Yes, I understand it's a little late to be talking about the start of the NBA season. If I wrote this after the season opener for the Pistons, it would be a very optimistic, happy blog about our win against the Grizzlies. After that, we've had two consecutive losses. It's definitely too early to tell what to expect from the Pistons, but I would like to put my two cents in.
Coach Kuester is doing an exponentially better job than Michael Curry did all of last season. It was clear that Detroit's defense needed some work and that's what Kuester has been emphasizing ever since he took charge. If we take a look at the games the Pistons lost, there's a common trend: a 3rd quarter slump. From the looks of it, the problem either lays in endurance issues or a simple lack of motivation. This isn't the coach's problem to fix. Quite frankly, there is not much a coach can do if they players aren't going to give 100%. The players need to step it up if they want to have a fighting chance to end this season with a decent record.
We are not talking about finals, semi's, or anything near it quite yet. This season is about a fresh start, almost like the rebirth of the Detroit Pistons. We've got a new coach, just enough experienced Pistons, a whole load of new traded players, players graduating out of their rookie role, and a fresh batch of immensely talented rookies. This sounds like a plan to success; this sounds like a plan to win a championship in the future, perhaps not the near future, but in the future. Think about it this way. As of right now, the Pistons are in a period of change. Once they figure out all the components they need to become a strong team using what they got, the Detroit Pistons will be a threat once again.
The Pistons will face the Orlando Magic this Tuesday night. This isn't going to be an easy game, considering they're 3-0 so far. If our offense plays like they should and if Stuckey decides he wants to play some basketball again and redeem himself after the last game, it might be an interesting game to watch. As always, no team can just rely on just good offense or just good defense. A combination of both is needed, and let's hope to see that Tuesday night.
Side note and completely irrelevant: Does anybody else find it weird watching Rasheed Wallace prance around the court in a Boston Celtics Jersey? I guess this goes for basically every other major player who was traded this summer. Example number 2: Shaq, "the Great Aristotle" himself, in a Cavaliers jersey. It's just strange, like the twilight zone...or the shining...
Keywords: Detroit Pistons Kuester Michael Curry Rodney Stuckey Orlando Magic Boston Celtics Rasheed Wallace Shaq Cavaliers
