Detroit 121, Boston 106 - Walker has perhaps his best game with 22 points, 7 assists and 0 turnovers.
Detroit 107, Charlotte 88
Minnesota 93, Detroit 85 - Minnesota isn't the toothless team they used to be. Irving, Rubio, Gay, Jefferson, Cousins, and Love. Pretty solid.
Detroit 90, Milwaukee 76 - Oden's stat line: 8 minutes, 0 points, 1 rebound, 4 blocks, 6 fouls. Ouch.
Detroit 102, Toronto 90
Detroit 121, Memphis 70 - Memphis's offense is just pathetic... They are averaging 88 points per game.
Detroit 113, Philadelphia 92
Detroit 116, Denver 108 - Battier does what we got him to do, play lockdown defense. Turner gets a triple double, 27 points, 12 assists, 11 turnovers.
Detroit 111, Phoenix 96 - Turner torches the Suns for 33 points.
Portland 118, Detroit 108 - Losing Oden and Battier, our two best defenders, to injuries really really hurts.
LA Lakers 118, Detroit 99 - Kobe goes off for 46
Detroit 121, Oklahoma City 98 - Oden and Battier come back and help us defend.
Detroit 111, Atlanta 99
We're first in the division, 2nd in the conference, and 8 games back of New Jersey with 15 to go. We probably won't catch them.
New York 123, Detroit 103
Portland 109, Detroit 107 - At home, no less.
Detroit 114, Dallas 94
Charlotte 109, Detroit 97 - Well if it wasn't clear yet, we're pretty much out of the race now. How do we lose to Charlotte?
Detroit 100, Miami 91
Detroit 101, Milwaukee 89
Detroit 120, Orlando 110
Detroit 117, Milwaukee 107
Detroit 105, San Antonio 79 - Held them to 32.6% shooting. Ouch
With 6 games left, we're 5th overall, 1 game behind the Clippers and 2 behind the Lakers. We can do this!
Detroit 110, Utah 95
Detroit 116, New York 96 - Got our revenge from earlier. Kemba and Splitter each get 17/12 (assists for Kemba, rebounds for Splitter).
Detroit 111, Atlanta 88 - Ben Gordon sprains his finger and is out 10 days.
Detroit 106, Indiana 100 - We tie the Lakers today, 1 behind the Clips.
Detroit 104, Cleveland 79 - Lakers and Clippers win too.
Detroit 113, Chicago 103 - They win again, so we're tied for fourth in the League, 2nd in the conference. We end the season on an 11 game winning streak.
Motor City Basketball: Restoring the Pistons' Glory
by Myles Nelson » Wed Feb 29, 2012 6:02 pm
[SIZE="4"]End of Season[/SIZE]
Western Conference
New Orleans Hornets (61-21)
Los Angeles Clippers (57-25)
Los Angeles Lakers (56-26)
Portland Trail Blazers (51-31)
Sacramento Kings (50-32)
Dallas Mavericks (49-33)
Golden State Warriors (46-36)
Denver Nuggets (45-37)
Utah Jazz (41-41)
San Antonio Spurs (32-50)
Minnesota Timberwolves (30-52)
Phoenix Suns (30-52)
Oklahoma City Thunder (28-54)
Houston Rockets (27-55)
Memphis Grizzlies (17-65)
Eastern Conference
New Jersey Nets (67-15)
Detroit Pistons (56-26)
New York Knicks (49-33)
Miami Heat (47-35)
Orlando Magic (47-35)
Boston Celtics (42-40)
Chicago Bulls (42-40)
Indiana Pacers (42-40)
Washington Wizards (42-40)
Philadelpha 76ers (36-46)
Milwaukee Bucks (34-48)
Charlotte Bobcats (32-50)
Cleveland Cavaliers (30-52)
Toronto Raptors (26-56)
Atlanta Hawks (18-64)
Scoring
1. Kevin Durant (OKC) - 28.3
2. Monta Ellis (GSW) - 26.5
3. Carmelo Anthony (DEN) - 26.1
4. Danny Granger (IND) - 25.6
5. Dirk Nowitzki (DAL) - 25.5
18. Evan Turner (DET) - 19.7
Assists
1. Chris Paul (NOH) - 9.9
2. Russell Westbrook (OKC) - 9.8
3. Steve Nash (PHX) - 9.4
4. Rajon Rondo (BOS) - 9.2
5. Deron Williams (UTA) - 8.6
20. Evan Turner (DET) - 6.1
Rebounds
1. Dwight Howard (ORL) - 15.3
2. Tim Duncan (SA) - 11.8
3. Yao Ming (HOU) - 11.4
4. Joakim Noah (CHI) - 11.3
5. Amare Stoudemire (NYK) - 11.3
Blocks
1. Dwight Howard (ORL) - 4.1
2. Andrew Bogut (MIL) - 3.3
3. Pau Gasol (LAL) - 3.0
4. Josh Smith (ATL) - 2.6
5. Derrick Favors (GSW) - 2.5
5. Brendan Haywood (DAL) -2.5
5. Ekpe Udoh (TOR) - 2.5
10. Greg Oden (DET) - 2.3
Steals
1. Chris Paul (NOH) - 2.3
2. Danny Granger (IND) - 2.1
3. Monta Ellis (GSW) - 2.0
4. Trevor Ariza (HOU) - 1.9
5. Andre Iguodala (PHI) - 1.8
Rookie Report
Kyrie Irving (MIN) 13.6 ppg, 5.1 apg,
John Henson (WAS) 12.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 1.8 bpg
Kemba Walker (DET) 11.4 ppg, 5.5 apg,
Brandon Knight (MEM) 11.3 ppg, 5.0 apg,
Terrence Jones (PHX) 10.5 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.6 bpg, 1.3 spg
Perry Jones (CHA) 10.1 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 1.2 bpg
Jonas Valanciunas (TOR) 9.6 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 1.1 bpg
Derrick Williams (DET) 9.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg
Jimmer Fredette (IND) 9.3 ppg, 4.6 apg
Harrison Barnes (ATL) 9.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg
Enes Kanter (GSW) 7.9 ppg, 6.3 rpg
Some interesting things to note: Barnes only played 33 games in the pros, and played 27 in the D-League with 20 ppg down there. Jones became the starter about 25 games in and finished the season as a starter. Halfway through the season, Kanter became the starter in Golden State, becoming the youngest frontcourt in the NBA (Kanter/Favors). Fredette broke his arm, playing only 55 games. Brandon Knights looks to be better than Kemba, which means I reached and still lost (Knight was picked 8th).
- Myles Nelson
- Posts: 989
- Joined: Sat Jan 30, 2010 3:43 pm
by Myles Nelson » Wed Feb 29, 2012 6:52 pm
Let's get this division rivalry started! We face off against the Chicago Bulls in the first round, a team we split the season series with. They have a pretty well built team, and I'm sure they'll give us all we can handle. It's a bit of a tough draw, but it could be the start of something great in terms of rivalry. Let's go!
Here's what SLAM Magazine says about this series.
Point Guard
Derrick Rose vs. Kemba Walker
Rose is the motor for this team, leading the team in scoring and assists. He gets into the lane better than any PG in the league and is a dynamic talent. He's very sound on defense and is perhaps the point guard in the NBA.
Walker could be at Rose's level one day, but that day is not today. Essentially, Walker is a Rose-lite. He attacks the basket, has a relentless motor, has decent handles and shoots the ball well. His defense is serviceable, but he'll most likely be torched by Rose this series.
Advantage: Bulls
Shooting Guard
Rip Hamilton vs. Evan Turner
Hamilton used to be a Piston, but was dealt during last year while the Pistons were dumping salary left and right. Hamilton was second on the team in scoring, dropping 14.9 points at a 45% clip. He's getting up there in years, but he provides good offense next to Rose.
Turner is the franchise player for this young Pistons team. He plays strong defense, is a great ball-handler, and scores the ball very well. He led the team in points, assists and steals, and will probably look to do the same in this post-season series.
Advantage: Pistons
Small Forward
Luol Deng vs. Shane Battier
Deng is the glue guy for this Bulls team, a good outside shooter who can attack, take care of the ball, and play defense. He might be the most well-rounded player on this team, and is certainly a strong player.
