You can also download Detroit Pistons pumpkin stencils of - can you believe how dramatically changed the 2009-2010 Detroit Pistons are?? - Arron Afflalo, Chauncey Billups, Michael Curry, Richard Hamilton, Amir Johnson, Jason Maxiell, Antonio McDyess, Tayshaun Prince, Rodney Stuckey, Rasheed Wallace and Hooper. Then carve one and send the photo of it to Pistons.com for their Pistons Pumpkin photo gallery.

Here's a video from last year's opener...

Pistons Shoe by Kevin.Ward

The almost completely revamped Detroit Pistons open the 2009-2010 season tomorrow night at Memphis (who will possibly be sporting their brand new Allan Iverson). On the subject of the dramatically changed Pistons including the not-so-dearly departed AI,  Natalie at Need4Sheed (repping the D regardless of where Sheed is now) had a great Detroit Pistons 2009-2010 Season Preview:

Key Losses: Antonio McDyess, Rasheed Wallace, Amir Johnson, Arron Afflalo, Chauncey Billups (does that still count) (I say "YES"), head coach Michael Curry (a good loss) and possibly the best loss in Pistons history, the end of Allen Iverson in red, white and blue.

Key Additions: Ben Gordon, Charlie Villanueva, Chris Wilcox, Austin Daye, DaJuan Summers, Jonas Jerebko and Ben Wallace.

"One thing is sure, they may not be slotted to make the ECF like they used to, but this Pistons team is going to be fun to watch."

Read on, check out another cool 2009-10 Pistons preview from Pistonpowered.com and meet the new guys in a rather offbeat manner in Absolute Michigan's Offseason Primer.

Party Like It's 1999 2004?

Alert observers may notice two more names from the Pistons 2004 championship to join Tayshaun Prince and Rip Hamilton on this year's squad. Pistons.com blogger Keith Langlois has a nice post about Ben Wallace & Chucky Atkins that quotes new Detroit Pistons head coach John Kuester:

“(Fans) couldn’t see all the things he did from a positive standpoint,” Kuester said. “He has been a great role model for our young point guards. He’s really done an outstanding job of running the team in practice. He’s challenged both (Stuckey and Bynum) every day in practice and I’m very impressed with what he did on the court and off the court.

“It’s huge, for me being a first-year coach and having people I can trust in the locker room. That’s where Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince (are important) and I’ve talked about Ben being such a good influence on our bigs. Chucky has to fit into that category also. I’ve been very impressed with what he’s done so far.”

Along those lines, Matt at Detroit Bad Boys thinks that Chucky Atkins probably made the roster more for what he can do as a role model for Stuckey & Will Bynum than anything else. Over at the Freep they have declared that the Pistons will be a clanking machine if Rodney Stuckey doesn't step up to become a premier point guard, so here's hoping that Atkins (and Wallace) can provide a whole lot of veteran leadership (and maybe a few boards a game).

Speaking of the official Pistons web site, they've added a new Detroit Pistons Twitpic feature to their Twitter that offers some interesting glimpses behind the scenes.

If you're looking to get more in front of the scenes, how about opening night at the Palace this Friday vs the Oklahoma City Thunder? They have upper deck seats for just $15 and it's a benefit for breast cancer research at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute.

Keep up with Pistons news & links all season long at absolutemichigan.com/Pistons and we'll see you out with the first of a three part series "Pistons Recharged" (thanks Detroit Bad Boys for the find and here's part two and part three)

I started this 2 weeks ago and it just kept growing. I heard Dumars traded Mason and Hooper to the Lakers for Jack Nicholson's sunglasses and the "D" from the "HOLLYWOOD" sign.

Below are my brief thoughts and links - please add your own in the comments...

John Kuester for Michael Curry It was obvious that despite being an all-around nice guy, Curry wasn't ready to be a head coach. I don't know much about Kuester, but the word is that he had a lot to do with the Cavs offense and he has a reputation as a guy who is great at building contenders (great article - must read). I'm going to believe that it is a solid move to bring in a builder in what will likely be a rebuilding year.

Charlie V and Ben Gordon and Chris Wilcox for Sheed and 'Dice and Amir and (not pictured) Arron Afflalo and Walter Hermann I cried a little when Rasheed left and even more when McDyess did. Two solid players and great clubhouse presences who will be missed. I never formed an attachment to Afflalo and Hermann - though I did like his energy and regular-guy vibe - and despite his massive upside, Amir Johnson never seemed to have the confidence of the organization.  At the end of the day, the NBA is a young man's game and the Pistons certainly got younger here. I love Charlie Villanueva (except for the typing his name part and especially the Twitter addiction - twitter.com/cv31) but I worry worry that Ben Gordon is a sign that Rip is on the trading block. Wilcox definitely brings some potential but he seems like a trading chip ... unless (perish the thought) Jason Maxiel is.

