Rally, Detroit is great to me when it comes to adjusting to what the other team is handing them. You say Detroit has shown their hand and that they can do no better, problem is, they are always a few points better than who they play, regardless if the opponent is ice cold or shooting lights out. Yea Chicago blasted them in Mo town last series, but show me when Detroit was down and they didn't play great. Sorry, Cleveland isn't rattling off 4 straight, and game seven in Auburn Hills ain't goin Lebron's way (if it even goes 7), and should it even be close the officials will be riding the Pistons jock the last two minutes if it is close.

[Edited on May 24, 2007 at 11:25 PM. Reason : .]

5/24/2007 11:25:21 PM

Cleveland beat Detroit three straight times last year and it would have been four if Rasheed hadn't hit an inadvertent bank shot at the end of game 6.


Detroit isn't this superteam you people make them out to be. They beat a dysfunctional Laker team that was basically without Karl Malone in the finals in a great run THREE years ago.

Then they only got by Miami two years ago because Wade got injured.

Then they got beat pretty handily by Miami last year.

Now they win 2 extremely close games at home and people are ready to annoit them Eastern conference champs, i dont get it.


Billups doesn't play well against Cleveland. He's had 2 poor outings.
Hamilton has had one good game and one bad game.
Tayshaun is doing a great job defensively but he's 1-19 from the field.
Webber is having a miserable postseason and just looks out of gas.
Rasheed for all his praise is a ~15 ppg guy with a low shooting percentage.

Detroit's bench is a bunch of retreads minus Maxiell and the artist formerly known as Antonio McDyess.


It's a solid team don't get me wrong, but there is no reason to say they've already won this series. If Cleveland rattles off the next two wins then the pressure will be back on an aging, less hungry, offensively challenged Detroit team.

Cleveland is 0-5 on their 5 FGA attempts in the last possession of each game. If they hit any of the five then everyone would be wondering if Detroit had enough in the tank to defeat Cleveland.

After watching Detroit limp through the postseason I'd be surpised to see them get two wins against the Spurs if they meet in the Finals.

5/24/2007 11:37:42 PM

lots of if's there

5/25/2007 12:29:30 AM

No doubt about Cleveland winning game 3, but Detroit will either get 4 or 5, so at worst, they'll be up 3-2 with the potential game 7 in Detroit in which Lebron will have a very small chance, and that's if it gets to 7, they're done. I'm not really concerned with Detroit and stats, I realize they tell a lot, but Detroit is a team who has never put up great individual stats, but they do seem to always edge out their opponent when it counts. Yea, San Antonio will take them out in 6, but the Eastern Conference poses no threat to what Detroit is trying to do. It's also a lot ot ask of a team like Cleveland to suffer a loss like they did in Game 1 and then get dumped on in Game 2 and tell them to put it behind them and spot Detroit two games that they could have won in both of them and should have at the minimum split. A lot to ask of a 22 year old in the NBA mentally (not to mention the coach got a T that wound up insignificant, but was big at the time)



[Edited on May 25, 2007 at 12:50 AM. Reason : .]

5/25/2007 12:46:33 AM

Cleveland is crazy clutch.

lmfao.

Yes, The Cavs will win one of these games at home, but detroit will steal one and close it out at home 4-1.

I will then hunt your ass down for my fiddy, Rallydurham.

5/25/2007 1:56:06 AM

cleveland has the worst luck

i was less surprised about the no-call at the end than i was about the two followup shots not falling

5/25/2007 12:26:36 PM

Looks like I'm not the only one who sees it the same way...