Battier is pretty much the same as Deng. He's more of a spot-up shooter than Deng is, but he's definitely a better defender. Battier's role will be to lock down Deng and hit 3s.
Advantage: Draw
Power Forward
Drew Gooden vs. Tiago Splitter
Gooden is a solid role player. He can hit an open jumper, get to the basket, and rebound pretty well. He won't lead the team in anything, but he'll never hurt the team, either.
Splitter is an enigma. He'll have games where he goes off for 25 and 10, then the next game he'll get 9 and 4. He needs to be consistently good this series, scoring at a high clip and rebounding well, so as to take advantage of the fact that he is more talented than the player he's going up against.
Advantage: Pistons
Center
Joakim Noah vs. Greg Oden
Noah is a defensive minded center. His main job down low is to stop the other post men from scoring and gobble up every rebound, and he's damn good at his job. His offense mainly comes from put backs, but he's developed a few post moves over the years.
Oden is pretty similar to Noah. Oden blocks shots with a vengeance, pulls down boards, but offensively he's better than Noah. He scored 15 points per game at a 57% clip, and he'll look to do the same this series.
Advantage: Draw
Bench
The Bulls bench is led by Marcus Thornton, a prolific scorer who's defense is very suspect. Lucas Nogueira is raw, but he's a solid rebounder and shot blocker. Austin Daye and Travis Outlaw provide versatility off the bench.
Derrick Williams and Ben Gordon lead the Pistons bench, and both get a good amount of minutes and contribute well. Jonas Jerebko is a jack-of-all trades at the backup SF slot, and Carlos Arroyo, Joel Przybilla, and Kyle Korver all perform their roles off the bench well: ball-control, rebounding and defense, and shooting.
Advantage: Pistons
Final Thoughts
The Bulls are led by star Derrick Rose, who may be a bit much for the Pistons to handle. They also have a strong starting five and a great sixth man. However, the Pistons are deeper and just as good or better at every position except PG. Unless Rose has a massive series, the Pistons will take this one.
Prediction: Pistons in 5
I agree with these predictions. I don't think Rose will go absolutely crazy and take us down single-handedly, but I do see him having a big series and making life tough for us. Homecourt advantage will certainly help this young group.
Game One
We hold Derrick Rose to 7 points, a great sign, but Deng scores 31 and Noah drops 23, which doesn't bode well. If Rose had an average game, we would have lost game one, but luckily we held him, and so we were able to take the first game at home. Turner had 28 points, Walker had 19/10 with only 1 turnover, and Williams came up huge off the bench with 13 points.
Chicago 109 Detroit 121
Game Two
Derrick Rose managed to foul out Kemba in the first half, forcing Arroyo to really step up. Luckily for us, Rose fouled out early in the fourth quarter, making this a battle of backup PGs. Noah and Deng again led the way for their team, this time though with much more manageable totals of 19 and 18 points. Splitter drops 20 and we get game two at home.
Chicago 98 Detroit 110
Game Three
We're really rolling now, and not even a strong outing from Derrick Rose (22/11) or Luol Deng (25 points) can stop us as Evan Turner and Greg Oden absolutely go HAM on this team. Turner scores 35 points and Oden gets a 20/20 with 25 points and 20 rebounds. Walkers deferred to his teammates today, earning himself 12 assists and only 2 turnovers, and the Bulls have their backs up against the wall now.
Detroit 114 Chicago 107
Game Four
This one came down to the final seconds. Bulls down two, ball in Rose's hand. He drives around Walker to the basket and tries to put up a floater from 8 feet out. Greg Oden says NO by getting his 6th block of the game, and swatting it out to Evan Turner, who nails both free throws after being fouled. Gordon lead all scorers with 20, Splitter got 18/12, and Oden finished with 7 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 blocks. The Bulls squandered a 16 point halftime lead and were SWEPT on their home court!
Detroit 118 Chicago 114
Man it feels good to win! Last year we won 21 games total. By taking this game against the Bulls, we officially won 60 games this season.
New Orleans were the only other team to sweep, as they swept out the DEFENDING CHAMPION DENVER NUGGETS. Talk about a decline.
New Jersey beat out Indiana in 5 games, Miami took down Orlando in 5, Golden State upset the Clippers but the Lakers beat out the Mavericks.
Boston upset New York in 6.
Portland held off the Kings in game 7.
Here's what SLAM Magazine says about this series.
Point Guard
Derrick Rose vs. Kemba Walker
Rose is the motor for this team, leading the team in scoring and assists. He gets into the lane better than any PG in the league and is a dynamic talent. He's very sound on defense and is perhaps the point guard in the NBA.
Walker could be at Rose's level one day, but that day is not today. Essentially, Walker is a Rose-lite. He attacks the basket, has a relentless motor, has decent handles and shoots the ball well. His defense is serviceable, but he'll most likely be torched by Rose this series.
Advantage: Bulls
Shooting Guard
Rip Hamilton vs. Evan Turner
Hamilton used to be a Piston, but was dealt during last year while the Pistons were dumping salary left and right. Hamilton was second on the team in scoring, dropping 14.9 points at a 45% clip. He's getting up there in years, but he provides good offense next to Rose.
Turner is the franchise player for this young Pistons team. He plays strong defense, is a great ball-handler, and scores the ball very well. He led the team in points, assists and steals, and will probably look to do the same in this post-season series.
Advantage: Pistons
Small Forward
Luol Deng vs. Shane Battier
Deng is the glue guy for this Bulls team, a good outside shooter who can attack, take care of the ball, and play defense. He might be the most well-rounded player on this team, and is certainly a strong player.
Battier is pretty much the same as Deng. He's more of a spot-up shooter than Deng is, but he's definitely a better defender. Battier's role will be to lock down Deng and hit 3s.
Advantage: Draw
Power Forward
Drew Gooden vs. Tiago Splitter
Gooden is a solid role player. He can hit an open jumper, get to the basket, and rebound pretty well. He won't lead the team in anything, but he'll never hurt the team, either.
Splitter is an enigma. He'll have games where he goes off for 25 and 10, then the next game he'll get 9 and 4. He needs to be consistently good this series, scoring at a high clip and rebounding well, so as to take advantage of the fact that he is more talented than the player he's going up against.
Advantage: Pistons
Center
Joakim Noah vs. Greg Oden
Noah is a defensive minded center. His main job down low is to stop the other post men from scoring and gobble up every rebound, and he's damn good at his job. His offense mainly comes from put backs, but he's developed a few post moves over the years.
Oden is pretty similar to Noah. Oden blocks shots with a vengeance, pulls down boards, but offensively he's better than Noah. He scored 15 points per game at a 57% clip, and he'll look to do the same this series.
Advantage: Draw
Bench
The Bulls bench is led by Marcus Thornton, a prolific scorer who's defense is very suspect. Lucas Nogueira is raw, but he's a solid rebounder and shot blocker. Austin Daye and Travis Outlaw provide versatility off the bench.
Derrick Williams and Ben Gordon lead the Pistons bench, and both get a good amount of minutes and contribute well. Jonas Jerebko is a jack-of-all trades at the backup SF slot, and Carlos Arroyo, Joel Przybilla, and Kyle Korver all perform their roles off the bench well: ball-control, rebounding and defense, and shooting.
Advantage: Pistons
Final Thoughts
The Bulls are led by star Derrick Rose, who may be a bit much for the Pistons to handle. They also have a strong starting five and a great sixth man. However, the Pistons are deeper and just as good or better at every position except PG. Unless Rose has a massive series, the Pistons will take this one.
Prediction: Pistons in 5
I agree with these predictions. I don't think Rose will go absolutely crazy and take us down single-handedly, but I do see him having a big series and making life tough for us. Homecourt advantage will certainly help this young group.
Game One
We hold Derrick Rose to 7 points, a great sign, but Deng scores 31 and Noah drops 23, which doesn't bode well. If Rose had an average game, we would have lost game one, but luckily we held him, and so we were able to take the first game at home. Turner had 28 points, Walker had 19/10 with only 1 turnover, and Williams came up huge off the bench with 13 points.
