The Detroit Disregard

Posted by Todd Spehr on 02.26.2008

Superstar trades and the West's heralded teams got most of the ink while Detroit's recent dominance has gone largely unnoticed, but as 411's Todd Spehr explains, that's just how they like it.

You know, for a moment there the game being played on the court was taking a backseat to the Can You Top This being played by GM's in the West; the one where guys in suits move players – mostly stars, actually - around like a grandmaster shifts pieces on a chessboard.

But I think it was rather appropriate that in the midst of this recent trade whirlwind – one that saw Diesel become Cactus, a Kidd land back in familiar territory and where a bearded Spaniard was stolen, uh sorry, acquired by LA - that the Detroit Pistons go on a ten-game binge that no one notices. They just sidled up beside Boston in the East standings and gave ‘em the whole "Remember us?" look.

And the funny thing is, Detroit has been chugging along like always, sitting pretty in the standings with this core that they've had for what seems like forever. Their season includes two ho-hum double-figure win streaks while holding claim to being the only team to have wins in Boston, San Antonio and Phoenix. And with the Celtics' early-season euphoria somewhat fading in recent weeks, you can't help but wonder if Detroit would have too much trouble – home-court or not – if they ended up facing the C's sometime in late-May. You see, these Pistons just might be different to those of years gone by; same cast of stars, but a new group of reinforcements that are set to help correct failures of postseasons gone by.

Get this: Two years ago Detroit won 64 games, which was great and all, but by the East Finals against Miami their starters, weary from logging all kinds of minutes during a regular-season dedicated to proving their dominance, simply flat-lined as they were ousted by the Heat. Fast forward to this year, and Detroit has four guys off the bench playing 15-or-more minutes (compared to just one in '06) while the Pistons' main hombres – Billups, Rip, ‘Sheed and Prince – are all playing significantly fewer minutes than they did two years ago… so you can guess who's gonna be fresher around playoff-time.

And just who is providing the relief?

An under-sized power forward who everyone is patiently waiting on to break out (Jason Maxiell), a player plucked off the Wiz scrap heap (Jarvis Hayes), and two rookies – one who, like the stud former player-turned-executive who drafted him, was overlooked by most because he hailed from a small school (Rodney Stuckey); the other, a guy whose name is darn-near impossible to enunciate upon first try (Arron Afflalo). Yes, these are the players who could help make Detroit champs again.

Sure, Detroit has had good benches before, but with youth as well? Nope. Detroit has never had young pups like this with Stuckey getting the burn usually meant for Lindsey Hunter, Afflalo stepping in for Carlos Delfino and Maxiell getting most of Antonio McDyess' reserve minutes. Heck, on a technicality, replacing Chris Webber in the starting five with McDyess was a move in a youthful direction.

And while none of these reserves will make fantasy-fuelled fans go crazy, they each have proved this season to be valuable commodities. Look no further than Stuckey, who was cut from the similar block of granite as D-Wade, and is a player who was sidestepped by a number of scouts because he went to a smaller school. What, does this guy have a disease or something? Of course, Joe Dumars – who's about as formidable as a front-office hound as he was at guarding MJ – saw something in this Stuckey lad, used his fifteenth pick on him, and now has Billups' best backup (Mike James and Hunter included) since CB arrived in the summer of '02.

And it's not like the usual suspects are slouching either. Nah, far from it. As a matter of fact, watching these guys play can be a split decision for hoopologists. Casual fans probably find their style boring, but to the junkie, they can be a delight. Have you seen Rip Hamilton work off the ball? Is there a harder move to defend than Billups' hesitation, pull-up jumper? Sure Rasheed Wallace is viewed as a crybaby, but while he plays a villain only on TV, evidently he's also the ultimate team guy. It doesn't tell you much when the public adores a player; you know all you need about him if his teammates do. Having said that, Sheed's teammates love him, even if David Stern doesn't. And while Tayshaun Prince isn't your typical lock-down defender, can you name three defenders ahead of him who can guard anybody one-through-four better?

You may not like Detroit, but you have to respect what they do.

Few may realize, but this core group (you can throw ex-Piston Ben Wallace into this) have competed in the last five Eastern Conference Finals. So basically in the last five years there's been two things you count on in life: The sun setting in the west and the Pistons playing in the ECF. The last team to record any kind of streak like this from either conference was MJ's first three-peat Bulls ('89-'93) some fifteen years ago.

So why hasn't Detroit won more titles? Well, there are a variety of theories but if I were to pinpoint one major thing, it's their attitude, and not in a bad way either. They are the ultimate underdogs. If you say they can't do it – like, for example, their chances in the '04 Finals against LA or the remote likelihood of winning Game 7 of the '05 ECF in Miami or a do-or-die Game 6 in the '05 Finals at San Antonio – then they rise. If they know they're better or think they're better, however, then they can fold.

Oddly enough, their demeanor has been, at times in recent postseasons, a hindrance. Think of it like this: They approach themselves just like the fans do. We're Detroit. We'll win our 55-60 games every year. When playoff-time comes, we'll be fine. Honestly, it's not a cocky thing, because these guys are too professional for that. It's just that when they enter something as favorite, it totally messes up any type of Us Against The World mentality that is evident when they play their best. But while that type of confidence is a comforting thing to have, when you don't take your consequences seriously (as they probably haven't the last two postseasons) then you'll get burned. Last year, it's almost like they didn't respect Cleveland; they respected LeBron, who actually beat them himself, but they didn't respect the Cleveland Cavaliers. Predictably, they lost. And no one mentions this, but the same thing almost happened in '06 against the same team, but they pulled out a win in Cleveland in Game 6 before going gangbusters in Game 7. Put it like this: No way should they have lost last year to Cleveland, and you can probably say the same for the '06 Heat series as well. They were favorites both times.

A buddy of mine, a keen Pistons observer, even noted to me that Detroit is fine against "teams," but when matched up with one-man bands (like LBJ's '07 Cavs or Wade's '06 Heat) then they go from being tough to vulnerable. There is real validity to that. They handled Kidd's Nets in '04, the Shaq-Kobe-Payton-Malone Lakers that same year and were 12 minutes away from stealing the whole thing in '05 against San Antonio. Check that, we've seen the best of Detroit against three well-balanced teams. Then when you look at their last two playoff failures, they have faltered against teams that went to their stars roughly 98.7% of the time. Not good.

Of course, this could be a coaching thing. Larry Brown, despite holding a kung-fu grip on his team's offensive flexibilities, never would have let one man beat any team of his. Flip Saunders has, twice. Is that really the problem? Surely Saunders will have his team better prepared, but who really knows?

So what's different this year?

Dare I say it, but Detroit is somewhat overlooked. Really. Everyone is focusing on Boston and their Big 3; then there's always the possibility of LeBron carrying any kind of supporting cast past any East team in the playoffs, all of which would make Detroit look like the logical third choice to come out of the conference, right? Can you smell the disrespect? And if history is any indicator, then the Pistons – armed with a newfound youthful and potent bench, the most battle-tested vets in the land and while carrying the underdog label – will look to prove a point. They'll want to show they're better than Boston. They'll want to show there'll be no LeBron Hangover should they face the Cavs. They'll be out to show they can beat anyone from this loaded West everyone keeps hearing about.

And if the hoops public keeps focusing on others, then that will play right into their hands. Advantage Deee-troit.

You can read Todd Spehr's NBA column every Wednesday at 411mania.com. For more NBA talk, check out his blog