, but who doesnt? I think they should consider any trade sent there way, because they need a breath of fresh air into the team.

For a different perpective, Hoopsworld also did this.

Dyess might be a starter

According to the Detroit News, Michael Curry has been contemplating moving Antonio McDyess from the bench to the starting lineup. Basically, right now is he a starter. He is getting 30 minutes a night compared to Amir's 13 minutes per game. I think it is better to leave McDyess coming off the bench for now. I don't want to see him get burned out before the playoffs. In fact, if we didn't need him as much, I think he should be playing less minutes. However, his rebounding is too valuable to us right now. I would like to see us acquire a guy before the deadline that could backup Sheed and Amir and lighten Dyess' role, but it probably won't happen

Heat-Loss

If you live in Michigan, you know it is d*** cold outside right now. There is no Heat. The Heat apparently did not show up at the Palace last night either. They managed only 39% shooting on the night, while allowing the Pistons to shoot 49%, which is ridiculous for us. Somehow, they were still in the game until the very end, where Rodney Stuckey ended up killing them softly. He had the mid-range pull up jumper working, and he and Sheed finished with 18. Sheed was also instrumental in the final minutes, icing the game with a 3-ball to put us up 5. It was a stupid shot, but it fell. He got lucky. We won 93-90

Dwyane Wade, accomplished something unusual. He had a very dissapointing 29 points. Yeah that sounds weird. Why was it dissapointing. Well, he was 10-31 from the field. My predicted big night for the Matrix never materialized after he wound up with a scratched retina. He had 16 points. Perhaps he needs a visit with the Oracle.

Tayshaun was back last night. He scored 16 points and had 8 rebounds. We need this every game. Iverson was underwhelming, but the bench did well. By the bench, I mean Rip and Dyess. Rip had 12 points and 7 dimes, while Dyess was beastly, grabbing 17 rebounds. That's right, not even Joel Anthony could stop him. The turnover margin was interesting. Usually turning over the ball 16 times means absolute defeat, but it didn't. Somehow, the Heat had only 5 turnovers.

The difference in the game was the rebounding. We won the battle, 45-35. Our 8-14 3-point shooting didn't hurt either.

On an unpositive note, the consecutive sellout streak ended last night at 259 games. I blame the team, but the team blames the economy.

Also, my other things of note will be devoted to the latest tidbits from around the League.

Other things of note:

• LeBron outdid Kobe in scoring 52 at the Garden, while also tallying 11 assists and 10 rebounds. I really hate LeBron. However, this just goes to show that Mo Williams does not deserve the hype. He had 9 points last night. Essentially, he just lives in LeBron's fantasy world, where his stats depend on the King's decision of how many points he wants to collect on any particular night. Last night was a statement, so there was no time for Mo


• Without Andrew Bynum, the Lakers have become an Army of Two. Last night they beat the Raptors with Kobe and Pau combining for 67 points


• Stephen Jackson also had a triple double last night


• With our win, we are now back in the 5th spot in the Eastern Conference


• To quote famous thespian, Terrell Owens "Getcha popcorn ready." TNT has a delicious double header. First up, Lakers versus Celtics. I got the Celtics in that one. After that, the Jazz meet the Mavs. The Mavs will continue their roll again tonight.


• Blockbuster alert: A swap of Keith Bogans for Tyronn Lue is currently in the works

Game 47 Preview

PG: Actually, Stuckey will be matched up against Wade, his idol. This matchup will show what Stuckey is really made of. Wade will have a big night

Advantage: Heat

SG: Iverson will be defending NCAA champion Mario Chalmers. Chalmers is a threat, and is solid defensively, but Iverson has no reason not to shoot well tonight

Advantage: Pistons

SF: This is the key matchup, obviously. The Matrix can do it all. Tonight he will have to. Tayshaun has been in a mini-slump lately. He needs to break out of it for us to win

Advantage: Draw

PF: Haslem is a good rebounder. Amir is not right now. Haslem is gonna be workin him down low all night. Well, that sounds kinda weird

Advantage: Heat

C: The Heat are running low on options at center. If they keeping winning at a steady pace, I wouldn't be surprised if they traded for a center. Until then, they are stuck with Jamaal Magloire and Joel Anthony

Advantage: Pistons

Overall: We just played the two top contenders in the East and held our own. Now we play the team that is directly above us in the standings. I have a feeling that we get the W tonight, but Marion is gonna have a big game. I like us to win by 12

H-O-R-S-E!

