Flip Saunders' Replacement...

Flip Saunders was fired today. Yes you are reading that correctly.

“Decisions like this are difficult to make,” said big daddy Pistons Team President, Joe Dumars.

Wait..whuh? The guy that took the Detroit Pistons to 3 straight Eastern Conference Finals and went 206-91 during those 3 seasons just got fired? Yep!

Poor Flip. Everywhere the guy goes he seems to win, but he also can’t seem to win enough. LeBron the machine took him down last year by himself, and Danny Ainge’s All-Star squad did the trick this year. I can’t say that I feel incredibly bad for Flip, but I would say that he has some horrible luck. Maybe he and Avery Johnson can have a massage and a pedicure together to figure out why the world sucks so bad.

Who will replace him? We’ve looked really deep into this to come up with the most qualified candidates. I hope the Pistons will consider what we have to offer.


Matt Millen

He may not be a coach, but this guy is a freakin’ pro at holding down a job. No one can seem to fire this guy, and I’m sure he’ll be able to withstand little ol’ Dumars. He’s also beloved in Detroit…err. He would be excellent at completely wiping out the entire team and starting over from scratch. Remember how old these Pistons are and this may be just the trick they’ve needed up their sleeve! Although, I’m sure they would want to come back from that rebirth…




Isiah Thomas

Yessir! Bringing the bad boys back baby! This thing is about to become a complete train wreck and what good is a train wreck without Isiah Thomas’ involvement? Thinking of “Raw”sheed and that silver patch of hair barking down from 6’10” to mini-Zeke makes me smile. This would be a REAL, player vs. coach battle! Forget that Zach Randolph pissing match from last year, this thing would sell tickets.


Jason Maxiell

Aren’t we just waiting to see him tear down institutional basketball backboards and eat things? Wait…that had nothing to do with this post.


Avery Johnson

After he and Flip get done with their pedicures we’ll consider Avery the only logical candidate. The guy with the best record EVER in his first 2 seasons who got overlooked in Chicago, New York and Phoenix has to be considered right? Plus With that mouth, he could teach Maxiell the real way to eat babies! (That’s two Maxiell sightings in this post…)


Terry Porter

Will be hired.


Whichever way the Pistons decide to go I’m thinking it is time for some major changes. What is the average age now, almost 30?

East vs. West - We're Finally Here!

With the first and second rounds out of the way, I feel almost refreshed to the NBA. The top 4 teams in the NBA have finally been set aside and I’m not sure that anyone should really be surprised. The “Final Four” of the NBA should bring out the best basketball in the world from the 4 best teams in the world. Not only have they been tested, (some more than others) but they have all won major battles or overcome injuries to key players in order to get to this place. These teams reached this point without excuses, but by playing their asses off against other top teams in rowdy road arenas yet, still persevering.


The Boston Celtics vs. The Detroit Pistons

As the supposed “top” team in the NBA, the Celtics have struggled mightily through the first 2 rounds and have yet to win a game on the road. They may have had the best record during the regular season, but it is obvious that this team is playing at a lower level now. They’ve managed to squeak through against weaker opponents, but will now face the “Beast of the East” in the Detroit Pistons. They’ll need to bind back together as they once did during the regular season and certain key players will need to find the greatness we’re accustomed to (cough…Ray).

Can they pull together once again and find a way to advance? The battles with Detroit during the regular season were noteworthy and I assure you these Playoff match-ups will be no different.

What about Detroit? Detroit is entering their 6th straight Eastern Conference Final and will obviously have a good feel for the pressure and atmosphere that this series will bring. They’ve done this many times by playing their “blue collar” style and the Celtics better come ready. The physicality of the series could weigh too heavy on the Celtics who have played 14 Playoff games in less than a month. I’m expecting the Pistons (if Chauncey plays) to move past the Celtics with ease. It may go 6 games, but we all know that the Pistons will take a game off here or there to finish up at home. I’d love to see a Celtics vs. Lakers Finals, but the early Playoff showings of Boston have been a complete disappointment.


