Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Urgency Lacking, Better Lineup Needed

January 25, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The Pistons, who had been trending upward last week, have regressed again.  They have gone 1-3 this week and are currently 15-28 overall.

The Pistons lost on the road at New York 99-91, beat Boston in the Palace 92-86, and lost at home to Indiana 105-93 and Portland 97-93.

In the New York game, Richard Hamilton was out with a stomach flu, joining Ben Gordon and Will Bynum on the inactive list.  Chris Wilcox was also out by halftime with back problems. Though short-handed, the Pistons scrapped to stay in the game, but Rodney Stuckey lacked sufficient offensive support.  Charlie Villanueva was also assessed a flagrant 1 foul that stalled the Pistons offensive momentum in the second half.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, ben wallace, Chris Wilcox, DaJuan Summers, Jason Maxiell, John Kuester, Jonas Jerebko, Juwan Howard, Rasheed Wallace, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, Will Bynum

Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Turning a Corner

January 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Within the space of the week, the Pistons have gone from the depths of a 13 game losing streak to riding the hope generated by a current 3 game win streak.

The Pistons hit rock bottom when they lost to the Chicago Bulls at the Palace 120-87.  Detroit then avoided tying a franchise record 14 game losing streak with a gutty 99-90 road win over the even more bedeviled Washington Wizards.

They followed that victory up with a tough 110-104 overtime home win against the New Orleans Hornets and a 94-90 4th quarter nail biter at home against the New York Knicks.

In their three wins, the Pistons didn’t play a perfect 48 minutes with constant focus, ball movement, effort, and execution on both ends of the court, but they played through the lulls to persevere and pull out the wins.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, ben wallace, Charlie Villanueva, Chris Wilcox, Chucky Atkins, Joe Dumars, John Kuester, Jonas Jerebko, Karen Davidson, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, Will Bynum

Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Going Backwards

January 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The Pistons are currently in the midst of a 12-game losing streak.  It is their fifth worst in franchise history and their longest since the 1993-94 season, which they closed out with 13 consecutive losses.  The Pistons lost at Dallas 98-93; at San Antonio 112-92; and at the Palace to Philadelphia 104-94.

The Pistons have regressed in each of the losses.  They went toe-to-toe with the Mavericks throughout the whole game, then competed for the first three quarters against the Spurs before collapsing in the fourth quarter, and then finally they started the game lifeless against the Sixers, spotting them a 29-point lead.

The Pistons are a 40-win team that was crippled by injuries at the start of the season and have had their confidence shaken now.  If they don’t get their heads and spirits restored in the near future, any hope of a playoff berth this season will soon be out of reach.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, ben wallace, Charlie Villanueva, Jason Maxiell, Joe Dumars, John Kuester, Jonas Jerebko, Kwame Brown, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, Will Bynum

Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Injuries Catching Up, But Reinforcements Coming

December 28, 2009 By Leave a Comment

The Pistons’ woes have continued over the last week.  They lost to the Lakers at the Palace 93-81, to the Bobcats on the road at Charlotte 88-76, and to the Raptors at the Palace 94-64.  In each of the games, the Pistons had scored a previous season low, but the point total in the third loss tied a franchise low.  Since scrapping to come to within one game of .500 at 11-12 two weeks ago, the Pistons have gone on a 6 game losing streak to drop to 11-18.

Though Coach Kuester refuses to use injuries as a crutch, it simply boils down to the Pistons missing their best players in Tayshaun Prince, Richard Hamilton, and Ben Gordon.  These three make plays and account for over 50 points among themselves.  The Pistons injured players have lost 67 games so far this year, more than what they’ve had in any of the last four seasons.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, Charlie Villanueva, Jason Maxiell, John Kuester, Jonas Jerebko, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Will Bynum

Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Injuries Lingering, West Road Woes Continuing

December 20, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Last week, the Pistons were rising above their injuries to surge to 11-12.  This past week, the Pistons’ injuries have brought them down to Earth.  They lost all 3 games of their second West road trip, snapping their previous 5 game win streak.