The end of the Allen Iverson era I'm pretty sure there are choirs of angels singing about this ... or at least a special Automotion dance.

The Pistons rookie class The class of '09 seems to be doing well. Austin Daye will need to bulk up, DaJuan Summers seems to be proving his critics wrong and as the first Swede in the NBA, Jonas Jerebko seems destined for glory.

Thoughts? Comments? Links? Share them below!

In 1980 Bing founded Bing Steel which eventually became the Bing Group, a supplier of materials and parts to the automotive, appliance and furniture industries. The Bing Group company history on Funding Universe presents a side of Dave Bing that few might know:

During the off-season, Bing worked for National Bank of Detroit, where he moved from teller to branch manager over a seven-year span, and then later participated in the Chrysler dealership training program. These jobs helped him learn the respective trades as well as supplementing the relatively modest wages he earned from basketball in the pre-free agent era.

In 1978, after Bing had finished out his playing career with short stints as a Washington Bullet and Boston Celtic, he began to look for a new job back in Detroit. Rejecting the familiar but no longer inspiring fields of banking and auto sales, he examined an offer from Pistons owner Bill Davidson to work as a public relations representative for Paragon Steel, a company Davidson co-owned. The steel business intrigued Bing, and he convinced Davidson to let him train at Paragon to learn every aspect of it. After working for two years in a wide variety of different departments, he left with plans to found his own company.

...began his first full day as mayor Tuesday addressing immediate crises and ongoing ones, wooing General Motors Corp. to stay in the Renaissance Center and laying groundwork to revive talks to expand Cobo Center.

Bing said he'd spoken with "one of the top execs" of the company to sell them on Detroit. The mayor did not identify that executive, but on Monday he described GM CEO Fritz Henderson as a "friend." .

"The response has been, 'We are in Detroit,' " Bing said of his conversation with GM. "What I can say from a leadership standpoint is that Detroit will do everything in its power to make sure they're competitive so that whatever decisions that will be made by any business, we can retain.

Definitely Bing walks into one of the toughest jobs in America - here's hoping that he displays the same quiet excellence as a mayor that he did as an NBA player.

Daly was voted one of the 10 greatest coaches of the NBA's first half-century in 1996, two years after being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. He was the first coach to win both NBA and Olympic titles.

The Detroit News and The Freep both have nice tributes to the legendary coach. Shall we will never forget the incredible years of basketball that coach Daly gave Detroit, the state of Michigan and fans worldwide.

R.I.P. coach....

The Real Fab Five, photo by Dave Hogg.

For any successful organization or business, you have to have integrity, and you have to make everything as straightforward as you can make it.
~Detroit Pistons owner William Davidson

(via Michigan in Pictures) Sometimes when I don't know what I'm going to post on Michigan in Pictures, it's a happy thing. Other days, like today, it's not.

Last night we lost a man who has done as much as anyone to bring athletic excellence to the Palace and the state of Michigan. On his photo from December of 2005, Dave wrote "These five guys have brought a lot of joy to the Motor City in the last 18 months." I think that Detroit Pistons owner William "Bill" Davidson certainly merits consideration as a sixth man.

William Morse Davidson was born on December 5, 1922 in Detroit. He played football in the Navy during World War II and was a member of the track-and-field team at the University of Michigan, where he majored in business, following it up with a law degree from Wayne State in 1949. He eventually transformed the family business, the Guardian Glass Co., into Guardian Industries, one of the world's largest manufacturers of architectural and automotive glass.

From William Davidson's Wikipedia entry, I learned that Davidson was only the second owner the Pistons have ever had and that his name is on the Palace floor along with Piston legends who all played during his tenure: Dave Bing, Bob Lanier, Bill Laimbeer, Vinnie Johnson, Chuck Daly, Joe Dumars and Isiah Thomas. The Detroit Pistons web site tells the story of his involvement with the Pistons and the WNBA's Detroit Shock:

Mr. Davidson owned the Pistons since 1974 and won three NBA Championships (1989, 1990, 2004), three WNBA Championships (2004, 2006, 2008) and one NHL Championship (2004). He became the first owner in sports history to win championships in three different professional sports leagues during the 2003-04 calendar year (NBA – Detroit Pistons, NHL – Tampa Bay Lightning and WNBA – Detroit Shock). In September 2008, Davidson's contributions to the game of basketball were honored when he was officially enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. (view his induction speech)

In 1988-89, the Pistons began play in The Palace of Auburn Hills, a state-of-the-art arena built with Davidson's financial support: a privately-financed facility, which when combined with the Pistons, formed the foundation of his entertainment business.