Chicago 109 Detroit 121
Game Two
Derrick Rose managed to foul out Kemba in the first half, forcing Arroyo to really step up. Luckily for us, Rose fouled out early in the fourth quarter, making this a battle of backup PGs. Noah and Deng again led the way for their team, this time though with much more manageable totals of 19 and 18 points. Splitter drops 20 and we get game two at home.
Chicago 98 Detroit 110
Game Three
We're really rolling now, and not even a strong outing from Derrick Rose (22/11) or Luol Deng (25 points) can stop us as Evan Turner and Greg Oden absolutely go HAM on this team. Turner scores 35 points and Oden gets a 20/20 with 25 points and 20 rebounds. Walkers deferred to his teammates today, earning himself 12 assists and only 2 turnovers, and the Bulls have their backs up against the wall now.
Detroit 114 Chicago 107
Game Four
This one came down to the final seconds. Bulls down two, ball in Rose's hand. He drives around Walker to the basket and tries to put up a floater from 8 feet out. Greg Oden says NO by getting his 6th block of the game, and swatting it out to Evan Turner, who nails both free throws after being fouled. Gordon lead all scorers with 20, Splitter got 18/12, and Oden finished with 7 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 blocks. The Bulls squandered a 16 point halftime lead and were SWEPT on their home court!
Detroit 118 Chicago 114
Man it feels good to win! Last year we won 21 games total. By taking this game against the Bulls, we officially won 60 games this season.
New Orleans were the only other team to sweep, as they swept out the DEFENDING CHAMPION DENVER NUGGETS. Talk about a decline.
New Jersey beat out Indiana in 5 games, Miami took down Orlando in 5, Golden State upset the Clippers but the Lakers beat out the Mavericks.
Boston upset New York in 6.
Portland held off the Kings in game 7.
- Myles Nelson
- Posts: 989
- Joined: Sat Jan 30, 2010 3:43 pm
by Myles Nelson » Wed Feb 29, 2012 7:28 pm
Round 2 now! This time up we got the Aging 3 plus Rondo, as the Celtics come to Detroit to try and take us down. The Celtics upset the Knicks in Round 1, showing that they are no pushover, but we'll do our best to end their run here!
SLAM Magazine had this to say.
Point Guard
Rajon Rondo vs. Kemba Walker
Rondo is another kind of dynamic talent for Walker to try and handle. Rondo won't score his way to a victory, but he will pass and defend his way to one. He's a relentless defender who forces turnovers, and will certainly make life tough for Walker here.
Offensively, Walker has the distinct advantage over Rondo. However, since Rondo is so good defensively, that may negate Walker's offensive abilities. Walker had a great series against the Bulls, notching 9 assists to 2 turnovers per game. If he can continue that, the Pistons will be in fine shape.
Advantage: Draw
Shooting Guard
Arron Afflalo vs. Evan Turner
Afflalo beat out Ray-Ray for the starting spot by just being better than Ray at his own game. Afflalo is a fantastic shooter who can't quite create his own shot the way Ray Allen can, but Afflalo has learned from the best when it comes to coming off screens and knocking down big shots. Afflalo's defense isn't bad, but it isn't good either.
Turner had a monster series against the Bulls, averaging 25 points per game, and he'll look to do more of the same against the overmatched Afflalo. He'll go at Afflalo (or Allen) relentlessly, and we know Turner has the skills to take over.
Advantage: Pistons
Small Forward
Paul Pierce vs. Shane Battier
The Truth may have lost a step over the years, but he is savvier than ever. A great shooter, he knows how to create a shot for himself and he always seems to make the smart play. He's a very steady hand and will continue to be Mr. Celtic.
Battier's defense against Deng was concerning in the first round, and hopefully he'll pick it up here against Pierce. If he can step it up and slow Pierce down, he'll have done his job in this series.
Advantage: Celtics
Power Forward
Kevin Garnett vs. Tiago Splitter
Garnett isn't the dominant MVP he used to be, but he's still a very good player. His defense is top-notch, he still knows how to score down low, and he's still a very smart player. His intensity is unmatched and he'll certainly do everything he can to stop Splitter in this series.
Splitter has more offensive skills now than Garnett, and is a pretty similar rebounder, but his defense, experience, and intensity aren't there. He's a damn fine talent, but he's no first-ballot Hall of Famer KG.
Advantage: Celtics
Center
Kendrick Perkins vs. Greg Oden
Perkins has been described as the heart and soul of this team, which is saying a lot when his post partner is Kevin Garnett. He's the physical guy, the one who has no problem mixing it up with players down low and getting them pissed off. He backs down from nothing and no one, and he has the talent to back it up. He nearly averaged a double double this year.
As strong as Perkins is though, he isn't as talented as Greg Oden. Oden stepped it up against the Bulls, averaging 16/12/3, and will play the same role here against the Celtics. Oden will be counted on to score down low and intimidate anyone who even thinks of driving the lane.
Advantage: Pistons
Bench
How can you complain when your 6th man is none other than the best shooter of all time, Ray Allen? Versatile forward Charlie Villanueva will look to get revenge against his old team, and Luke Ridnour will provide a steady hand and shot off the bench.
Derrick Williams and Ben Gordon were nearly unstoppable, averaging a combined 21.3 ppg on 56% shooting. Jonas Jerebko filled in well off the bench, and Carlos Arroyo and Joel Przybilla stepped up when called upon.
Advantage: Pistons
Final Thoughts
The Celtics experience gives them an extra edge that the young Pistons don't have, but the Pistons are just too talented. Turner and Oden will go off again, and the Pistons deep bench will continue to perform at a high level where the Celtics drop off a bit after their first 5.
Prediction: Pistons in 6
SLAM is right, if there is one thing I'm worried about it's that the Celtics have all been to the Finals before, they know how to handle themselves in the Playoffs. We may be talented, but experience is definitely important.
Game One
It was an ugly game, that's for sure. The Celtics committed 23 turnovers and shot 41% from the floor. We committed 26 turnovers, Walker and Splitter combining for 11 of them, but we also block 14 shots and shoot 60% from the floor to blow out the Celtics on our home court. Splitter had 26, Turner 22 and Oden 18 as we jump out to a 1-0 lead. Unfortunately though, Walker sprains his ankle, and is likely out for most of the series.
Celtics 90 Pistons 115
Game Two
Rudy T tinkers with the lineup, and puts Turner at PG, Battier at SG, and Gordon at SF. Which makes no sense to me. Gordon is 6'3", Battier is 6'8". Anyway, Turner does well at point, getting 9 assists to 1 turnover but doesn't score much at all. Arroyo fills in nicely off the bench, but the real story of this game is the post trio of Splitter/Oden/Williams, as they combine for 59 points. We get an insane 30 assists (Arroyo pitched in 9 as well) and block another 13 shots.
Celtics 110 Pistons 126
Game Three
Evan Turner perhaps tried to do a little too much this game. He did score 15 points and get 13 assists, but he also turned the ball over 6 times. We turn it over 20 times to their 13, block only 4 shots, and Turner was our leading scorer, but we defend the hell out of the ball and shut the Celtics down. They shot 32%.
Celtics 75 Pistons 98
Game Four
I was starting to wonder if we could sweep two series in a row. Heading into the 4th quarter, it looked like we could do it, with a five point lead. Alas, it wouldn't last. We were outscored 31-18 in the 4th. Oden dominated, scoring 19 points in 21 minutes, but foul trouble kept him out for a lot of that time. Perkins went off with Oden on the bench, and we narrowly lost this one.
Pistons 95 Celtics 103
Game Five
Traveling home to Detroit and I really want to win this game. Nothing is worse than going back on the road. Unfortunately, Splitter strained his knee and was informed that he can't play. This means that Williams will move into the starting rotation, and our bench has been fairly decimated. Can being home help negate that? Whether it was being home or Oden and Turner just being themselves, something certainly got them going and combining to drop 48 points. The Celtics again had trouble finding the basket and couldn't contain Arroyo off the bench either, who had 14 points and 14 assists.
Celtics 90 Pistons 108
Thank god we won at home, I would have hated to have to go back to Boston with the momentum on their side. Walker should be ready for the next series, but Splitter may miss a game or two.
The Hornets also took their series in 5 games, beating out the Portland Trailblazers.
