Rookie Challenge // Fri. 9pm on TNT

[beau]

Billups and Rip both played at least 30 minutes and they sat out the fourth quarter!

[Scrub Sura]

-= original quote snipped =-



Didn't Arizona pillage our work force? I image there are a lot of ex-Michiganians out there because they prefer having salaries to coming home smelling like fry grease.

No matter where you go outside of Michigan, there always seem to be copious amounts of Detroit sports fans. For all sports..

Well...except the Lions

It's bad enough admitting you're a fan in the state of Michigan

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar ... 50345/1127

After Amir Johnson had his wind expelled by a flagrant elbow from Shaquille O'Neal in the second quarter, a fan behind the Pistons' bench shouted, "We aren't soft anymore, Detroit." Really? The Pistons went on Sunday to hand the Shaq-hardened Suns their worst loss of the season and worst loss ever to a Pistons team -- 116-86. "This was a big game for us," said Chauncey Billups, who again won his individual matchup against two-time league MVP Steve Nash. "You know how we are, man, when we play against the elite teams, we lock in big-time. Everybody played good today, everybody."

All five starters scored in double figures, led by Rasheed Wallace. Playing against O'Neal and Amare Stoudemire (31 points), Wallace scored 22 points, hitting eight of 10 shots. "We came out after the break against Orlando, didn't play like us and we got smashed," Wallace said. "For 3 1/2 quarters in Milwaukee we played bad. We played a little better against Milwaukee at home (Friday) but we had to come out and get this trip started on the right note."

O'Neal was essentially a non-factor, although Johnson might disagree. O'Neal finished with seven points, 11 rebounds and three turnovers in 33 minutes. He blamed the bad performance on the matinee start. "Just one of those days," he said. "Nobody likes 12:30 (Mountain) starting times."

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar ... 50358/1127

Amir Johnson was flying down the right wing. Chauncey Billups fed him the ball. "I looked up and I saw Shaq and went, 'Oh no,' " said Billups, who knew immediately that he put his teammate in harm's way. As Johnson got to the rim, he got the blunt force of Shaquille O'Neal 's elbow square in the chest. "Knocked the wind out of me," said Johnson, who converted one of the two free throws on the flagrant foul. "Now I know what the vets were talking about. Shaq is strong."

The vets, particularly Rasheed Wallace , enjoyed Johnson's initiation to the world of O'Neal. "We've been telling him the last few years, but he took it for granted," Wallace said. "We told him, 'Look, that's a big guy down there and he's strong.' Then when he slung Amir around, Amir was like, 'Man, he's strong. Y'all was right.' "

Johnson didn't back off, though. He tied O'Neal up and forced a jump ball on a subsequent possession. "Shaq said, 'Sorry about that, young fella,' " said Johnson, who had five points, five rebounds and two blocks. "I just said, 'No problem. I'm all right.' I can take the beating; might as well get it when I am young."

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar ... 50358/1127

Do you know when Grant Hill knew that coming back to finish his career in Detroit would not be in his best interest? It was during the playoffs last spring when the Pistons were sweeping free-agent-to-be Hill's Orlando team. "It would have been hard to go back and not be the same (player)," said Hill, who signed instead with the Suns. "I realized that during the playoffs. It was hard to play there. I used to play so well in that building (The Palace) and I was just average -- that was tough."

Hill averaged 21.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.3 assists in six seasons with the Pistons, before a series of foot and ankle injuries robbed him of the better part of three seasons. "It would have worked," Hill said of coming back to the Pistons. "It would have been an interesting situation, having things come full circle like that. But I came to the conclusion that I'd rather keep my memories of being a Piston. It happened when I was a pre-injured player and I was back in my prime. "You know, the hard thing for me is always comparing yourself to where you were. I struggle with that even now. Putting that old jersey back on in Detroit would have been a lot harder to deal with."