Yes, TNT has added H-O-R-S-E to the All-Star festivities. No participants have been announced at the moment. The news is on Ball Don't Lie, where he is lobbying for Rasheed Wallace. Click on Sheed's name on the page, and you will be able to watch the youtube video of Sheed's trick shot magic. This could turn out very well, or very, very bad.

Statistical Analysis via 82games

82games.com does an awesome job with analyzing the numerical data from the NBA. They have a section that ranks team outputs by positions. Below are some of the highlights, but the full set of data can be found here

Good:

• Detroit PG, SG, SF positions all rank in top 10 (out of the 30 teams) in points
• For FG%, Detroit SG ranked at 4, Detroit PF ranked at 6
• SG and SF both ranked at 4 in assists
• SF, PF, and C all ranked in top 10 in T/O
• SG and SF ranked in top 10 in PER Difference

Bad:

• PF ranked at 29 in points
• PG ranked at 27 in FG%
• No position listed in top 14 in rebounding. Only team with equally consistent bad rebounding is Golden State
• SG ranked at 29 in T/O
• PF and C ranked at 24 and 27, respectively, in FTA

A Distraction

Well the basketball in Detroit is bad right now. However it is not quite as bad as the football. A new trade idea just hit me. How about we trade Allen Iverson to the Lions for Calvin Johnson. Sounds like a plan to me. Iverson has to be better at passing the football than a basketball. Look below, he's tackling Randy Foye (who probably deserved it.) The Lions could use a hyrbid QB/CB. Plus, with his leaping ability, you know Calvin Johnson can ball. He probably took a few lessons from Javaris Crittenton and Thad Young when they were all at Georgia Tech

Here, watch Allen play!

Have you heard about this?

I read a tiny blip about it in ESPN Magazine, then I looked it up on the web. Two people embezzled over 1.8 million dollars from the Palace of Auburn Hills. Here are the details

Another 4th Quarter Collapse

Check the box score of this game. It will make you ill. The Pistons beat the Cavs in all of the first 3 quarters, but managed to lose the 4th (and the game) 32-14. The Cavs beat us by 10, 90-80. We managed to shut down the Big Z, but it didnt' matter. Mo Williams had 22 and LeBron had 33 and we just blew it. Iverson scored 22 points, but you get the feeling that he could be scoring 40 each night and it wouldn't matter.

With this loss, we move to 25-21. Yahoo had a pretty interesting fact in their game recap. This is the first time losing 4 home games in a row since 2001. We are playing like one of the worst teams in basketball. The Pistons are not playing good defense. They should have watched and learned from the Cavaliers last night.

There really isn't a whole lot more to say about this. Right now, we suck. Iverson commented on the dreadful play "Our whole thing is, it better be figured out by the time we get to the playoffs." He should stop worrying about then, and start winning some ball games, because at the pace we're at, we might miss the playoffs. We are currently 6th in the East, and 13.5 games behind Boston. The current 9th seed is New York, who is 17.5 games behind Boston. We don't have much of a cushion. We must get our act together, and quick

Other things of note:

• The Cavaliers beat us in rebounds and assists. Every Cavs starter grabbed at least 4 rebounds. Why can't we do that?
• Stuckey and Sheed combined for 15 points. Way to show up guys, shooting 6-20
• Rip had 16 points in 26 minutes
• Amir had a good game, statistically anyways. He had 10 points and 9 rebounds
  

Game 46 Preview

PG: Everybody is saying Mo Williams got snubbed. No, LeBron just makes him look better than he is. Tonight we see how good he really is. Stuckey has done a good job lately of driving the lane

Advantage: Draw

SG: Well, the Cavaliers apparently find it very important to maintain a solid bench. AI should torch Sasha

Advantage: Pistons

SF: I don't know if you've heard, but this LeBron guy is pretty good

Advantage: Cavaliers

PF: Big Ben is back, baby. There's some alliteration for ya. Anyways, Ben can still rebound, but so can Amir. Amir is offensively more advanced

Advantage: Draw

C: Big Z may be a goofy looking man, but he can ball. He plays similar style to Rasheed, but he does it better, and more consistently

Advantage: Cavaliers

Overall: We played well even though we lost to the Celtics. Tonight is a different story. We need to make sure The Big Z is contained in the post. That is the key. I think we are capable of winning tonight if we play like we did against the Celtics. The Cavaliers, however are a top defensive team. I think we play hard, but we lose by 6 tonight.