The Heat upset the Nets in 6 games, knocking LeBron out of the playoffs again (YES!), and meaning that we'll also have a new Eastern Conference champ. The Lakers take down the Warriors in six.
SLAM Magazine had this to say.
Point Guard
Rajon Rondo vs. Kemba Walker
Rondo is another kind of dynamic talent for Walker to try and handle. Rondo won't score his way to a victory, but he will pass and defend his way to one. He's a relentless defender who forces turnovers, and will certainly make life tough for Walker here.
Offensively, Walker has the distinct advantage over Rondo. However, since Rondo is so good defensively, that may negate Walker's offensive abilities. Walker had a great series against the Bulls, notching 9 assists to 2 turnovers per game. If he can continue that, the Pistons will be in fine shape.
Advantage: Draw
Shooting Guard
Arron Afflalo vs. Evan Turner
Afflalo beat out Ray-Ray for the starting spot by just being better than Ray at his own game. Afflalo is a fantastic shooter who can't quite create his own shot the way Ray Allen can, but Afflalo has learned from the best when it comes to coming off screens and knocking down big shots. Afflalo's defense isn't bad, but it isn't good either.
Turner had a monster series against the Bulls, averaging 25 points per game, and he'll look to do more of the same against the overmatched Afflalo. He'll go at Afflalo (or Allen) relentlessly, and we know Turner has the skills to take over.
Advantage: Pistons
Small Forward
Paul Pierce vs. Shane Battier
The Truth may have lost a step over the years, but he is savvier than ever. A great shooter, he knows how to create a shot for himself and he always seems to make the smart play. He's a very steady hand and will continue to be Mr. Celtic.
Battier's defense against Deng was concerning in the first round, and hopefully he'll pick it up here against Pierce. If he can step it up and slow Pierce down, he'll have done his job in this series.
Advantage: Celtics
Power Forward
Kevin Garnett vs. Tiago Splitter
Garnett isn't the dominant MVP he used to be, but he's still a very good player. His defense is top-notch, he still knows how to score down low, and he's still a very smart player. His intensity is unmatched and he'll certainly do everything he can to stop Splitter in this series.
Splitter has more offensive skills now than Garnett, and is a pretty similar rebounder, but his defense, experience, and intensity aren't there. He's a damn fine talent, but he's no first-ballot Hall of Famer KG.
Advantage: Celtics
Center
Kendrick Perkins vs. Greg Oden
Perkins has been described as the heart and soul of this team, which is saying a lot when his post partner is Kevin Garnett. He's the physical guy, the one who has no problem mixing it up with players down low and getting them pissed off. He backs down from nothing and no one, and he has the talent to back it up. He nearly averaged a double double this year.
As strong as Perkins is though, he isn't as talented as Greg Oden. Oden stepped it up against the Bulls, averaging 16/12/3, and will play the same role here against the Celtics. Oden will be counted on to score down low and intimidate anyone who even thinks of driving the lane.
Advantage: Pistons
Bench
How can you complain when your 6th man is none other than the best shooter of all time, Ray Allen? Versatile forward Charlie Villanueva will look to get revenge against his old team, and Luke Ridnour will provide a steady hand and shot off the bench.
Derrick Williams and Ben Gordon were nearly unstoppable, averaging a combined 21.3 ppg on 56% shooting. Jonas Jerebko filled in well off the bench, and Carlos Arroyo and Joel Przybilla stepped up when called upon.
Advantage: Pistons
Final Thoughts
The Celtics experience gives them an extra edge that the young Pistons don't have, but the Pistons are just too talented. Turner and Oden will go off again, and the Pistons deep bench will continue to perform at a high level where the Celtics drop off a bit after their first 5.
Prediction: Pistons in 6
SLAM is right, if there is one thing I'm worried about it's that the Celtics have all been to the Finals before, they know how to handle themselves in the Playoffs. We may be talented, but experience is definitely important.
Game One
It was an ugly game, that's for sure. The Celtics committed 23 turnovers and shot 41% from the floor. We committed 26 turnovers, Walker and Splitter combining for 11 of them, but we also block 14 shots and shoot 60% from the floor to blow out the Celtics on our home court. Splitter had 26, Turner 22 and Oden 18 as we jump out to a 1-0 lead. Unfortunately though, Walker sprains his ankle, and is likely out for most of the series.
Celtics 90 Pistons 115
Game Two
Rudy T tinkers with the lineup, and puts Turner at PG, Battier at SG, and Gordon at SF. Which makes no sense to me. Gordon is 6'3", Battier is 6'8". Anyway, Turner does well at point, getting 9 assists to 1 turnover but doesn't score much at all. Arroyo fills in nicely off the bench, but the real story of this game is the post trio of Splitter/Oden/Williams, as they combine for 59 points. We get an insane 30 assists (Arroyo pitched in 9 as well) and block another 13 shots.
Celtics 110 Pistons 126
Game Three
Evan Turner perhaps tried to do a little too much this game. He did score 15 points and get 13 assists, but he also turned the ball over 6 times. We turn it over 20 times to their 13, block only 4 shots, and Turner was our leading scorer, but we defend the hell out of the ball and shut the Celtics down. They shot 32%.
Celtics 75 Pistons 98
Game Four
I was starting to wonder if we could sweep two series in a row. Heading into the 4th quarter, it looked like we could do it, with a five point lead. Alas, it wouldn't last. We were outscored 31-18 in the 4th. Oden dominated, scoring 19 points in 21 minutes, but foul trouble kept him out for a lot of that time. Perkins went off with Oden on the bench, and we narrowly lost this one.
Pistons 95 Celtics 103
Game Five
Traveling home to Detroit and I really want to win this game. Nothing is worse than going back on the road. Unfortunately, Splitter strained his knee and was informed that he can't play. This means that Williams will move into the starting rotation, and our bench has been fairly decimated. Can being home help negate that? Whether it was being home or Oden and Turner just being themselves, something certainly got them going and combining to drop 48 points. The Celtics again had trouble finding the basket and couldn't contain Arroyo off the bench either, who had 14 points and 14 assists.
Celtics 90 Pistons 108
Thank god we won at home, I would have hated to have to go back to Boston with the momentum on their side. Walker should be ready for the next series, but Splitter may miss a game or two.
The Hornets also took their series in 5 games, beating out the Portland Trailblazers.
The Heat upset the Nets in 6 games, knocking LeBron out of the playoffs again (YES!), and meaning that we'll also have a new Eastern Conference champ. The Lakers take down the Warriors in six.
- Myles Nelson
- Posts: 989
- Joined: Sat Jan 30, 2010 3:43 pm
by Myles Nelson » Wed Feb 29, 2012 8:16 pm
I never ever would have guessed when I took over this team that we'd be headed to the Eastern Conference Finals by my second year. I want a raise! With that said, we certainly have a battle ahead of us with Miami.
Here's SLAM's preview.
Point Guard
Raja Bell vs. Kemba Walker
Bell is by no means a point guard, and he doesn't really try to be one. He just brings the ball up long enough to get the ball in Wade's hands and then spot up. He defends the other teams point, so that Wade doesn't have to chase him around, which makes him a bit more valuable.
Walker will be able to take entire plays off defensively, which will give him more energy to attack on the offensive end, however, Bell is good enough defensively to slow down Walker. If Walker can just continue his solid production from the first series, the Pistons will be fine.
Advantage: Pistons
Shooting Guard
Dwyane Wade vs. Evan Turner
Wade is a beast at the SG slot. He attacks the basket every trip down and is one of the premier talents in the NBA. He'll give Evan Turner fits both offensively and defensively. If Wade has any weakness here, it's that he's only 6'4".
Turner has really stepped up this postseason, and although he'll face his toughest challenge yet with Wade, he's got the height advantage to just pull up over Wade. Turner will exert a lot of energy defensively, so we'll see how he can handle being a two-way player.
Advantage: Draw
Small Forward
Mike Miller vs. Shane Battier
Miller the Killer may be one of the best shooters in the NBA today. So far in the playoffs he's shooting 43% from 3, a deadly number. Miller will most likely just spot up and wait for his defender to help off on Wade, and then nail a 3.