Quote :

"While the LeBron questions du jour -- Should he have passed? Was he fouled? -- are dominating the discussion of the Pistons-Cavs series so far, I want to take a minute to focus on Detroit. You see, the so-called Groundhog Day series -- after identical 79-76 games that ended with Anderson Varejao winging a shot from under his own basket because the Cavs were out of timeouts -- is producing another little piece of déjà vu that nobody is talking about. Remember a year ago, when Detroit's offense went off the rails after Game 2 of the second round? The Pistons never recovered, nearly falling to the Cavs in that series before succumbing to the Heat in the conference finals. Well, Detroit tried all kinds of things to fix that this season. The Pistons put less emphasis on the regular season, used more energy on developing the bench, and added ancillary players such as Chris Webber (um, he's still on the team, right?) and Flip Murray who could help out in a pinch. The result of all this? Detroit's offense has gone off the rails after Game 2 of the second round. The Pistons have been fortunate that their defense has risen to the challenge, that they're facing a not-ready-for-prime-time opponent in the conference finals, and that none of the 20,000 people who saw Richard Hamilton foul LeBron James Thursday night were wearing striped jerseys. But that doesn't change the fact that they've played well once in their last six games, and you can't escape the feeling that if they had played the Spurs these past two contests they would have lost by 20. Consider, for instance, that Detroit's offensive efficiency in these past six games is a pathetic 97.7 -- for some perspective, Indiana finished last in the NBA in that category this season at 99.9. So the Pistons have been about two points worse than the worst offense in the league in that stretch. Even that may be overstating their position. In four of the six games including the last two, Detroit has failed to clear 94 in offensive efficiency, and in Game 2 it set a new low -- 90.4. And despite its blue-collar rep, this team wins as much with offense as with defense. The Pistons ranked No. 6 in offensive efficiency in the regular season, matching their standing at the defensive end. They were No. 1 in playoff offensive efficiency after Game 2 of the Chicago series ... and then, right on cue, the sputtering began. Last year, the Pistons scored 86 points or fewer in 10 of their final 12 playoff games and never more than 92. This year? Detroit has scored 87 points or fewer in four of its last six playoff games, and never more than 95. The fact that Detroit played two games on its home court and couldn't clear 80 in either one should be giving Pistons fans terrible flashbacks. As you can probably tell by the tone of my discourse, I don't think Cleveland is out of this by any stretch. While it's rare for a team to come back from 2-0 down, most of the examples have been cases like this one in which the home team barely eked out victories in the first two games. And in the big picture, the Pistons have to be thinking in terms of title, not conference championship. If they can't clear 80 at home against Cleveland, I shudder to think what San Antonio would do to them. Maybe this year will prove to be different, and what we're seeing is a temporary blip that will soon be forgotten, rather than last spring's permanent fade. But if I'm the Pistons I'm getting a horrible sense of déjà vu, and it has nothing to do with Thursday night's score."

5/25/2007 10:22:18 PM

i for one find it funny that jordan use to not be able to get by the pistons early in his career and now lebron cant either

5/26/2007 3:10:05 AM

I will say that Detroit is playing absolutely awesome team defense on Lebron right now.

Tayshaun is doing a great job of forcing Lebron to move left/right on his first step rather than driving to the basket. He's good at leading him toward his help defender. His arms are so long that even when Lebron gets some penetration Tayshaun has been able to contest the shots/layups without fouling. That's a pretty amazing thing to do when you're giving up that much body weight.

If you watch their defense move away from the ball, every defender cheats toward Lebron so that if he decides to drive he won't have any space to gather himself and explode to the hoop like he loves to do. He doesn't appear to have any reliable "floaters" probably because he's so used to powering all the way to the rim.

Tayshaun has a knack for contesting jumpers (he stifled Kobe multiple times in the Finals a few years back) and when Cleveland attempts to set picks the other defender cheats out really high on him so that he doesn't have any open jumpshots ever. At this point Lebron seems so out of sync that I'm not sure he could hit perimeter shots consistently anyway.

Even still I dont agree that Lebron is having "bad" games. Detroit has simply decided to make other people beat them by forcing them to take the shots. Lebron has found open shooters on possession after possession only to watch them clank away most opportunities. The problem is Cleveland has a lot of guys that CAN shoot the three but they don't really have anyone that is a sharpshooter or has played in big games and has the confidence to make them this deep in the playoffs.

I liked what Cleveland did when they put Lebron out there with Marshall, Pavlovic, Damon Jones, and Varejao because it gave them three options from the perimeter and forced Detroit's weakside defenders to stay at home a little more. They hit a couple of three pointers instantly and Detroit adjusted and that's when Lebron really should have gone into attack mode. Being a young player he really didn't recognize the opportunity and he started forcing bad passes to guys who were no longer open.

