The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

[Court_vision]

Fair or not, there was a general feeling last year that the Pistons got a bit lucky winning the championship.

In every series they played...a starter was injured / unavailable for their opposition.

For the past two years, personally, I've felt like the Pacers are the best team in the East...but Artest imploding / Jermaine O'Neal getting injured at the worst possible times, has held them back.

Nevertheless, Detroit are the world champs and deserve respect.

However, they really need to defend the East (at the very least) to stamp themselves as a genuinely great team.

The simple facts are, the Pacers had no luck again this year...AND this Miami team is not that good. Shaq and Wade apart, it's average role players.

Realistically, if the Pistons are as good as their fans say they are...then they should be winning this series.

Get game six...then win game 7 on the road and go back to the Finals = these guys deserve whatever praise comes their way and great respect.

Lose this series...and these guys go down as 'aberrational champs IMO. Just the 'right guys, right place' last year when other teams were injury hit.

The next week is huge in determining how history judges this Detroit team.

[Psyblast]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

I must've missed that memo...the "injury excuse" is a joke. The Pacers were almost at full strength last year, and they had home court advantage over the Pistons last year. If they were better, they would've won.

This Miami team is "not that good"? I missed that memo too I guess, because ANY team with Shaq and Dwyane Wade is GOOD.

The Pistons didn't "get lucky" last year, they were simply BETTER than all their opponents. And now because they may not defend their title in the Finals, they're LUCKY? Repeating as champions is one of the hardest things to do in sports, period. The Spurs haven't repeated, have they?

Lucky? Hardly.

[Kashanova]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

Any Team With Shaq Period has a chance

[poster]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

Fair or not, there was a general feeling last year that the Pistons got a bit lucky winning the championship.

In every series they played...a starter was injured / unavailable for their opposition.

For the past two years, personally, I've felt like the Pacers are the best team in the East...but Artest imploding / Jermaine O'Neal getting injured at the worst possible times, has held them back.

Nevertheless, Detroit are the world champs and deserve respect.

However, they really need to defend the East (at the very least) to stamp themselves as a genuinely great team.

The simple facts are, the Pacers had no luck again this year...AND this Miami team is not that good. Shaq and Wade apart, it's average role players.

Realistically, if the Pistons are as good as their fans say they are...then they should be winning this series.

Get game six...then win game 7 on the road and go back to the Finals = these guys deserve whatever praise comes their way and great respect.

Lose this series...and these guys go down as 'aberrational champs IMO. Just the 'right guys, right place' last year when other teams were injury hit.

The next week is huge in determining how history judges this Detroit team.

If you want to factor in injuries why dont you factor bogus *** officiating where Wade and Shaq do what they please. They won the title fair and square. Where those Spurs teams that won just one title at a time lucky? In 5 years if they have one title you might have a slight unfair arguement, it deserves time.

[Seavs]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

I really don't get the argument that the Pistons got lucky last season. Everyone loved the Lakers when the beat the Spurs, but when the Pistons beat them in the Finals, all of a sudden they were a disfunctional team.

Every team has some injuries this time of the year. Usually the teams that lose publicize them more. Off the top of my head I recall Rasheed playing with an foot injury the first three rounds of the playoffs last season, but that's not mentioned because the Pistons won.

[mgoblue]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

*puts on flame ******ant riot suit*

[Skins4Life]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

Psyblast, I disagree. tinsley wasnt even close to being healthy.

but the pacers just got beaten by a better team.

Oh, and if Wade cant play tommorrow, then the streak goes on (the one Munky is talking about..........)

[RahKhem]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

Nobody felt sorry for the Sonics that they had Radmanovic and Lewis out, and nobody cried for the Suns that they missed Joe Johnson for 2 games, and he was still injured. C'mon now, the people who are saying that the Pistons championship was a fluke are just blind haters.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

Nobody felt sorry for the Sonics that they had Radmanovic and Lewis out, and nobody cried for the Suns that they missed Joe Johnson for 2 games, and he was still injured. C'mon now, the people who are saying that the Pistons championship was a fluke are just blind haters.

I did....