The Pistons would be smart to put Battier on Wade and Turner on Miller, so that Battier can use his defensive prowess to slow Wade and allow Turner to save his legs for offense. Either way, Battier's defense and shot will certainly come in handy this round.
Advantage: Draw
Power Forward
Taj Gibson vs. Tiago Splitter
Gibson has become a versatile talent, averaging 10 points, 7 boards, and a block and a steal per game. He's a little undersized at the four spot, but he definitely is talented. He wants revenge against his old team here.
Splitter might be affected a little by his knee, but against Gibson, it won't show. Splitter is just simply better than Gibson. He'll dominate him down low and have a big series here.
Advantage: Pistons
Center
Jermaine O'Neal vs. Greg Oden
Maybe ten years ago this could have been a good matchup. Now, O'Neal is just old and washed up. He can still hit a short jumper, grab a couple boards, and perhaps block a couple shots, but he's not starting center material anymore.
Oden, on the other hand, will use his post moves to dominate inside. He'll make his presence known defensively down low, and he'll pull down boards. He's stepped his game up now to averaging 18/11/3, and O'Neal will not slow him down.
Advantage: Pistons
Bench
Damion James, Udonis Haslem and Michael Beasley provide some scoring punch off the bench, and Haslem also brings defense, toughness and rebounding. All three of these guys could possibly start for other teams, which says a lot about their bench.
Derrick Williams and Ben Gordon continued their strong play, even when thrust into a starting role. Jonas Jerebko has kept up his solid play, and Carlos Arroyo has shown that he is no slouch either, with a cool 13 A/TO ratio.Joel Przybilla just keeps on doing the tough physical work down low.
Advantage: Pistons
Final Thoughts
The Heat have just been Wade's team, and Wade has been absolutely dominant. The role players are doing their job, but Wade has to do everything to get this team going in the first place. The Pistons are a team made of players who can create for themselves and any one of them can get hot at any time. The Heat have met their match here.
Prediction: Pistons in 4
Wow, a sweep? I don't know about that. Wade is definitely top 5 in the NBA and anytime you go up against a talent like that, he has the capability of completely turning the tide of a series.
Game One
Tiago Splitter was definitely limited by his knee injury, only scoring 7 points, but Williams steps up big with 14 and 10. Turner scores 20 points, Walker 17 and Oden 12, but Wade gets 25 points. Luckily it was on 8/24 shooting, which played a huge part in this game. It came down to the wire, but at the end of the game, we were the ones with the lead.
Heat 91 Pistons 96
Game Two
Man, like I said, anytime you have a game-changing talent like Wade, it can definitely cause havoc for the other team. Wade went off, scoring 41 points on 14/25 shooting, and his teammates shot well too. However, game-changing talent can be on both teams, and today it was the Turner/Oden show. Oden destroyed O'Neal, scoring 37 points and blocking 5 shots, and Turner added 32 points and 7 assists. In all, they combined for 69 points on 27/40 shooting.
Heat 113 Pistons 128
Game Three
Holding Wade to 3/15 shooting is huge. Letting him go 17/22 at the FT line and letting Bell/Miller combine for 35 points is unacceptable though. Turner and Splitter have pretty solid games with 39 combined points, but in the end, it just wasn't enough.
Pistons 91 Heat 100
Game Four
Well, just because we can't sweep them doesn't mean we can't still take this series! Yeah being on the road is tough and all but so far this post-season we've only lost two road games, and I'm positive our team can keep it that way! There were no real individual standouts this game, even Wade was playing with the Heat in more of a team concept. However, as noted earlier by SLAM, our team is better than their team. And it showed today. They shot 38% to our 44%, which ended up being the difference.
Pistons 97 Heat 82
Game Five
Wade realized in Game 4 that if he wanted to go to the NBA Finals, he needed to take over and be dominant, and he went out in this game trying to do that. The operative word there being "trying." Turner frustrated him into shooting 9/22 and the rest of our team played tough defense as well. Offensively again it was a very balanced effort and we pretty easily took this one.
Heat 82 Pistons 96
Man this is crazy. Second season, one year removed from the worst record in the NBA, the top lottery slot, and a 21-61 record, and now we're in the NBA Finals. We're going up against the New Orleans Hornets, who dismantled the Lakers in five games.
Here's SLAM's preview.
Point Guard
Raja Bell vs. Kemba Walker
Bell is by no means a point guard, and he doesn't really try to be one. He just brings the ball up long enough to get the ball in Wade's hands and then spot up. He defends the other teams point, so that Wade doesn't have to chase him around, which makes him a bit more valuable.
Walker will be able to take entire plays off defensively, which will give him more energy to attack on the offensive end, however, Bell is good enough defensively to slow down Walker. If Walker can just continue his solid production from the first series, the Pistons will be fine.
Advantage: Pistons
Shooting Guard
Dwyane Wade vs. Evan Turner
Wade is a beast at the SG slot. He attacks the basket every trip down and is one of the premier talents in the NBA. He'll give Evan Turner fits both offensively and defensively. If Wade has any weakness here, it's that he's only 6'4".
Turner has really stepped up this postseason, and although he'll face his toughest challenge yet with Wade, he's got the height advantage to just pull up over Wade. Turner will exert a lot of energy defensively, so we'll see how he can handle being a two-way player.
Advantage: Draw
Small Forward
Mike Miller vs. Shane Battier
Miller the Killer may be one of the best shooters in the NBA today. So far in the playoffs he's shooting 43% from 3, a deadly number. Miller will most likely just spot up and wait for his defender to help off on Wade, and then nail a 3.
The Pistons would be smart to put Battier on Wade and Turner on Miller, so that Battier can use his defensive prowess to slow Wade and allow Turner to save his legs for offense. Either way, Battier's defense and shot will certainly come in handy this round.
Advantage: Draw
Power Forward
Taj Gibson vs. Tiago Splitter
Gibson has become a versatile talent, averaging 10 points, 7 boards, and a block and a steal per game. He's a little undersized at the four spot, but he definitely is talented. He wants revenge against his old team here.
Splitter might be affected a little by his knee, but against Gibson, it won't show. Splitter is just simply better than Gibson. He'll dominate him down low and have a big series here.
Advantage: Pistons
Center
Jermaine O'Neal vs. Greg Oden
Maybe ten years ago this could have been a good matchup. Now, O'Neal is just old and washed up. He can still hit a short jumper, grab a couple boards, and perhaps block a couple shots, but he's not starting center material anymore.
Oden, on the other hand, will use his post moves to dominate inside. He'll make his presence known defensively down low, and he'll pull down boards. He's stepped his game up now to averaging 18/11/3, and O'Neal will not slow him down.
Advantage: Pistons
Bench
Damion James, Udonis Haslem and Michael Beasley provide some scoring punch off the bench, and Haslem also brings defense, toughness and rebounding. All three of these guys could possibly start for other teams, which says a lot about their bench.
Derrick Williams and Ben Gordon continued their strong play, even when thrust into a starting role. Jonas Jerebko has kept up his solid play, and Carlos Arroyo has shown that he is no slouch either, with a cool 13 A/TO ratio.Joel Przybilla just keeps on doing the tough physical work down low.
Advantage: Pistons
Final Thoughts
The Heat have just been Wade's team, and Wade has been absolutely dominant. The role players are doing their job, but Wade has to do everything to get this team going in the first place. The Pistons are a team made of players who can create for themselves and any one of them can get hot at any time. The Heat have met their match here.
Prediction: Pistons in 4
Wow, a sweep? I don't know about that. Wade is definitely top 5 in the NBA and anytime you go up against a talent like that, he has the capability of completely turning the tide of a series.
Game One
Tiago Splitter was definitely limited by his knee injury, only scoring 7 points, but Williams steps up big with 14 and 10. Turner scores 20 points, Walker 17 and Oden 12, but Wade gets 25 points. Luckily it was on 8/24 shooting, which played a huge part in this game. It came down to the wire, but at the end of the game, we were the ones with the lead.
Heat 91 Pistons 96
Game Two
Man, like I said, anytime you have a game-changing talent like Wade, it can definitely cause havoc for the other team. Wade went off, scoring 41 points on 14/25 shooting, and his teammates shot well too. However, game-changing talent can be on both teams, and today it was the Turner/Oden show. Oden destroyed O'Neal, scoring 37 points and blocking 5 shots, and Turner added 32 points and 7 assists. In all, they combined for 69 points on 27/40 shooting.