What Lebron is doing is VERY similar to Steve Nash's game actually. He breaks the defense down with penetration and then looks for open perimeter shooters and cutters. The difference is that Lebron is kicking it out to guys who blow open looks and his cutters are guys like Drew Gooden who can't catch the ball in traffic or explode to the basket like Marion/Stoudamire. The other advantage that Nash has over Lebron is that he has an amazing reportoire of shots and passes so no matter how the defense plays him he can improvise to get off a good shot.


Sorry this is a long post but these games are driving me crazy and i think maybe if I tell Lebron what to do he will do it and i might win this $350.

BOTTOM LINE, (you can quote this and respond to this part if you agree/disagree since the rest of the post is too wordy)

Lebron has TWO choices. He can play the same way and hope his teammates are good enough to put up ~85-88 points by hitting wide open jumpers. This is a safe route... he'll be criticized for not taking matters into his own hands but much of the criticism will be deflected onto his poor teammates.

He can relentlessly take the ball to the basket and attempt to draw fouls like D.Wade did last year. Lebron is so strong that when contact is made the ref is more reluctant to blow the whistle because the defender usually receives the brunt of the impact. A guy like D.Wade has the body balance to initiate the contact on the path to the hoop and then go flying wildly to emphasize the foul. I'm not saying Lebron needs to flop like Ginobili or Wade but he has got to put more pressure on the refs to blow the whistle. There is not a doubt in my mind that Jordan would have gotten that call on the last play and had a chance to win the game from the foul line rather than on a running, off-balance toss.

5/26/2007 7:38:34 AM

that was a statement game

5/26/2007 11:08:05 PM

and i never ever want to hear the pro nba/anti soccer guys talk about flopping anymore

5/27/2007 12:02:24 AM

If Europe and South America would keep it's players there to play soccer you wouldn't see it in the NBA.

5/27/2007 12:15:58 AM

robert horry is from europe/south america?

5/27/2007 1:40:48 AM

hey guys, i'm verry sorry i wasn't available for my in-game analysis tonight i was very ill. The jazz got okur going in his head and that was the key. they will take game 4 and 6 as well.sorry again and i'll be fully available tommorow.

5/27/2007 3:44:16 AM

Scouts Inc. agrees with me too...

Quote :

