There’s a good article in the Detroit Free Press today, written by Drew Sharpe, titled “Pistons Don’t Measure Up To Elite Teams Anymore”
Boston tonight. Cleveland on Sunday.
It’s being promoted as a big weekend — an opportunity for the Pistons to measure themselves against the top competition in the Eastern Conference. But the Pistons could go 2-0 or 0-2 and it won’t change a thing.
The Pistons, in their disjointed state, could not beat the Celtics or the Cavaliers in a best-of-seven playoff series.
These Pistons simply aren’t good enough, and it’s time to accept that truth. There are no moves to be made that could alter the fading illusion of the Pistons as championship contenders.
Sharpe feels time has finally caught up with the Pistons
The Pistons aren’t returning to the Eastern Conference finals for a seventh straight year. They’d be lucky to escape the first round considering the best seeding they can hope for is a No. 4.
Their decline isn’t because of a trade they shouldn’t have made or a head coach they shouldn’t have hired.
They’re declining because it’s their time. Why is that so hard to accept?
The rest of the article mostly talks about how Rasheed/Iverson are too valuable as expiring contracts, so they can’t trade them while looking for a quick fix, and that the key to their future is Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudemire but they’re not available for 12-18 more months. It’s a good read.
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I agree with the premise of the article, I do not think the Pistons are one of the East’s elite anymore. I think they are, however, the East’s fourth best team and they have enough talent there to be a spoiler team.
Posted on January 30, 2009 by Dave