The Pistons began their uber-tough stretch of games with a win in Washington followed by a loss at home to the Mavs. In both games, the Pistons played quite well.
They started strong against the Wiz and flirted with blowing it open in the 1st. Some poor defense and Earl Boykins allowed the Wiz back in the game. Thanks to a half-court shot by Agent Zero at the halftime buzzer, Washington was only down 8 at the half. In the third quater, the Wiz caught fire. It was one of those quarters when everything goes wrong for Detroit. The "one bad quarter" is quickly becoming the signature of the Kuester-era. Within minutes, the Pistons 8-point lead became a 10-point deficit. Heroic shooting by Will Bynum kept the Pistons within shouting distance, and, entering the 4th, they were down only 2.
Washington threatened to pull away during the 4th. The Pistons trailed by six with under five minutes to go, and I told Mrs. Thatballdontlie (in the next room, probably out of earshot, but that didn't stop me), "They're gonna lose." Then Gordon and Will Bynum took over. The Pistons finished on a 17-8 run (6pts for Bynumite and 8 for Little Ben). It was impressive, and the type of performance we've seen from Piston teams of old -- stay close on the road and then lay the hammer down in crunch time.
I was thinking after that game that Ben Gordon is truly one of the best scorers in the league - like, top 5 good. Why did the Bulls let him leave? Perhaps because of games like yesterday. In his first poor performance as a Piston, Little Ben shot a woeful 1-16 from the field. But the other guards more than made up for it.
The Mavs big man, Erick Dampier, was a late scratch, and they missed his interior defense. Stuckey took full advantage, slashing through the lane, scoring an impressive 28 on 12-20 shooting. Bynum was every bit as aggressive, scoring 27 on 11-16. But the Pistons fell prey to that "one bad quarter" yet again. In the third, the Mavs outscored the Pistons by 11, as Dirk finally heated up. At one point, the Pistons were actually up 4. Then Kidd hit a deep three. Nowitzki hit two straight jumpers, then 2 free throws. Shawn Marion then followed up a Nowitzki miss with a put-back slam. Nowitzki stole the inbound pass and fed Kris Humphries for an uncontested dunk. Boom-boom-boom and the Mavs were up 5.
The Pistons kept it close in the 4th, despite Stuckey sitting out with cramps in his calves (Stuckey said he won't miss any games). Leading the charge was rising star Will Bynum, scoring an awesome 17 points in crunch time. Leading three with less than a minute to go, the Mavs fed the ball to their main-man Nowitzki once again. With the entire Piston roster draped over him, Nowitzki still managed to sink a fade away. Bynum countered with a quick layup, and the Mavs missed their next shot. With five seconds left, the Pistons had a chance to tie it with a 3. Ben Gordon took the inbounds pass and let go an off-balance three. It actually came damn close but rimmed out. In hindsight, the Pistons had time for one more pass, since the Mavs were focusing their defense on Gordon. It would've been nice to set a play for Charlie V or Austin Daye even. With that said, Gordon regularly hits some amazing shots, but it was not his night.
Now the Pistons hit the road: @Lakers, @Portland, @Utah, @ Phoenix. It could get ugly. If this weekend is any indication, the Pistons will at least be ready for a fight. They play tough and aren't intimidated. That three guard lineup of Stuckey, BG, and Bynum is formidable. If Charlie V stays hot, the Pistons are a fairly balanced offense. The bench isn't quite providing much help of late, but that shouldn't be a surprise. The rooks are inconsistent but the extra playing time will expedite their development.
Right now, the Pistons are 5-5 and last place in the surprisingly strong Central. They've played so many games without Tay and Rip; it's easy to forget they're actually on the team. I'm not sure what impact they'll have when they return. Rip is still the Pistons' best player, but Ben Gordon is rapidly raising his value. And Tayshaun would be a huge upgrade over Jerebko on offense, but does he have the same bite on D? Rip and Tay have been Pistons forever, but they might find they have to adjust their game to fit into this new roster. That's what happens with injuries - change is inevitable.
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