Comments on: Pressure is on John Kuester to determine how perimeter minutes will be distributed

By: Patrick Hayes

Patrick Hayes — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 20:34:59 +0000

@Fennis:

I disagree slightly with your comparisons. The Bulls and Pistons teams played in a much different era -- more clutching, more grabbing was allowed on the perimeter, so it was much easier to be lock down in those days when regs let a lot more contact and a lot more hand-checking slide. Plus, the Pistons had a shot blocker in Salley and bigs in Mahorn/Laimbeer who would hammer you if you went inside. That certainly helped guys at least hesitate more than they normally would when attacking the basket.

The current version of the Lakers do have good perimeter defenders, but you neglect to mention that they have two seven-foot athletic shot blockers inside. Funneling guys to Pau/Bynum certainly makes life easier on Fisher/Bryant/Artest.

It's damn near impossible to be a dominant defensive team in today's NBA. Hamilton, Prince and Stuckey are all average or better perimeter defenders. The Pistons deficiencies on defense are mainly inside. Ben Wallace can't do it all.

By: Patrick Hayes

Patrick Hayes — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 20:30:15 +0000

@Laser:

When last season it didn't appear that he was the strong, vocal authoritarian coach the team has lacked since Larry Brown, I instead started hoping he was at least a brilliant X's and O's guy. Unfortunately, he doesn't appear to be either one.

By: Fennis

Fennis — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 17:36:04 +0000

I’m not yet sold on Kuester either, though I’m happy to see that everyone is talking about chemistry, which is actually a euphemism for “pass the ball.” Anyone who thinks this playing time question will unfold without major drama is naive. Drama is guaranteed. But I think Joe D. is smart to bring in as much talent as possible, hold a competition for rotation spots, and worry about discarding the excess at a later date.
Last thing, with all of this talent and competition on the perimeter, I really hope that the Pistons finally emphasize perimeter defense. All this talk from Joe about a big man being the final piece of the puzzle obscures the fact that the Pistons perimeter defense has been abysmal over the past two seasons. The lack of a shot blocker is not an excuse for poor perimeter defense. If you look at championship teams like the Jordan/Pippen Bulls, the Thomas/Dumars Pistons and the Fisher/Bryant/Artest Lakers, their perimeter defense was arguably the best in the league at the time. Detroit’s guards haven’t approach this level of defensive intensity in several years. Why aren’t the coaches talking about that? These vague references to Stuckey’s defensive potential offer a pipedream, but nowhere near accountability. Kuester needs to step up and call it like it is.

By: Laser

Laser — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 17:21:23 +0000

not close to a believer.

i hope he comes in like a veteran coach this season, but i never got much of an “alpha” vibe from him last season, and i don’t think such a failure of a season can inspire self-confidence. i hope it does, but i doubt it.

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Tue, 28 Sep 2010 23:20:31 +0000

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By: detroitpcb

detroitpcb — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 21:36:13 +0000

how many of you trust Q to manage this situation correctly?

unfortunately, i am not a believer.

By: Laser

Laser — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 19:29:03 +0000

also, speaking of all this versatility, the pistons truly may have the most individual versatility of anyone, but it’s all guys who can play the 2 or the 3.

By: Patrick Hayes

Patrick Hayes — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 19:09:07 +0000

@brgulker:
It was pretty clear that they consider him a power forward. Kuester was big on his “this team has so much versatility” talk, but when he mentioned Jonas, it usually seemed to be with the frontcourt players.

By: brgulker

brgulker — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 18:49:39 +0000

hmmm… no mention of Jonas. Odd.

Also just realized there is no mobile site for PP. I thought there used to be? Could be wrong.