[Court_vision]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

I really don't get the argument that the Pistons got lucky last season. Everyone loved the Lakers when the beat the Spurs, but when the Pistons beat them in the Finals, all of a sudden they were a disfunctional team.

.

I hated that Lakers team and was thrilled to see them lose...but facts are facts bro.

Their HOF Power Forward, the guy who basically was their MVP in the series v San Antonio and the T Wolves...went down and missed the Finals.

No team that loses it's starting PF at that stage would recover.

Look, Detroit has had a very, very fortunate run. Pacers were hurt, they only just got past the Nets last season in 7 with Kidd on one leg...they got the Lakers without a HOF starter...

If they are a great team...they should be beating Miami. Shaq is not the player he was 3 years ago and Wade missed almost the entire fourth quarter of game 5.

All season long we've heard how the Pistons have "the best starting 5 in the NBA" and their bench is deep.

No excuses...Detroit should be winning.

As I said, if they bounce back and take game 6 and win game 7 on the road...they'll be elevated.

Do I think they can bounce back? Yes.

However, if they don't...I honestly don't think history will judge them kindly if they don't defend the East.

[NINJAK2]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

I hated that Lakers team and was thrilled to see them lose...but facts are facts bro.

Their HOF Power Forward, the guy who basically was their MVP in the series v San Antonio and the T Wolves...went down and missed the Finals.

No team that loses it's starting PF at that stage would recover.

Look, Detroit has had a very, very fortunate run. Pacers were hurt, they only just got past the Nets last season in 7 with Kidd on one leg...they got the Lakers without a HOF starter...

If they are a great team...they should be beating Miami. Shaq is not the player he was 3 years ago and Wade missed almost the entire fourth quarter of game 5.

All season long we've heard how the Pistons have "the best starting 5 in the NBA" and their bench is deep.

No excuses...Detroit should be winning.

As I said, if they bounce back and take game 6 and win game 7 on the road...they'll be elevated.

Do I think they can bounce back? Yes.

However, if they don't...I honestly don't think history will judge them kindly if they don't defend the East.

With all due respect monkey, how can you say no excuses for Detroit yet you are making excuses for why the Lakers didn't get it done a year ago? If you are going to use that crutch you could possibly tarnish any team in any sport that has won a ring or made it to the championship round. Heck if the Wolves had a healthy Cassell and Hudson(a player that routinely gave the Lakers fits) maybe the Lakeshow would not have made it ? No excuses though...... Only SCOREBOARD. At some point these guys may have faced a team that was not at full strength and got over. Karl Malone is a HOF, but that year he was simply a role player and not the same Malone that dominated for over a decade in Utah. Their is also no guarantee that Malone would have an effect on the outcome though. He may have helped but you still had to deal with the ineffectiveness of Payton, Fisher, the lack of production from their bench, and the complete isolation of #8 from his teammates during that series.

Regardless of what happens this series, the Pistons will still be considered the best NBA team in 2004 and no series loss THIS YEAR will tarnish that.

[Court_vision]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

With all due respect monkey, how can you say no excuses for Detroit yet you are making excuses for why the Lakers didn't get it done a year ago? If you are going to use that crutch you could possibly tarnish any team in any sport that has won a ring or made it to the championship round. Heck if the Wolves had a healthy Cassell and Hudson(a player that routinely gave the Lakers fits) maybe the Lakeshow would not have made it ?.

The point was Ninj...the team the Pistons were playing had a starter out / injured badly in every round.

Every single round.

And again...as I think people have missed the point of this thread...I am not looking at their place in 2004. They are the world champs and rightly so.

I am looking at their place in history...and how they will be judged by history.

I doubt it will be kind if they can't defend the East.

[Court_vision]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

Well....the Pistons answered my queries in champion style.

I am glad they have...San Antonio v Detroit will be a brilliant series for purists who love hard core D.

Every play will count.

[Psyblast]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

[bkrich83]

Re: The time has come to see if Detroit are lucky, good or great...

I am no fan of the Pistons, but I think they proved they aren't lucky. I don't see how you can get to the finals two years in a row on luck.

They are a good team and the best team in the East for sure. We'll soon find out if they are the best team in the league. If they win this title, I think you can say by todays standards they are a great team.