" For the second consecutive game, Cleveland had more rebounds than the Pistons, made more free throws, had more steals, forced more turnovers and still lost the game. Their 40 percent shooting from the field just was not enough to earn the win. Specifically, it is their fourth-quarter efforts that are coming up short (they were awful in the third quarter of Game 2 as well, but still took a three-point lead into the fourth). Detroit is confident that in a tight game, its experience will come through just enough to earn a victory. Games 1 and 2 served to deepen that confidence. But the reality is that those games were decided by fractions of inches and seconds of time, and Cleveland knows that they can compete with the Pistons and even take the series with just a tiny upgrade of offense and some momentum. Home court can provide a little of both. Conversely, the Pistons play best when they respect their opponent, perhaps even fear them a little, so it is likely that they will play better at Cleveland, knowing how close they are to trailing 0-2. To upgrade its offense, Cleveland may look to increase its transition looks. Detroit, in Game 2, showed a soft man-to-man look every time LeBron James caught the ball in the half-court. Tayshaun Prince guarded him relatively tightly, and the two closest perimeter defenders shaded toward James. They know James wants to drive, and their aim is to force him to his midrange game. James' mindset is hurting him here -- instead of recognizing the opportunities to get a midrange jumper, he is trying too hard to get closer looks and often taking any shot he can get near the rim, where the Pistons' long defenders appear even longer because of the shallow shooting angle he has so close to the rim. Or he is taking one-dribble jumpers -- and it is very hard to create enough space after just one dribble when defended by Prince. Last season, Dwyane Wade, when defended in this manner, would often keep his dribble alive while searching for a great midrange spot, and when he found if he would jump up and shoot with confidence. James needs to take a similar tack more often. Of course, amping up the transition game would help James as well and get him some open looks, which would build his confidence and impact the rest of his game. Even though the other Cavs are likely to play and shoot better at home than they did on the road, they should not expect the Pistons to change their defensive strategy until James makes them do so. They seem prepared to let the other Cavs score as long as James does not. Detroit's defensive orientation towards James makes it susceptible to the skip pass, which James has utilized occassionally. He can follow that skip pass with a face-cut and a post up and take advantage of the rotating Pistons defenders. Once they are all set, of course, their effectiveness improves markedly. Detroit's offensive performace thus far has been, in one word, awful. Bailed out by a few big shots by Chauncey Billups in Game 1 and Rasheed Wallace in Game 2, the Pistons should not assume they can always find someone to step up late after struggling all game. They are settling for too much 5-on-5 action against a team that excels at forcing that action and then defending it. Cleveland's ability to slow down the Pistons' plays (pin-downs, single-doubles, and ball-screens) by helping quickly and recovering even more quickly, coupled with Detroit's willingness to grind things out every trip, put the Cavs in position to win both games. On the road, Detroit must be greedier on offense. Since Cleveland will likely run more, the Pistons want to avoid getting into a true running game, yet when they have numbers they should jump on the chance to get a good, quick shot. It may be the only way to get many open looks. This puts enormous pressure on Billups, who did not handle pressure well in Detroit. His 12 turnovers to just 11 assists so far is the biggest surprise of this series. Detroit is enoying a fine series by Wallace, but Billups will be the key to stealing at least one game in Cleveland, especially considering that Prince is 1-for-19 from the field, so focused is he on defending James. With two teams struggling so on offense and two razor-sharp defenses, it is difficult to project which team will find its shooting touch first. Since Detroit has been struggling since the middle of the Chicago series on offense and with Cleveland going home to a wild crowd, I give the Cavs a slight advantage to tighten up this series in another close game. One caveat: If either team can get hot from 3-point range, that could swing the game and give us the first blowout of the series. PREDICTION: Cleveland wins Game 3"

5/27/2007 2:09:57 PM

Bron looks primed early

He's not looking to pass at all either

Kobe-like statline tonight



Also the Bobcats traded Pavlovic for Sean May

[Edited on May 27, 2007 at 8:52 PM. Reason : x]

5/27/2007 8:38:11 PM

I'm all for the underdogs, Jazz whooped ass last night- hoping LeBron does the same

5/27/2007 9:42:22 PM

but.. I believe thats the only game Jazz get. Spurs are too talented

5/27/2007 9:44:03 PM

Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaally.....

If Cleveland doesnt pull away in the in the next few minutes, this game is OVER.

...and if this game is over...

$50

5/27/2007 10:21:57 PM

lebron is going to need a monster 4th quarter to make this a series

5/27/2007 10:28:21 PM

Cavs are hitting huge shots right now

5/27/2007 10:53:04 PM

Eat it haters.

1 down, 3 to go.

5/27/2007 11:12:13 PM

that dunk over sheed will be on millions of kid's walls worldwide

5/27/2007 11:32:53 PM

you don't get posterized anymore

you get youtubed

5/27/2007 11:35:35 PM

so easy a cavman can do it

5/28/2007 2:26:42 AM

^^ ha

5/28/2007 5:08:15 AM

The Cavs had to play an absolutely perfect game to even have a chance in winning that game. No way they'll play that good in game 4. They held Billups and Hamilton to ~20 combined points and still struggled to win?

They suck, and unless Lebron can go out everytime and go for 27, 10 & 10, they dont have a snowballs chance in hell.

5/28/2007 9:11:40 AM

Honestly Hughes injury might cost them a good shot at taking the series. Hope he recovers because Gibson/Jones were making Flip Murray look like a legit scorer for awhile there.

A perfect game? I don't think they played anywhere near perfect they still had quite a few miscues. I think they'll play a little better in Game 4.

Lebron is slowly figuring out how to attack the Detroit defense and draw fouls and his supporting cast is more comfortable shooting at home.

They're only slight favorites in game 4 because of the question marks surrounding Larry Hughes foot.