...The Pistons have played in the postseason in 19 of the past 25 years, including 11 of the past 13 seasons. Davidson acquired the Detroit Pistons in 1974 from the late Fred Zollner, the man who founded the team in Fort Wayne, Indiana in the 1940s. With a franchise-record seven straight seasons of recording 50 or more wins, the Pistons have won 384 regular season games (.669 wining percentage) since 2001, including a franchise-record 63 wins in 2005-06. The club has compiled 73 playoff wins in that same span and made six consecutive trips to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history. Detroit has won six Central Division titles in the last seven seasons and nine overall since 1987-88. Only the San Antonio Spurs have won more division titles in the same 20-year span.

The Detroit Shock joined the Washington Mystics as the first two expansion teams in the WNBA in 1998 and the team was an immediate success in the upstart league. The Shock have won three championships since their inception (2004, 2006, 2008) and set a WNBA attendance record (22,076) in Game 3 of the 2004 WNBA Finals while also becoming the first team since 1890 to go from the worst team in a professional sports league to the best team.

The Detroit Free Press has a nice article on Bill Davidson that tells more of how Davidson presided over the transformation of a team that was "basically a laughingstock" into one that has won 3 championships and appeared in the post-season far more often than not. You probably will be happiest, however, with Mitch Albom's September 2008 interview with Bill Davidson. They also have a nice photo gallery as does the Detroit News (the second photo in the gallery is great!)

Be sure to check the above photo out bigger and see more great work from Dave in his Your Favorites slideshow.

More links as they roll in... (and please add ones you find in the comments!)

• Mitch Albom's column from Sunday, March 15
• Detroit Bad Boys Bill Davidson, 1922-2009
• Need4Sheed RIP Mr. Davidson - Thank You for the Memories and Championships, You will be missed.
• Bill Davidson's NBA Hall of Fame Induction speech via Need4Sheed
• WDI Namesake, Bill Davidson, Dies has a lot of information about his charitable works in Detroit - over $200 million in donations and more in his time given.
• Farewell, Mr. D from the Pistons & NBA TV
• Definitely watch this tribute to Bill Davidson from WDIV for some great footage of Bill Davidson and of the Pistons.

Tom's Vision by G0Da

From the Pistons changing point guards and changing Tayshaun Prince to "point forward" to a Presidential campaign in which change was the overwhelming theme, "change" has been very much in the air of late.

One part of Michigan that is certain to see change is the auto industry. The Globe & Mail notes that it was no accident that Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm was positioned to appear in photos at President-elect Obama's first press conference (links are ours):

Granholm was there to send a message, the message being that Obama knows he owes Michigan and the payoff is coming. Fast. Just in case anyone missed the visuals on Friday, Obama and the Democrats went to work on the weekend, too.

Obama's incoming chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, called the Detroit auto companies “essential” to the U.S. economy in interviews Sunday. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Democrats, of course) sent a letter Saturday to President Bush, calling on him to release some of U.S. Government's $700 billion in aid paid to help the auto companies, too.

I Said Don't You Want to go for a Drive by chinkon

While it sounds as if Obama is going to create an "auto czar" and there is definitely a strong case for bailout, there are those who wonder if an auto industry bailout is a wise move. Tom "The World is Flat but my book sales are rising" Friedman spends most of his editorial How to Fix a Flat burying Michigan's politicians and auto industry leaders before tepidly endorsing some form of government takeover of the industry coupled with forced innovation. Other voices are calling for unplugging the car companies and letting them fail - something that will be pretty hard to do in the wake of the financial bailout and as GM mobilizes a half million current and former employees. What do you think? Post it below!

While it's unclear exactly what the right road to take with the car companies, the Associated Press reports that a new study by the Alliance for the Great Lakes finds that the only way to keep invasive species like the eat-everything-in-its-path Asian carp (now within 50 miles of Lake Michigan) out of the Great Lakes is to eliminate the engineered connection between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River watersheds.

...now if we could just get the Lions to change.