The Los Angeles Lakers vs. The San Antonio Spurs

I never thought these words would come out of my mouth but, GO LAKERS! After watching the Spurs’ poise and experience dismantle the young Hornets last night, my hatred for them has grown to Edward Norton as the Incredible Hulk ridiculousness proportions. There has been bantering that if the Spurs allow Kobe to drop 40 a game and contain the rest of the team that they will roll through the series. Maybe, but something in my mind is telling me that Kobe will laugh at any strategy the Spurs throw at him and will do something incredible this series; something that we will remember for years to come.

Are the Spurs just too damn good though? Possibly. But are they also old as hell? Yes. Many believe that this could be the last year for the Spurs “dynasty” with many of their players hitting their peak long ago. Expect one last push from the “Big 3” and also expect to be annoyed by 25 Longoria camera shots per game. (The state of the series)

You may have reason to believe the Spurs are a dirty team, but those reasons will come full circle once this series has been completed. This series will undoubtedly go down in history as one of the greats of all time. Kobe vs. Duncan. Phil vs. Pop. Scrappy, chippy and gritty play from both teams will leave us all breathless after each game; strap on those Playoff seat belts and cheer with me as the Spurs dynasty comes to an end.

Quick Rant: The Pistons are just better.

Can we stop complaining about Chauncey’s 3rd quarter buzzer beater? If you really think this shot was the reason the Magic lost then you are an absolute fool. Games aren’t won or lost on 3rd quarter controversial buzzer beaters people.

Yeah, yeah…argue that it changed the momentum or something weak like that. Well if that’s your argument, then explain to me how the refs and announcers and everyone else in the world, discussing the situation for 10+ minutes during the game, builds on that momentum. Everyone in the place knew that the call was botched and realizing you just got a freebie doesn’t necessarily mean, “Weehee! It’s momentum time!”

I keep hearing that the Magic were “screwed” and with the “technology the league has, they should have been able to get it right.” Well first off, the Magic lost that game plain and simple. “Live and die by the 3” sound familiar to anyone? Secondly, the league may have the technology but the RULES do not allow them to replay the call. What they should have done was re-do the entire play and I’m actually still wondering why they didn’t.

I guess if that would have happened the Magic would have won though, right? You know, because the team that has been to 5-6 straight Eastern Conference Championships is just a push-over.

Billups wins NBA's Citizenship Award

Don’t ask me why, but I was surprised to hear that Chauncey had won the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award. When I think of him, his on court play doesn’t scream “Hey, I do all kinds of crazy stuff for charity!” However, after reading this article I feel like an idiot, plain and simple.

The past winners like KG, Nash, Reggie Miller, Dikembe, and David Robinson all seemed like obvious choices during the years they had won. When you read this article, it brings to light a whole other side of Billups that you wish you had known beforehand. The article lists at least 4 different organizations he deals with and each organization is different and is not strictly focused on basketball. Many of them involve bringing kids to games as part of the program, but the focus is not on athletics. Many of the organizations focus on academics, rather than making the next NBA superstar which I greatly admire.

Another interesting highlight from the article was the acknowledgement of Ron Artest as one of the five finalists for the award. We all know of the trouble Ron gets into on and sometimes even off the court, so to see his name as a finalist is a pretty big deal. He may lead a whacko personal life, but he still manages to find time to give back to his communities and to children. (Maybe he’s so busy with charities that he forgot to feed those dogs? Cheap shot! Not necessary I know!)

The point is that articles like these should happen more often. I think many of us get caught up in the game itself and the personalities we see from players on the court, when off the court they are completely different people. Obviously, you’d be a fool not to realize that, but I just feel at times we get so caught up in a hard foul or ejection that switches our mind completely into “He’s a horrible guy!” mode.

Congrats Chauncey!