The other part of Hill's decision, though, was all that the Suns offered -- a starting spot on a contending team, a chance to play in a wide-open system in a warm climate. "The situation here was great," he said. "Everything checked off. The good thing was, I had those decisions. Both teams were contenders and both teams were interested in me. It wasn't like seven years ago (before he was signed and traded to Orlando) but I was still wanted." Hill had a rough game Sunday, going scoreless and missing all six of his shots.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar ... 50354/1127

The Pistons, to a man, readily say they're not in this for the attention. It doesn't matter what the pundits say -- or don't say -- about their chances chasing another NBA title. To paraphrase Chauncey Billups, the Pistons do what they do, no matter who's watching. For the most part this season, the Pistons have flown under the national radar. But they may have spectacularly blown their own cover Sunday, thanks to a 116-86 national TV destruction of the Suns in Phoenix.

"I love the Detroit Pistons, they're still the best team in the East to me," said former NBA coach Jeff Van Gundy, who now is a game analyst for ESPN on ABC. "They play smart, unselfish, they've gotten stronger on the bench. When it comes down to it, I see the Pistons taking on the Celtics for the Eastern Conference finals. And that will be a battle.

"The Pistons have the advantage because of all their experience -- they're battle-tested. That's also going to serve them well against whoever makes it out of the West. That one I can't predict -- pick one."

[nasty daddy]

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti ... 50365/1051

The result was a monster blowout -- a 116-86 victory for the Pistons, the biggest loss of the season for the Suns, and the most lopsided win for Detroit in the all-time series.

The Pistons led by 11 after one quarter and by 18 at halftime. Later, they pushed the lead to 36.

Billups played smart, with 14 points and 11 assists, steering the offense to the post as much as he could to combat the Suns' potent fast-break offense. It worked, too -- the Suns had only 10 fast-break points.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti ... 25007/1051

Pistons point guard Chauncey Billups had a comically large knot on his head after Amare Stoudemire daggered him with an elbow in the third quarter. "I felt it growing," Billups said. "I felt like a cartoon, man. I kept touching it and just hoped it wasn't open so I'd need stitches."

Billups kept ice on it during time-outs and said he didn't have a headache, although he could see one coming by today.

NOTEBOOK: The Pistons extended the NBA's longest winning streak for an opponent in US Airways Center. Sunday's victory was the team's third in a row. ... They have beaten every team with a winning record except Denver and Utah, their next two opponents.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti ... 50362/1051

Last summer, when former Piston Grant Hill became an unrestricted free agent, there were two possible destinations on his mind -- Phoenix and Detroit. He ended up picking the Suns, and who could blame him? He'd be running alongside two-time MVP Steve Nash, he'd be starting, he'd have a chance to compete for a title, and he'd bask in the warm weather and sunshine.

But the thing that really kept Hill away from the Pistons, he said before Sunday's loss to Detroit, was none of the above. It was his past. "I thought about it," Hill said. "I guess I concluded that it would have worked and it would have been an interesting situation -- sort of coming full circle. But I think I'd rather just (have) my memories of being a Piston, which happened back pre-injury, in my prime." Those memories are powerful for Hill. They represent his most productive years, when he was often referred to as the next great player, the next Michael Jordan. Since then, after his traumatic ankle injuries, Hill has had to become a different player. And he said he doesn't need any help reminding him of those differences.

"One of the hard things is always comparing yourself to where you were, and I struggle with that now," Hill said. "To put the old jersey back on, it would have been a lot harder to deal with." That's not to say he didn't have some discussions with Pistons president Joe Dumars. He did. But in the end, Phoenix offered too much, including that chance to start over in a place without any ghosts roaming the hallways. "The situation here was great in terms of what I was looking for -- everything sort of checked off," Hill said. "I think the situation with Detroit was sort of hard -- to go back there not the same. That would have been difficult. I realized that during the playoffs. It was hard when we played up there, like, 'Man, I'm used to playing well in this building. Now I'm just average here. That's not good.' "The good thing was, I had those type of decisions. The way I looked at it was both teams are contenders, both teams were interested, and I was like, hey, to be in that situation, it wasn't quite like it was seven years ago, but it was good to be wanted."

[Phobo_Phile]

What a great win.

Did anyone else hear when Mark Jackson said that Chauncey was better then him? That's really saying something