A I by thanasim25

Here's a selection of quick hits from: Pistons get Iverson for Billups, McDyess, Samb and Pistons are bringing in Iverson to generate excitement (Freep), Pistons acquire Iverson, send Billups and McDyess to Denver (ESPN, also has a video with Steven A. Smith), It’s official: Allen Iverson is a Piston (best summary & most interesting considerations award to Detroit Bad Boys), Pistons vs. Bobcats takes a backseat to Billups and Iverson (Need4Sheed) and Joe D swings for the fences (Pistons blog):

"We are pleased to welcome Allen Iverson to the Pistons organization. Allen has proven he is one of the elite players in the league, and we like what he adds to our roster at the guard position. We appreciate everything that Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess and Cheikh Samb brought to the organization during their time here in Detroit, and we certainly wish them all the best." - Joe Dumars

...Joe D looks for three things in players: talent, obviously; strong desire to win; and good character. Iverson is off the charts in the first two categories. Some would argue the third, but Iverson’s issues have been almost exclusively personality clashes with strong-willed coaches.

...Power forward Rasheed Wallace said he was just hearing about the trade this morning and didn't have much to add. He did think aloud about the possibility of adding a former NBA scoring champion in Iverson. "Another scorer back there with Rip (Hamilton) ... we'll see how it plays out," Wallace said. "I can't comment too much. That's not a Guaransheed right there, so I can't comment too much."

...Iverson gives the Pistons one of the most irrepressible scorers in the NBA. In the lonely moments of the playoffs, when offenses inevitably bog down, players who can create their own shots – no matter what play is called, no matter what defense is deployed – are invaluable.

...Dumars loves to gamble on players who are reputed to possess as many minuses as pluses, as seen with the trade-deadline acquisition of Rasheed Wallace in 2004 which spurred Detroit to its first championship since Dumars was playing in 1990. If this gamble doesn't work, swapping Billups for Iverson would give Detroit financial flexibility to pursue a more aggressive makeover next summer, with the highly regarded Rodney Stuckey staying put as the long-term cornerstone of the Pistons' backcourt.

...Iverson gives Dumars much-needed salary flexibility. The Pistons could have as much as $35 million of spending money next summer if you include Wallace's $14 million, which also comes off the books.

...Sure, some of our hearts may not be in it, but wishing Chauncey all the best as he goes back and plays for his home town team and a thank you for what he has done is all we can do as fans. Is Iverson truly The Answer? We will get that question answered come June. Just think, the future is so bright we have to wear shades.

The move also gives the Pistons a core of Philly natives with Sheed, Rip & AI. Detroit Bad Boys adds that the Pistons didn't waste any time signing Rip to a contract extension.

OK, here's Piston coach Michael Curry talking about A.I. (Via HoopSoup, via DBB reader Ziggity via Detroit Bad Boys):

The Detroit Free Press is reporting that the Pistons are expected to trade guard Chauncey Billups and forward Antonio McDyess to the Denver Nuggets for guard Allen Iverson.

Detroit Bad Boys notes that Rick Bucher on ESPN is saying that McDyess might retire rather than go.

As a huge fan of both the Pistons and Billups, I can only say "Waaaaaaaah!"

The photo, Chauncey steps up to the line by radiospike photography, is one of my all time favorites of one of my favorite NBA players.

...except for last weekend of course, when politics was a welcome relief for UM and MSU fans. After getting pasted by a combined 91-24, the state of Michigan is assured of a Big Ten victory on Saturday as the Michigan State University Spartans travel to Ann Arbor and the Big House to face the University of Michigan Wolverines for bragging rights and the Paul Bunyan Trophy. You can read all about the trophy and the game at Michigan vs Michigan State Football Rivalry from Absolute Michigan.

Over there to the right is just a bit of The Best Thing I Saw on These Internets This Week: The Season of Much Woe by Samara Pearlstein of Roar of the Tigers. Relive all the shock, all the outrage, all the Spazzosaurus and be sure to tell her how cool it is so she'll do the next installment!!

Darren McCarty by radiospike photography

The Detroit Bad Boys are getting ready for the NBA season to start and report that power forward Jason Maxiell will test the waters of free agency next year. Bummer, but hopefully that means he plays harder than ever. In their 2008-09 Pistons Preview, they say (only half-jokingly) that the biggest offseason move was the Flip Saunders for Amir Johnson trade. Over at Ball Don't Lie, crazy Canadian blogger turned crazy Canadian blogger with a Yahoo contract J.E. Skeets has a Pistons season preview that says the Pistons may miss Flip in crunch time and Need4Sheed feels it's Larry O-Brien or Bust for the Pistons core of Billups, Prince and Rasheed.

Finally, in some depressing news, the Detroit Red Wings waived 36-year-old Darren McCarty. If he clears waivers, he'll be assigned to Grand Rapids.

For those of you who are thinking that I forget to mention the Detroit Lions, I didn't.

Detroit Pistons President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars announced today that Flip Saunders will not return next season as the team’s head coach.