The Pistons lost in Houston 107-96.  They lost their second gone in New Orleans 95-87.  And they dropped their third straight to Oklahoma City 109-98.

The Pistons didn’t match the energy of the Rockets and played lackluster defense, particularly in transition.  The losses to the Hornets and Thunder were variations on a theme:  strong first half start followed by a weak second half marked with no ball movement and offensive breakdowns, and falling to 11-15.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, ben wallace, Chris Wilcox, Chucky Atkins, Jason Maxiell, Joe Dumars, John Kuester, Jonas Jerebko, kevin durant, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, Will Bynum

Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Gordon Joins Injury Club, Piston Rookies Step Up

November 29, 2009 By Leave a Comment

When it rains, it pours.

For the last several years, the Pistons had been among the healthiest teams in the league. 16 games into the 2009-2010 season, the Pistons have suffered injuries to Richard Hamilton (ankle), Tayshaun Prince (ruptured back disc), and now Ben Gordon (ankle).

Both Hamilton and Prince are day-to-day with no time tables for their return. Gordon is also day-to-day, but his injury isn’t as severe as Hamilton’s, so it’s not expected at this point that he will miss an extended stretch of games.

Though the Pistons are now on a 7-game slide initiated by a rough scheduling stretch against the best teams of the West, the Pistons rookies have stepped into the breach and are slowly finding their feet.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, ben wallace, Bill Russell, Charlie Villanueva, DaJuan Summers, Jonas Jerebko, lebron james, Rodney Stuckey, Will Bynum

Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Trial by Fire in the West

November 22, 2009 By Leave a Comment

After climbing to 5-4 overall last week, the Pistons have dropped four in a row to some of the best teams in the West—while playing without stalwarts Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince.

They lost a hard fought game at the Palace to the Dallas Mavericks 95-90 and their first 3 games on a 4 game West Coast swing: the Los Angeles Lakers 106-93; the Portland Trail Blazers 87-81; and the Utah Jazz 100-97 in overtime.

Rodney Stuckey and Will Bynum carried the Pistons in the Dallas game, while Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva had off games.

The Pistons fell behind to the Lakers by 28 points and 20 to the Trailblazers before mounting furious comebacks in the fourth quarter that fell short.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, ben wallace, Charlie Villanueva, DaJuan Summers, Jason Maxiell, John Kuester, Jonas Jerebko, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, Will Bynum

Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Villanueva and Gordon Giving Early Returns on Investment

November 18, 2009 By Leave a Comment

The Pistons have rolled off 3 straight wins in their third week to raise their overall record to 5-4.

The Pistons defeated the 76ers 88-81 and the Bobcats 98-75 at the Palace. They earned their first road victory in a hard fought battle at Washington 106-103.

Richard Hamilton (ankle) and Tayshaun Prince (ruptured lower back disc) were out again this week with their injuries.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, ben wallace, Charlie Villanueva, DaJuan Summers, Jason Maxiell, Joe Dumars, John Kuester, Jonas Jerebko, Kwame Brown, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, Will Bynum

Detroit Pistons Weekly Watch: Making Do Without Rip Hamilton & Tayshaun Prince

November 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment

During the second week of the 2009-2010 season, the Pistons have gone 1-2 and are 2-4 overall at the moment.

They began with an 85-80 home victory over the visiting Orlando Magic minus both Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince, who’d come down with an unexpected lower back strain. Prince’s injury ended his streak of 496 consecutive games played and league-leading mark of 439 consecutive starts.

The loss was the Magic’s first of the season and their 20th to the Pistons in 24 games going back to the 2006-2007 season.

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Filed Under: NBA Tagged With: Austin Daye, Ben Gordon, ben wallace, Charlie Villanueva, Chris Wilcox, detroit pistons, detroit pistons weekly watch, Jason Maxiell, John Kuester, Jonas Jerebko, Richard Hamilton, Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, Will Bynum