Heat 113 Pistons 128
Game Three
Holding Wade to 3/15 shooting is huge. Letting him go 17/22 at the FT line and letting Bell/Miller combine for 35 points is unacceptable though. Turner and Splitter have pretty solid games with 39 combined points, but in the end, it just wasn't enough.
Pistons 91 Heat 100
Game Four
Well, just because we can't sweep them doesn't mean we can't still take this series! Yeah being on the road is tough and all but so far this post-season we've only lost two road games, and I'm positive our team can keep it that way! There were no real individual standouts this game, even Wade was playing with the Heat in more of a team concept. However, as noted earlier by SLAM, our team is better than their team. And it showed today. They shot 38% to our 44%, which ended up being the difference.
Pistons 97 Heat 82
Game Five
Wade realized in Game 4 that if he wanted to go to the NBA Finals, he needed to take over and be dominant, and he went out in this game trying to do that. The operative word there being "trying." Turner frustrated him into shooting 9/22 and the rest of our team played tough defense as well. Offensively again it was a very balanced effort and we pretty easily took this one.
Heat 82 Pistons 96
Man this is crazy. Second season, one year removed from the worst record in the NBA, the top lottery slot, and a 21-61 record, and now we're in the NBA Finals. We're going up against the New Orleans Hornets, who dismantled the Lakers in five games.
- Myles Nelson
- Posts: 989
- Joined: Sat Jan 30, 2010 3:43 pm
by Myles Nelson » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:46 pm
The NBA Finals. Wow. I knew we were good. But I was expecting our experience to hold us back in the playoffs or something. Rudy T and Shane Battier have really played a role in the maturing of this team. That being said, we face a formidable foe in the New Orleans Hornets. For the first time this playoff, we do not have homecourt advantage.
Here's SLAM's preview.
Point Guard
Chris Paul vs. Kemba Walker
Paul is the best PG in the NBA. The guy does it all, he scores (22 ppg) he passes (9.3 apg) and he plays defense (2.3 spg). He is an incredible talent, and has even stepped his game up for the playoffs. The guy has an 11 A/TO ratio. That's insane.
Walker has certainly played big this postseason. He's stepped up his averages to 13 points per game and 8 assists per game. His defense has been acceptable, but you can throw all this out the window against Chris Paul. If Walker doesn't become a turnover machine then the Pistons will be happy.
Advantage: Hornets
Shooting Guard
Terrence Williams vs. Evan Turner
Originally this was Darren Collison, as the Hornets liked to use a two PG backcourt. However, he broke his finger in the WCF against the Lakers, which is huge for us. Williams is no slouch, averaging 11 ppg off the bench. The big thing though, is that means they don't have a 6th man.
Turner has officially wrote himself into Detroit lore just for having the postseason he's having so far, averaging 20 points and 6 assists from the SG spot. He's playing like a superstar, and he certainly has been the Pistons' superstar.
Advantage: Pistons
Small Forward
Josh Childress vs. Shane Battier
Childress may be one of the most athletic wings in the NBA, and he's definitely benefiting from playing with Chris Paul. He's been cutting to the basket and getting easy buckets, but has also hit the 3 when the defense has sagged on him. He's been the surprise this season for the Hornets.
The Pistons do have a bit of a counter for Childress, with defensive stalwart Battier. While Battier may not have the athleticism of Childress, he certainly has the defensive fundamentals and ability to keep Childress in check.
Advantage: Draw
Power Forward
Carlos Boozer vs. Tiago Splitter
Boozer is an all-star. So far this postseason he's been averaging 22 points and 9 rebounds, some pretty gaudy numbers. Boozer is a great talent and has been a good #2 in this offense. He and Paul run a wicked pick and roll combo.
Splitter is back at full strength, but even that isn't good enough to match up with Boozer. Splitter will hold his own against Boozer, but he won't be the game-changing impact that Boozer is. Luckily, he doesn't need to be. He just needs to be a solid and efficient #3.
Advantage: Hornets
Center
Emeka Okafor vs. Greg Oden
Okafor is a monster down low, gobbling up rebounds and playing great defense. He goes to work in the post, and is not afraid of playing physically. He'll use this to his advantage as he tries to contain Oden.
Oden has faced players like Okafor before, and taken them on headstrong. He dominated Kendrick Perkins in the Celtics series, and is going to try and do the same here.
Advantage: Pistons
Bench
Spencer Hawes and Linas Kleiza are the only guys who get steady minutes off the bench, as no one else has even played in every game. Hawes is a solid big man with good offensive talents, and Kleiza is a decent spot up shooter. That's about it off the bench though, as the Hornets have no depth.
The Pistons, on the other hand, run 10 deep. Derrick Williams and Ben Gordon could start for some teams, and have been quite the offensive tag team off the bench. Jonas Jerebko has stayed efficient, and Carlos Arroyo continues his great ball-control with only 0.2 turnovers per game..Joel Przybilla is the grunt down low and does his job well.
Advantage: Pistons
Final Thoughts
Neither one of these teams have been to the finals before, but that doesn't mean they are without veteran presence. Okafor, Boozer and Paul have all been on winning teams and are composed players, while Battier and Ben Gordon try to do the same in Detroit. While Detroit may be the deeper team, the combination of Paul and Boozer will be too much for these Pistons to handle.
Prediction: Hornets in 5
Just being in the Finals is a huge privilege and says a lot about our team. With that said, we came here to win! We're hungry!
Game One
As expected, Chris Paul has a great game and torments Walker. He goes off for 22/13 and 4 steals, and Williams steps up as a starter and drops 26 points. Luckily, we keep it contained to those two guys, and get 3 20 point scorers of our own (Oden, Splitter, Battier) and get more off of our bench to take Game One in a HUGE fashion!
Pistons 111 Hornets 97
Game Two
Boozer didn't take kindly to being shut down in Game One and decided to remedy that here in Game Two. He went off for 27 points, and CP3 upped his game to put in 25/13 this time. We couldn't match their star power, and dropped this one on the road.
Pistons 89 Hornets 104
Game Three
We have three games at home now and I can't stress how important they are. We absolutely need to take these games. Like SLAM predicted, we couldn't contain CP3 and Boozer, as they dominated for a combined 55 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds. However, no one else scores in double digits, and a 32 point performance from Evan Turner plus a lot of depth help us pull one out at home.
Hornets 95 Pistons 110
Game Four
Jerebko sprained his ankle in Game Three and won't be available for the rest of the series. Korver will have to step up in his absence, as well as Battier and Ben Gordon. Battier and Turner do their parts, dropping 43 points combined, 26 from Turner. CP3 gets 30 points, but Kemba attacks the basket hard and fouls out CP3 midway through the 4th. The Hornets can't recover from that, and fall in this game as well!
Hornets 105 Pistons 115
Game Five
We're one game away from being NBA Champions. That's just so crazy to say. If we win this game, we'll be NBA Champs in our home town just like 2004. Although I'm a Laker fan, I still have respect for the Pistons organization, especially now that I work in it. Chris Paul and Terrence Williams were frustrated from the get-go, finishing 9/34 from the field, and we BLOW OUT THE HORNETS!! This game was never close, and we just showed the whole world that we are CHAMPIONS!
Hornets 85 Pistons 106
We named Evan Turner our MVP of the Finals for his great efforts in the three home games, averaging 26.3 ppg. He just went out and killed it.
NBA CHAMPIONS! What a great feeling.
Here's SLAM's preview.
Point Guard
Chris Paul vs. Kemba Walker
Paul is the best PG in the NBA. The guy does it all, he scores (22 ppg) he passes (9.3 apg) and he plays defense (2.3 spg). He is an incredible talent, and has even stepped his game up for the playoffs. The guy has an 11 A/TO ratio. That's insane.
Walker has certainly played big this postseason. He's stepped up his averages to 13 points per game and 8 assists per game. His defense has been acceptable, but you can throw all this out the window against Chris Paul. If Walker doesn't become a turnover machine then the Pistons will be happy.
Advantage: Hornets
Shooting Guard
Terrence Williams vs. Evan Turner
Originally this was Darren Collison, as the Hornets liked to use a two PG backcourt. However, he broke his finger in the WCF against the Lakers, which is huge for us. Williams is no slouch, averaging 11 ppg off the bench. The big thing though, is that means they don't have a 6th man.
Turner has officially wrote himself into Detroit lore just for having the postseason he's having so far, averaging 20 points and 6 assists from the SG spot. He's playing like a superstar, and he certainly has been the Pistons' superstar.
Advantage: Pistons
Small Forward
Josh Childress vs. Shane Battier
Childress may be one of the most athletic wings in the NBA, and he's definitely benefiting from playing with Chris Paul. He's been cutting to the basket and getting easy buckets, but has also hit the 3 when the defense has sagged on him. He's been the surprise this season for the Hornets.
The Pistons do have a bit of a counter for Childress, with defensive stalwart Battier. While Battier may not have the athleticism of Childress, he certainly has the defensive fundamentals and ability to keep Childress in check.
Advantage: Draw
Power Forward
Carlos Boozer vs. Tiago Splitter
Boozer is an all-star. So far this postseason he's been averaging 22 points and 9 rebounds, some pretty gaudy numbers. Boozer is a great talent and has been a good #2 in this offense. He and Paul run a wicked pick and roll combo.
Splitter is back at full strength, but even that isn't good enough to match up with Boozer. Splitter will hold his own against Boozer, but he won't be the game-changing impact that Boozer is. Luckily, he doesn't need to be. He just needs to be a solid and efficient #3.
Advantage: Hornets
Center
Emeka Okafor vs. Greg Oden
Okafor is a monster down low, gobbling up rebounds and playing great defense. He goes to work in the post, and is not afraid of playing physically. He'll use this to his advantage as he tries to contain Oden.
Oden has faced players like Okafor before, and taken them on headstrong. He dominated Kendrick Perkins in the Celtics series, and is going to try and do the same here.
Advantage: Pistons
Bench
Spencer Hawes and Linas Kleiza are the only guys who get steady minutes off the bench, as no one else has even played in every game. Hawes is a solid big man with good offensive talents, and Kleiza is a decent spot up shooter. That's about it off the bench though, as the Hornets have no depth.
The Pistons, on the other hand, run 10 deep. Derrick Williams and Ben Gordon could start for some teams, and have been quite the offensive tag team off the bench. Jonas Jerebko has stayed efficient, and Carlos Arroyo continues his great ball-control with only 0.2 turnovers per game..Joel Przybilla is the grunt down low and does his job well.
Advantage: Pistons
Final Thoughts
Neither one of these teams have been to the finals before, but that doesn't mean they are without veteran presence. Okafor, Boozer and Paul have all been on winning teams and are composed players, while Battier and Ben Gordon try to do the same in Detroit. While Detroit may be the deeper team, the combination of Paul and Boozer will be too much for these Pistons to handle.
Prediction: Hornets in 5
Just being in the Finals is a huge privilege and says a lot about our team. With that said, we came here to win! We're hungry!
Game One
As expected, Chris Paul has a great game and torments Walker. He goes off for 22/13 and 4 steals, and Williams steps up as a starter and drops 26 points. Luckily, we keep it contained to those two guys, and get 3 20 point scorers of our own (Oden, Splitter, Battier) and get more off of our bench to take Game One in a HUGE fashion!
Pistons 111 Hornets 97
Game Two
Boozer didn't take kindly to being shut down in Game One and decided to remedy that here in Game Two. He went off for 27 points, and CP3 upped his game to put in 25/13 this time. We couldn't match their star power, and dropped this one on the road.
Pistons 89 Hornets 104
Game Three
We have three games at home now and I can't stress how important they are. We absolutely need to take these games. Like SLAM predicted, we couldn't contain CP3 and Boozer, as they dominated for a combined 55 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds. However, no one else scores in double digits, and a 32 point performance from Evan Turner plus a lot of depth help us pull one out at home.
Hornets 95 Pistons 110
Game Four
Jerebko sprained his ankle in Game Three and won't be available for the rest of the series. Korver will have to step up in his absence, as well as Battier and Ben Gordon. Battier and Turner do their parts, dropping 43 points combined, 26 from Turner. CP3 gets 30 points, but Kemba attacks the basket hard and fouls out CP3 midway through the 4th. The Hornets can't recover from that, and fall in this game as well!
Hornets 105 Pistons 115
Game Five
We're one game away from being NBA Champions. That's just so crazy to say. If we win this game, we'll be NBA Champs in our home town just like 2004. Although I'm a Laker fan, I still have respect for the Pistons organization, especially now that I work in it. Chris Paul and Terrence Williams were frustrated from the get-go, finishing 9/34 from the field, and we BLOW OUT THE HORNETS!! This game was never close, and we just showed the whole world that we are CHAMPIONS!
Hornets 85 Pistons 106
We named Evan Turner our MVP of the Finals for his great efforts in the three home games, averaging 26.3 ppg. He just went out and killed it.
NBA CHAMPIONS! What a great feeling.
- Myles Nelson
- Posts: 989
- Joined: Sat Jan 30, 2010 3:43 pm
by Myles Nelson » Sat Mar 03, 2012 11:36 am
K.J. wrote:Congrats! In addition, it was an excellent read.
Was? This is still going!
- Myles Nelson
- Posts: 989
- Joined: Sat Jan 30, 2010 3:43 pm
by Myles Nelson » Sat Mar 03, 2012 5:04 pm
We don't any picks in the lottery this year, so it's time to just sit back, relax and watch the show.