“Decisions like this are difficult to make, especially with the success we have had throughout the last three regular-seasons,” Dumars said. “However, at this time, I feel it is necessary to make a change. I thank Flip for his hard work and dedication, but it is time for a new voice to lead our team.”

Saunders, who was named head coach on July 21, 2005, tallied a regular-season record of 176-70 in three seasons with the Pistons. In three trips to the NBA Playoffs under Saunders the Pistons were 30-21, losing in the Eastern Conference Finals each year.

We're hearing rumors that former Piston player Michael Curry is the front-runner. Detroit Bad Boys says there will be a press conference at 2 PM.

four tops by bkromer
(Lake Erie Metropark)

The big stories heading into the week are the playoff runs of the Detroit Pistons (Eastern Conference Finals v Celtics) and the Detroit Red Wings (Stanley Cup v the Pittsburgh Penguins). Both teams have won 2 (Pistons @ 2-2 and Wings at 2-0).

Photos in the Absolute Michigan pool on Flickr include shots from the Detroit Electronic Music Festival, some of the latest morels we've seen in recent years and a baby fox that rocked the cuteometer to 11.

Our Michigan May Event Calendar says that we can look forward to the Mancelona Bass Festival and the Red Bull Air Race in Detroit this weekend. Monday was of course Memorial Day and you might enjoy this story from last year about Michigan's first Memorial Day.

Free Amir! Amir Johnson is just 21. Wikipedia says that on April 19, 2007, Amir Johnson scored a career-high 20 points, grabbed 12 rebounds (6 of them offensive), and recorded four blocks and three steals in 37 minutes against the Boston Celtics. And he can do this.

Amir is also part of the Detroit Piston's most impressive development of the 2008 season: The Zoo Crew. That's the name given to the Pistons second unit, a group that plays with harmony and heart and affords our starting unit time to rest as they draw wind from an opponent's sails with their energetic abandon. Kind of like this...

Click here to view the embedded video.

If there's anything that the flat and listless need right now, it has to be energy. Detroit Bad Boys has laid out some keys to winning this series, PistonsForum.com has a whole lot of numbers on minutes played for your back-seat coaching pleasure and you can get many more Pistons stories and links at Absolute Michigan keyword Pistons

The incomparable Natalie of Need4Sheed.com gave the photoshop love to this photo of Amir Johnson dunking on the Raptors.

and i bring you fire by Paul Hitz

With a final record of 59-23, the Detroit Pistons own the 2nd best record in the NBA (final 2008 NBA Standings) and tied their 3rd best mark.

In their season ending NBA power rankings, ESPN ranked them third while the NBA ranks them fifth. ESPN - who is apparently not quite as down on the Pistons - notes that if they can power through to the conference finals, they'll be the first team since the 1982-89 Lakers to reach 6 straight conference finals.

Detroit Bad Boys and Need 4 Sheed have given a shout-out to Depressed Fan as the Philly blog to watch for this series. He's playing the "no respect" card and makes a case for Sixers in six. My favorite review comes from Free Darko on Deadspin, which begins:

This series doesn't seem quite as hopeless as Atlanta versus Boston. Instead of having only a snowball's chance in hell, I'd say the 76ers are more like a large, stubborn block of ice in hell. Still melting, but maybe a bit more slowly.

It ends with a 4-1 Pistons victory, and I'm thinking that sounds just about right.

I’m willing to admit when I’m wrong, and I initially panned Hayes as a replacement for Carlos Delfino, which admittedly was never an accurate comparison since Delfino was gone by the time Hayes got here. But you know what Hayes brings that Delfino doesn’t? Confidence. Whereas Delfino sometimes took a bit of time to get into the flow of the game, Hayes would probably shoot the ball from the bench if he were allowed to.

Of course Hayes would probably have to fight Flip Murray for the ball... The blog also has a very active and knowledgeable audience, making the comments almost as good as the articles. One thing I really love about DBB is that they're not afraid to toss alley-oops to other Piston bloggers - meaning that even if it's only a "one blog lunch," I don't miss great stuff like the video of the 2008 Pistons Introductions from Need4Sheed.

The photo is by DBB's own Matt Watson and is from the 1st Annual Need4Sheed/Detroit Bad Boys Blogfest last year - DBB also has a Detroit Bad Boys group on Flickr where you can see  and share photos of the Pistons.