5/28/2007 11:06:23 AM

Quote :

"The Cavs had to play an absolutely perfect game to even have a chance in winning that game. No way they'll play that good in game 4. They held Billups and Hamilton to ~20 combined points and still struggled to win?"

This is the third game in a row where they had a chance to win. At some point it changes from playing perfect games to being competitive. They didn't play perfect games in Game 1 or 2 and still had a chance to win.

If they play like they have in the first three then they will be right there again in Game 4 (if Hughes can play). I am looking forward to a good (hopefully) finish to this series.

5/28/2007 11:32:30 AM

honestly, im still not convinced the pistons are in sync... but the importance is that i dont think its due to cleveland's game, i just think the pistons have their heads elsewhere... but we'll get em in game 4, cleveland played really well and deserved to win that one

5/28/2007 12:38:54 PM

RIGHT NOW

http://youtube.com/watch?v=GtBUjCpbJVM

5/28/2007 5:55:58 PM

nvm its januaray

[Edited on May 28, 2007 at 6:00 PM. Reason : my bust ]

5/28/2007 5:59:04 PM

LeBron boofed on 'Sheed. That's all that matters.

5/28/2007 7:18:27 PM

So, is Darren Williams fat or what?

5/28/2007 10:15:29 PM

he's powerful

5/28/2007 10:19:32 PM

he almost has a double chin!


and a double double

5/28/2007 11:14:05 PM

classy fans in utah... must be upset about those ugly green seats

5/28/2007 11:41:16 PM

if the refs could call a foul against the jazz when it occurs, rather than waiting to see if the spurs made their shot, i'd fucking appreciate it.

Also, was tonight the ref's tribute to Pat Riley's hair night?

5/28/2007 11:41:36 PM

Kobe Bryant would have done a better job than williams.

5/28/2007 11:43:46 PM

Quote :

"Also, was tonight the ref's tribute to Pat Riley's hair night?"

hahaah, im glad someone else noticed that... during the huddle on if it went off bowen out of bounds, i noticed all their heads had the slick back gelled up hair

5/28/2007 11:47:57 PM

Williams has potential to do big things, he wont ever be Chris Paul but hes growing up


and the Jazz got screwed tonight BIG TIME on Technicals and free throw disparity.

it was horrible officiating I think personally.

5/28/2007 11:48:11 PM

Williams is better than Paul right now

Williams>>>Paul>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Felton

5/28/2007 11:56:26 PM

williams is easily better than paul

5/29/2007 12:00:41 AM

this is why people hate manu. he worked his shenanigans to perfection tonight. theres no stat for techs drawn, guys taken out of their game or fans pissed off

5/29/2007 12:01:39 AM

i love how everyone is on deron williams jock now

5/29/2007 12:22:26 AM

Quote :

"Williams has potential to do big things, he wont ever be Chris Paul"

Williams is already better than Paul. He's owned him nearly every time they've faced each other.

Imagine if Portland had drafted Deron Williams instead of Martrell Webster.... although Deron might have made them good enough not to be in the lottery to get Oden...

5/29/2007 8:40:17 AM

Manu should play world cup soccer, or maybe take his act to film

that was pathetic last night, and I hate to admit it because as much as I hate the Spurs, I hate the Jazz worse.

This is going to be a lame NBA Finals because the only team with a shot at beating Utah or the Alamo is Detroit and I think but am not totally sure they will get past Cleveland. Of course Hughes being out helps

and lets not totally write Felton off I mean, the level of player around him is a little different the DW's and Paul is for sure the most talented.

btw could they have sucke Williams' cock any more last night?

5/29/2007 8:48:56 AM

PARKER >>>>>> WILLIAMS

Parker's PG abilities + Longoria + NBA Titles + not living in Utah >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Williams

5/29/2007 11:40:54 AM

I hate the Pistons, but I love the dough!

Lets go Detroit!

5/29/2007 3:29:47 PM

yeah if detroit wins the series i win my bracket pool and if cleveland wins i barely lose my bracket pool...but i'm pulling for cleveland

5/29/2007 3:30:31 PM