Milwaukee shoots up 8 spots from 11 to 3, but the Raptors were the ones who won the prize of the #1 pick.
14. Washington (0)
13. Utah (0)
12. Philadelphia (0)
11. Charlotte (-1)
10. San Antonio (-1)
9. Cleveland (-1)
8. Minnesota (-1)
7. Phoenix (-1)
6. Oklahoma City (-1)
5. Houston (-1)
4. Atlanta (-2)
3. Milwaukee (+8)
2. Memphis (-1)
1. Toronto (+2)
2011 NBA Awards
MVP
Dwight Howard - ORL - 24.5 ppg 1.5 apg 15.3 rpg 0.9 spg 4.1 bpg
Defensive Player of the Year
Dwight Howard - ORL
Sixth Man of the Year
David West - IND - 12.2 ppg 1.7 apg 5.7 rpg 0.9 spg 0.6 bpg
Rookie of the Year
John Henson - WAS - 12.7 ppg 0.9 apg 6.8 rpg 0.6 spg 1.8 bpg
Coach of the Year
Phil Jackson - LAL - 56-26
All-NBA First Team
Chris Paul - NOH - 22 ppg 9.9 apg 3.7 rpg 2.3 spg
Evan Turner - DET - 19.7 ppg 6.0 apg 4.9 rpg 1.4 spg
Kevin Durant - OKC - 28.3 ppg 2.8 apg 7.9 rpg 1.0 spg 0.7 bpg
Pau Gasol - LAL - 16.7 ppg 3.2 apg 9.9 rpg 0.9 spg 3.0 bpg
Dwight Howard - ORL
All NBA Second Team
Deron Williams - UTA - 21.7 ppg 8.6 apg 3.8 rpg 1.1 spg 0.1 bpg
Joe Johnson - NYK - 20.0 ppg 7.0 apg 4.3 rpg 1.2 spg 0.1 bpg
LeBron James - NJ - 24.2 ppg 5.5 apg 6.0 rpg 1.5 spg 1.1 bpg
Dirk Nowitzki - DAL - 25.5 ppg 2.7 apg 8.9 rpg 1.0 spg 1.3 bpg
Amare Stoudemire - NYK - 18.6 ppg 2.1 apg 11.3 rpg 0.8 spg 1.2 bpg
All NBA Third Team
Stephen Curry - GSW - 19.2 ppg 8.2 apg 3.5 rpg 1.5 spg 0.2 bpg
Monta Ellis - GSW - 26.5 ppg 3.8 apg 4.4 rpg 2.0 spg 0.3 bpg
Carmelo Anthony - DEN - 26.1 ppg 2.6 apg 6.4 rpg 1.6 spg 0.5 bpg
Blake Griffin - LAC - 17.4 ppg 2.1 apg 9.2 rpg 1.3 spg 1.6 bpg
Yao Ming - HOU - 14.7 ppg 1.8 apg 11.4 rpg 0.9 spg 2.4 bpg
All Defense First Team
Chris Paul - NOH
Courtney Lee - NJ - 10.9 ppg 1.6 apg 3.2 rpg 1.7 spg 0.1 bpg
Gerald Wallace - CHA - 16.6 ppg 2.4 apg 7.0 rpg 1.8 spg 1.3 bpg
Josh Smith - ATL - 13.8 ppg 3.3 apg 8.1 rpg 1.5 spg 2.6 bpg
Dwight Howard - ORL
All-Defense Second Team
Rajon Rondo - BOS - 14.7 ppg 9.2 apg 4.2 rpg 1.5 spg 0.0 bpg
Kobe Bryant - LAL - 22.3 ppg 5.9 apg 4.1 rpg 1.5 spg 0.2 bpg
Danny Granger - IND - 25.6 ppg 2.4 apg 4.8 rpg 2.1 spg 1.0 bpg
Pau Gasol - LAL
Andrew Bogut - MIL - 16.2 ppg 1.7 apg 11.1 rpg 0.9 spg 3.3 bpg
All Rookie First Team
Kyrie Irving - MIN - 13.1 ppg 5.1 apg 2.3 rpg 0.9 spg 0.2 bpg
Josh Selby - ATL - 10.0 ppg 1.6 apg 1.6 rpg 1.0 spg 0.2 bpg
Terrence Jones - PHX - 10.6 ppg 2.1 apg 4.1 rpg 1.3 spg 1.6 bpg
John Henson - WAS
Jonas Valanciunas - TOR - 9.6 ppg 1.6 apg 9.1 rpg 0.8 spg 1.1 bpg
All Rookie Second Team
Kemba Walker - DET - 11.4 ppg 5.5 apg 2.0 rpg 0.8 spg 0.2 bpg
Alec Burks - DEN - 6.2 ppg 1.7 apg 1.5 rpg 0.8 spg 0.1 bpg
Kyle Singler - SA - 7.8 ppg 1.0 apg 4.7 rpg 0.8 spg 0.3 bpg
Perry Jones - CHA - 10.1 ppg 1.4 apg 5.6 rpg 0.9 spg 1.2 bpg
Enes Kanter - GSW - 7.9 ppg 1.3 apg 6.3 rpg 0.7 spg 0.9 bpg
Milwaukee shoots up 8 spots from 11 to 3, but the Raptors were the ones who won the prize of the #1 pick.
14. Washington (0)
13. Utah (0)
12. Philadelphia (0)
11. Charlotte (-1)
10. San Antonio (-1)
9. Cleveland (-1)
8. Minnesota (-1)
7. Phoenix (-1)
6. Oklahoma City (-1)
5. Houston (-1)
4. Atlanta (-2)
3. Milwaukee (+8)
2. Memphis (-1)
1. Toronto (+2)
2011 NBA Awards
MVP
Dwight Howard - ORL - 24.5 ppg 1.5 apg 15.3 rpg 0.9 spg 4.1 bpg
Defensive Player of the Year
Dwight Howard - ORL
Sixth Man of the Year
David West - IND - 12.2 ppg 1.7 apg 5.7 rpg 0.9 spg 0.6 bpg
Rookie of the Year
John Henson - WAS - 12.7 ppg 0.9 apg 6.8 rpg 0.6 spg 1.8 bpg
Coach of the Year
Phil Jackson - LAL - 56-26
All-NBA First Team
Chris Paul - NOH - 22 ppg 9.9 apg 3.7 rpg 2.3 spg
Evan Turner - DET - 19.7 ppg 6.0 apg 4.9 rpg 1.4 spg
Kevin Durant - OKC - 28.3 ppg 2.8 apg 7.9 rpg 1.0 spg 0.7 bpg
Pau Gasol - LAL - 16.7 ppg 3.2 apg 9.9 rpg 0.9 spg 3.0 bpg
Dwight Howard - ORL
All NBA Second Team
Deron Williams - UTA - 21.7 ppg 8.6 apg 3.8 rpg 1.1 spg 0.1 bpg
Joe Johnson - NYK - 20.0 ppg 7.0 apg 4.3 rpg 1.2 spg 0.1 bpg
LeBron James - NJ - 24.2 ppg 5.5 apg 6.0 rpg 1.5 spg 1.1 bpg
Dirk Nowitzki - DAL - 25.5 ppg 2.7 apg 8.9 rpg 1.0 spg 1.3 bpg
Amare Stoudemire - NYK - 18.6 ppg 2.1 apg 11.3 rpg 0.8 spg 1.2 bpg
All NBA Third Team
Stephen Curry - GSW - 19.2 ppg 8.2 apg 3.5 rpg 1.5 spg 0.2 bpg
Monta Ellis - GSW - 26.5 ppg 3.8 apg 4.4 rpg 2.0 spg 0.3 bpg
Carmelo Anthony - DEN - 26.1 ppg 2.6 apg 6.4 rpg 1.6 spg 0.5 bpg
Blake Griffin - LAC - 17.4 ppg 2.1 apg 9.2 rpg 1.3 spg 1.6 bpg
Yao Ming - HOU - 14.7 ppg 1.8 apg 11.4 rpg 0.9 spg 2.4 bpg
All Defense First Team
Chris Paul - NOH
Courtney Lee - NJ - 10.9 ppg 1.6 apg 3.2 rpg 1.7 spg 0.1 bpg
Gerald Wallace - CHA - 16.6 ppg 2.4 apg 7.0 rpg 1.8 spg 1.3 bpg
Josh Smith - ATL - 13.8 ppg 3.3 apg 8.1 rpg 1.5 spg 2.6 bpg
Dwight Howard - ORL
All-Defense Second Team
Rajon Rondo - BOS - 14.7 ppg 9.2 apg 4.2 rpg 1.5 spg 0.0 bpg
Kobe Bryant - LAL - 22.3 ppg 5.9 apg 4.1 rpg 1.5 spg 0.2 bpg
Danny Granger - IND - 25.6 ppg 2.4 apg 4.8 rpg 2.1 spg 1.0 bpg
Pau Gasol - LAL
Andrew Bogut - MIL - 16.2 ppg 1.7 apg 11.1 rpg 0.9 spg 3.3 bpg
All Rookie First Team
Kyrie Irving - MIN - 13.1 ppg 5.1 apg 2.3 rpg 0.9 spg 0.2 bpg
Josh Selby - ATL - 10.0 ppg 1.6 apg 1.6 rpg 1.0 spg 0.2 bpg
Terrence Jones - PHX - 10.6 ppg 2.1 apg 4.1 rpg 1.3 spg 1.6 bpg
John Henson - WAS
Jonas Valanciunas - TOR - 9.6 ppg 1.6 apg 9.1 rpg 0.8 spg 1.1 bpg
All Rookie Second Team
Kemba Walker - DET - 11.4 ppg 5.5 apg 2.0 rpg 0.8 spg 0.2 bpg
Alec Burks - DEN - 6.2 ppg 1.7 apg 1.5 rpg 0.8 spg 0.1 bpg
Kyle Singler - SA - 7.8 ppg 1.0 apg 4.7 rpg 0.8 spg 0.3 bpg
Perry Jones - CHA - 10.1 ppg 1.4 apg 5.6 rpg 0.9 spg 1.2 bpg
Enes Kanter - GSW - 7.9 ppg 1.3 apg 6.3 rpg 0.7 spg 0.9 bpg
- Myles Nelson
- Posts: 989
- Joined: Sat Jan 30, 2010 3:43 pm
by zike_42 » Mon Mar 05, 2012 8:03 pm
Congrats on Turner making All First team, but it's going to be hard to go back to back so good luck.
New PB4 dynasty, and it's multiplayer!
http://www.wolverinestudios.com/forum/s ... hp?t=20116
http://www.wolverinestudios.com/forum/s ... hp?t=20116
- zike_42
- Elite Member
- Posts: 1096
- Joined: Mon Feb 05, 2007 4:52 am
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