As you look over their roster, you see Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince and Antonio McDyess along with several other familiar faces like Lindsey Hunter, Ronald Dupree, and yes, even Nazr Mohammed & Ronald "Flip" Murray. The most exciting part of their roster could well be those names that are not (yet) as familiar:

• board-crashing Jason Maxiell
• smooth shooting Jarvis Hayes - great interview with Hayes from Empty the Bench
• buzz-generating Amir Johnson - our "Almost Completely Off Topic" Department suggests Free Darko's pictures of Amir Johnson's trip to China.
• and a host of rookies: Arron Afflalo, Sammy Mejia, Cheikh Samb and Rodney Stuckey - here's a YouTube intro to the Piston's class of 2007

On to the previews where Slam Online wonders if the Pistons can fix what went wrong last year, Sporting News says that those predicting the decline of the Pistons will be validated ... just not this year, the Freep's Krista Jahnke wonders who will play center, and Draft Express calls for the best season since 2004-2005. All the youth on the team means that the game plan will likely include less half court and more running the floor. On his Hoopsworld preview of the Pistons, Matt Watson wrote:

Running should be something that Johnson does a lot of this year, especially if Saunders opens up the offense as planned when the second-unit is in the game. "Running is my thing, that's what I do," he said. "I used to run track when I was in high school. So we're going to have fun with that, bring some of the young guys in, just have fun and run the floor."

Matt also runs Detroit Bad Boys, which should be (along with Need4Sheed who also has a great preview) on your regular list of Pistons blogs. A few other blogs you might not be as familiar with are Pistons Insider and Full Court Press (both from mLive), Motoring at MVN (here's their preview), PistonsNews.com and Detroit Sports Unleashed. Another great place to go for updates is BallHype's Pistons page. Hey, PistonsNation is another cool blog and had a link to a cool Hall of Fame Watch article on Billups from Dime mag. They say he's "out" - I say wait & see.

You can also keep up to date with Pistons photos from on and off the court in the Detroit Pistons, Detroit Bad Boys and (of course) Absolute Michigan groups on Flickr.

The opening tap is November 1 - check the schedule, consider getting to a game or to at the Palace of Auburn Hills and (as always) tell us what we missed in the comments!

I think I speak for a lot of people when I say "Wow."

It's probably obvious from this photo that Paul loves his city. If not, a visit to the Detroit Tigers or Detroit Pistons groups he helps to manage might help, and the fact that he stepped in to oversee the complexity of exposure.Detroit should seal the deal.

You could dive in to Paul's photos anywhere, but this is probably a good place to start.

The lip service USA Basketball has paid to selecting more than a glorified All-Star team to represent the country has finally taken a turn with the addition of Pistons small forward Tayshaun Prince. He, of course, never has been an All-Star. He's simply a winner, which is why it's no accident that Detroit has won at least 50 games all five seasons he's been with them.

The national program is expected to officially announce Prince's addition this week, but his agent, Bill Duffy, confirmed Tuesday that Prince has received and accepted an invitation.

"He's well deserving of this," Duffy said. "He may be both the most underrated and versatile player in the league."

You'd expect a guy's agent to say that, but Duffy happens to be right. Which is exactly the kind of savvy player essential to success in international competition, where mental tenacity trumps vertical hops and chemistry is more important than individual excellence. Not that Prince, at 6-9 with a 7-foot wingspan, can't play above the rim or break off electric moves -- they're just way down his priority list.

USA jerseys with Prince's name on the back may or may not fly out of the souvenir stands, but he has all the ingredients to restore some value to the name on the front. His excellence for the Pistons has hinged on his ability to make whatever adjustments necessary to fit his game around that of his teammates.

That's why Detroit's four other starters were All-Stars and you've never heard a peep from Prince about respect or touches. Sure, his 14 points and five rebounds a game this season looks rather modest. But need someone to smother LeBron? Check. Need someone to light up Luol Deng? Check. Bury a three, score on the block, reject a sure layup, grab a rally-killing rebound? Check, check, check, check. The NBA brain trust has raised more than a few questionable decisions this season. Prince playing for Team USA is not one of them.

I can't agree more. Pictures provided by the official web site for Tayshaun Prince, #22 for your Deetroit Pistons (fanboy art by me).

Apropos of nothing in particular, here's the Pistons Eastern Conference Finals slideshowy thing.

I guess I can earn my keep with a link to NBA TV's Frank Isola with a breakdown the Eastern Conference Finals series matchup between the Pistons and the Cavaliers. And Krista Jahnke's solid preview of the series in the Freep.

Photo: Chauncey Billups drives on Larry Hughes (Allen Einstein/NBAE/Getty Images)

The latest issue of ESPN: The Magazine has their "Ultimate Standings" for US sports franchises. It will come as little surprise to learn that Detroit scored three teams in the top 20 for the 2007 rankings. The rankings are a combination of record, ownership/management, coaching, players, affordability, fan relations, stadium experience and "bang for the buck" and anyone who has been to a game in the Motor City knows there are few better sports experiences anywhere.

The Detroit Pistons lead the way at #5 despite the fact that coach Flip Saunders was rated #73. Fans appear to love the players (#13), the arena (#11) and owner Bill Davidson (#6 - you have to think Joe Dumars is a big part of that as well).

Not far behind at #12 are the Detroit Tigers who are led by skipper Jim Leyland (#2), a great team (#21) and a little thing called the World Series!

At #18 are the Detroit Red Wings whose perennial contention combined with an ownership rated #2 (in large part for their stellar community engagement) ... and hey, they don't call it Hockeytown for nothing!

It seems to be true that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction, because the Detroit Lions have fought their way to the absolute bottom of the list #122 out of 122. Fire Millen anyone?

Photo credits:

• 365 67 "DEEEEEEEEEEEE troit...." by Artsy_T
  
• 10,000 by Radiospike
• Hasek by McPhloyd
• Lions by Shogun13

Dave Dombrowski, Joe Dumars & Jim Leyland,
shown evaluating their new acquisitions.

DATELINE: APRIL 1, 2007, LANSING, MICHIGAN

Residents of Michigan were stunned today by the announcement of a massive trade that sent Michigan's full House, Senate, Governor and a number of key government officials to be named later to the Territory of Guam in exchange for left handed pitching prospect Carlos Camacho, Jr., the rights to University of Guam phenom Roberto "Big Bobby" Bordallo and 148 fruit bats.

Tiger GM Dave Dombrowski and Pistons President Joe Dumars, two of the most successful CEOs in sports, held a joint press conference Sunday morning to announce the landmark deal. "I think we did really well here," Dombrowski remarked at the press conference. "Camacho has a heck of a heater and Joe here thinks that Bordallo could be the next Kelly Tripucka."

Fruit Bat by Spike

Dumars expressed regret that the kicker of Matt Millen for nine fruit bats was turned down by Guam but expressed hope of a future deal. He also told the assembled reporters "This deal was really all about clubhouse chemistry. You can't expect to turn a team around when everyone's bickering in the locker room."

Tiger manager Jim Leyland, who will also act as temporary Governor, agreed saying "I think everyone's real hopeful that this new lineup will allow us to turn this state around." He said that the winged mammals were taking well to their new home in the state's capitol building and that every Tuesday would be Bat Day.

More April Foolishness...

Bank bailout "tweak" to spur auto industry - the Treasury department takes bold action!

Canadian Freeze Ray Wreaks Havok - weird science from our Northern neighbors

Five Things You Need to Know for Friday, April 1st, 2005 (Google, Izzo, Michael Moore & more)

Mew by Nicole Rork

Journalist and journalism professor Jack Lessenberry says Journalism is sort of the nation’s circulatory system. Journalists at their best carry light, air, and information throughout society.

Science Daily (via Dave Dempsey) reports that new analysis of data from buoys, weather stations, and historical ice records indicates that summer surface temperatures of Lake Superior have increased approximately 2.5°C since 1979, roughly twice the rate of regional atmospheric warming. Dave also says it's now or never on Great Lakes invasive species ... and notes that the Detroit News has weighed in on the behalf of "never."

Cathleen at For my amusement only... notes that proposed cuts to schools would slash over $700,000 from Grand Rapids Public Schools and makes an interesting point on bloggers and "internet time."

Need4Sheed is still on Cloud 9 (or is that Cloud 36?) after Rasheed Wallace's amazing buzzer beater on Monday night. She also wants to invite everyone to the First Annual Need4Sheed/Detroit Bad Boys Blogfest at the Palace on April 1, 2007 (no foolin!) when the Detroit Pistons square of at 1 PM vs the beNOTloved Miami Heat.

Saunders by MichSt

In an excellent post this morning, Joe Dumars addresses the Flip Saunders question, Matt Watson over at Detroit Bad Boys analyzes Detroit Piston President Joe Dumars' appearance on ESPN's Daily Dish Podcast. Matt writes:

I’ve listened to this a couple of times and I can’t make up my mind what he really means in his answer. It almost, almost sounds like he’s of the attitude that the Pistons will have a good team with or without Flip Saunders...

It's a long and thoughtful post that Piston geeks will enjoy ... of course they will probably already be regulars at DBB ... ah well.

HORNETS Vs Pistons by Jennifer Pitts

Matt Watson at Detroit Bad Boys has a great interview with Detroit Free Press beat reporter Krista Jahnke. It's a great and wide-ranging interview that takes you a little closer to what it's like covering the team.

The pre-game locker room situation is not great for us beat writers. Four of the starters - Chauncey, Tay, 'Sheed and C-Webb - do not talk before games. We often chat with Chauncey off-the-record, but he superstitiously avoids pre-game interviews. Rasheed usually wanders around singing aloud to the music pumping through his headphones. That leaves Rip, a great guy, but one who is as crafty at shaking us as he is at shaking defenders. And with bumping rap music drowning out conversation, it's just not what you'd call a landmine of great interviews. On the plus side, Lindsey Hunter and Dale Davis are always around and are always fun to talk with, whether for an interview or just to BS a little. Then I have about 45 minutes to write my pre-game notes to hit my first deadline at 7:30.

Check it out, and if you're a Piston fan, you have to put Detroit Bad Boys on the short list.

D. Lippitt/Einstein/NBAE via Getty Images

Pistons.com says that 20 games into the season, you can start to draw some meaningful conclusions. One of those conclusions is that the Eastern Conference isn't very tough so far. They also maintain that although the team is 13-7 and need to improve, they have the talent (especially on the bench) to do exactly that.

In Pistons State of the Union: Joe Dumars Question and Answer Conference Call, Need4Sheed breaks down a recent call from Pistons President Joe Dumars to season ticket holders. High points include a look at rumored moves involving the Pistons: Iverson (no), return of Ben Wallace (no) and Kevin Garnett (highly unlikely), answers to questions like "Why doesn't Sheed get the ball more in the low post?" and even an audio clip. Also be sure to check the site out for all kinds of Piston multimedia including computer backgrounds and video.

Jump Shot by Paul Hitz

Detroit Bad Boys has typically solid coverage of the team and picked up an ESPN interview with Rasheed Wallace. In it, the NBA's reigning problem child talked about technicals, the new ball and missing Big Ben.

Motoring, a Pistons column on Most Valuable Network, also notes that the Bad Boys are one of four teams (along w/ Chicago, Orlando and Cleveland) that have winning records in the East. Joel says with poorly performing teams like the Pacers, Nets and Sonics coming up, it's a perfect time to make hay and open up a lead.

Also be sure to check out Absolute Michigan's season preview of the Detroit Pistons for more links and info.

Jump Ball by Ryan Imitates Art
Heat Over Pistons photo-set

For our 2006 Pistons Preview, we need to start where we ended: as one on the best four teams in the NBA. While memories of Pistons v. Heat like Ryan's great set of photos are no doubt painful, they are also a reminder of just how good the Pistons were in 2005. The off-season saw center Ben Wallace lured away by big bucks from the Chicago Bulls.
In his DETROIT PISTONS PREVIEW, Detroit Bad Boys expects the points sacrificed on D to be made up with a more efficient and dynamic O. He seems pretty happy with the Pistons pre-season performance and says of new center Nazr Mohammed: "I think we can all agree that he looks like a fine addition to the squad, flashing offensive skills that are a order of magnitude better than anything we've seen from our starting center in a long, long time. How long? Olden Polynice long." Olden Polynice? That's long.

Need4Sheed is your #1 source for Detroit Piston video & wallpaper and some great observations as well. Like many who have been watching the Boys in Blue over the preseason, Natalie is impressed with the play of Jason Maxiel, a 2nd year forward from Cinci who is an absolute BEAST. Check out this interview where Maxiel talks about his dismantling of the Wizards.
PISTONS: What we learned in the Detroit Free Press says that newcomers Nazr Mohammed and Flip Murray are fitting in well and that Jason Maxiell���s strong preseason showing might force Saunders to give him some minutes too.

ESPN's Daily Dime Pistons Preview rates the team a solid 1.8: best in the Eastern Conference. Analyst John Hollinger (who gives the team its worst ranking) has this to say about the D in the D:

For years, Detroit's interior defense had opponents cowering in fear as they shied away at taking the ball at shot-blockers Ben and Rasheed Wallace. That fear is less now that Big Ben chimes in Chicago, but his absence may garner more attention for the Pistons' other quality defenders.

Detroit Pistons 2006-2007 Roster

1 Chauncey Billups G
8 Will Blalock G
34 Dale Davis C-F
12 Ronald Dupree G
32 Richard Hamilton G
10 Lindsey Hunter G
25 Amir Johnson F
54 Jason Maxiell F
24 Antonio McDyess F
13 Nazr Mohammed C
6 Ronald "Flip" Murray G
22 Tayshaun Prince F
Cheik Samb ** C
36 Rasheed Wallace F-C
**Unsigned draft pick

Detroit Pistons official web site at NBA.com.