It’s a sad thing watching these Pistons; had Dumars not selected Monroe two years ago, his track record since 2004 would have been 0 for like 65. Yes, Dumars was an integral part of 3 Pistons championship teams in 15 years or so, but you would be hard-pressed to find a GM who’s done as poor a job and kept it for so long. Colangelo has faired much better in putting together a core of young talent, who also have better upside. Why hasn’t Villanueva been amnestied yet? I am a big fan of his, but it’s just another WTF on Dumars’ resume.
I’m really high on James Johnson these days. With each passing day, he’s finding his niche on this team; doing more of the things that has us nodding with a stupid grin on our faces when he makes a perfect defensive rotation, or rips down a rebound when he should have been blocked out. It’s to the point where I don’t even care when he takes a bad jumper from time-to-time because he’s out Rodman. If he’s gonna be the hardest working guy on the floor, let him have a couple shots here and there; it’s not like he’s costing us games or lottery balls one way or the other.
Blake had an interesting piece on the Raptors trade deadline, and I agree with everything he says except two points:
- I don’t think Bargnani should be considered untouchable. I’m not advocating for him to be traded, but if a deal for a young, elitish guard/wing (Eric Gordon calibre), I’d think long and hard about it.
- I don’t know if Calderon’s expiring context has any more value than his almost expiring contract this year. I’m only advocating a trade if we get back a young core piece in return. We saw how little interest teams had in acquiring the Bosh trade exception, and fleeting interest in Barbosa’s expiring this season. Might be my ADHD, but waiting may not yield the fruits we desire; just saying…
The Pistons are on an impressive 2-game win streak, having taken down the Lakers and Hawks this week. Once you start digging a little deeper into the wins, you’ll notice Stuckey played out of his mind, dropping 34; and Monroe/Maxiel took advantage of a weak Hawks front court.
I’m more than happy for the Raps to focus on shutting down the Pistons front court, and forcing their streaky wings to beat us from the perimeter and off the dribble. If the battle gets taken to the bench, the Raptors can go much deeper.
After a tight game last night, the Pistons will be a bit tired. The Raptors need to turn it up from the tip, keep Monroe under their heel, and not let up. The stage is set for the Raptors to walk out of the Palace with a win, just requires some focus and a near aneurysm on Casey’s part; Raptors by 6.
(Sorry about spelling/grammar/shortness, I wrote this on my iPhone in the car)