http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar ... ter-sportsMichael Curry, as a rookie head coach, isn't looking to overhaul the engine in his first training camp -- which opens with Media Day today. Curry's initial mission is to clean the engine, rejuvenate it, and make sure all the parts that have powered the Pistons to six straight Eastern Conference finals appearances are working properly. By going back to the basics and making sure no detail is overlooked -- be it conditioning, commitment or execution -- Curry hopes to eliminate the breakdowns that have stalled the Pistons the last three conference finals. "Let's first understand that this group of guys has been really successful," Curry said. "There's not a lot of major things with the game of basketball that you are going to come in and teach or show them. But what you can do is hold them accountable to doing all the little things they need to do every day. When you do that, you get the best out of your guys and you don't feel at the end of the year that maybe your team underachieved."
What does Curry mean by little things? One is conditioning. Curry told his players they will be spending time with strength and conditioning coach Arnie Kander every day, either before or after practice. "We aren't going to just run guys into the ground," he said. "The vets and the heavy-minutes guys might not do as much on the court on some days, but strength and conditioning and player development is going to be a fixture. If you do it every day, then your conditioning is going to build as the season goes on and we will be sharp throughout the year." Curry is also a proponent of daily drill work. Drill stations, similar to what college and high school programs use, will be a staple of Pistons practices. No skill is too fundamental or mundane for drill work -- even for a veteran team. "We have more than 40 drills right now," said Curry, who especially loves one-on-one drills. "You have to throw different drills at these guys. They've played so much basketball that if you give them the same thing every time, they are like anybody else in any other profession -- they will get a little bored. We want to avoid that. We want to stimulate these guys to the point where they will have spent two hours on the court and not even realize it."
The younger players, especially those who played in the Summer League, have experienced the new practice regime and speak highly of it. "It's all about building consistent behavior and consistent habits all year long," Arron Afflalo said. "If you build inconsistent habits in your intensity and the way you play the game, and try to rely on your talent level to pull you through, it can hurt you in the end. I know Coach Curry focuses on playing the game hard every time so there will be no excuses come playoff time." Said Rodney Stuckey: "Things are different around the practice facility. With Coach Curry around it's more fun, the whole vibe is different. I know MC (Curry) will hold guys accountable and people are going to have to be ready to play." With 14 players on guaranteed contracts, the roster is all but set. The only non-guaranteed player in camp is former Pistons draftee Alex Acker. After two successful seasons in Europe, Acker is trying to claim the 15th spot. The Pistons, though, might keep that spot open, either for Lindsey Hunter (who isn't expected to return until well after the All-Star break) or to have flexibility to add another player later. Here are some of the main story lines that will play out over the next month:
