Sportsbook event
(http://wtfdetroit.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8594)
The Pistons have the ability to improve or devalue their Magic-provided draft pick, and this is also a possible round 1 playoff matchup.


Wednesday: Magic
Tip-off: 7:30 p.m., The Palace
TV/radio: TV 20/WDFN 1130
Notable: Two former Pistons are in the regular playing group. Darko Milicic is averaging 8.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 23.1 minutes, and Carlos Arroyo averages 8.7 points, 3.3 assists and 20.3 minutes.

Friday: Magic
Tip-off: 7:30 p.m., Amway Arena
TV/radio: TV 20/WDFN 1130
Notable: Rising star Dwight Howard is third in the NBA in rebounds (11.9) and field-goal percentage (59.3).



Orlando (27-27) at Detroit (33-19)

Game Info: 7:30 pm EST Wed Feb 21, 2007
TV: WRBW, WMYD20

By MATT BECKER, STATS Writer

The Orlando Magic need to find a way to win on the road if they hope to end their three-year playoff drought.

It won't be easy, though, as they visit the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons on Wednesday in the first game of a home-and-home series.

The Magic (27-27) -- who have not been to the playoffs since 2003 -- got off to a fast start, winning they 14 of their first 19 games and going 7-4 in road games in that span.

Since then, not much has gone right for Orlando on the road. The Magic are just 2-13 away from Amway Arena since Dec. 6, and are now tied with Miami for the final playoff spot in the East.

They lost to New York 100-94 at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, their fifth straight road loss. Orlando has lost five of its last seven games overall, and the Knicks have pulled within three games of the Magic.

"This might be one of the teams we battle for one of the positions for the playoffs," Magic forward Dwight Howard said.

Although Orlando has been slumping lately, Howard has played well.

Howard had 27 points on 9-of-13 shooting and grabbed 14 rebounds on Tuesday, and is averaging 25.8 points -- while shooting an amazing 79.2 percent -- and 11.7 rebounds in his last six games.

The All-Star scored 25 points and grabbed 10 boards in the Magic's 97-83 loss to the Pistons (33-19) on Dec. 8, and is averaging 19.5 points and 14.0 rebounds in his last four games against them.

But Howard's impressive numbers have rarely led to wins against Detroit, as Orlando has lost eight of its last 10 games to the Pistons. The Magic also have had little luck winning at the Palace of Auburn Hills, losing four straight, and nine of 11 there.

While the Magic are dropping in the standings and struggling on the road, the Pistons have won six of their last seven home games and are coming off an 84-83 win at Milwaukee on Tuesday for their eighth win in the last nine games.

The Pistons have been winning with their stellar defense as they've held seven of their last nine opponents to 90 points or less.

"We stay poised down the stretch no matter what the score is, no matter who the opponent is," guard Chauncey Billups said. "We get what we want."

Billups scored 19 points on Tuesday, and is averaging 13.8 points -- nearly four below his season average -- in his last five games.

The two-time All-Star has been terrific against the Magic lately as he scored a season-high 31 points on 11-of-16 shooting in the Pistons' December road win over them. Billups is averaging 26.0 points and has made 10-of-19 from beyond the 3-point arc in his last four games against them.

Richard Hamilton, who averages a team-high 21.5 points, scored just 12 against the Bucks, and said he injured his right hand in Sunday's All-Star game and it remains a "little sore." Hamilton had 14 points and a season-high 10 rebounds against the Magic in December for his first double-double of the season.

These teams complete their home-and-home series Friday in Orlando.



DARKOFEST!!
WELCOME HOME!!

http://i.a.cnn.net/si/2004/writers/pete_mcentegart/06/23/ten.spot/tx_milicic_getty.jpg

http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/8/80/200px-DarkoMilicic_ESPNmag_cover1_Jun2003.jpg

http://lizakicukierki.republika.pl/img/darko.jpg

This guy's name is Darko too:
http://ipg.zesoi.fer.hr/petkovic/ekoloske_vijesti/Slike/v_darko.jpg

alsohicarlos
http://espn-att.starwave.com/i/nba/profiles/players/35x48/3585.jpg

Damn them and their TV20 shit!

We have a chance to improve our pick by one spot with these games (Miami is going to pass them eventually, but we can control that now), and maybe more. Beat them twice and send them in a downward spiral.

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarkooo..........

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarkooo..........

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarkooo..........

I'm wondering if Darko has his own sticker like Dwight Howard does.

http://www.putrid.com/images/amway.gif

kR2YfYqoLoI

one of the saddest moments in sports. watch Darko's reaction after he gets stuffed by the rim. you almost want to give him a hug.

PuCXaf-0fzk

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/8531/oneko2.jpg

I hope the pick stays around the 8-18 range. Not too sure about Joe with lotto picks :p

Pistons will win: 87-75. Darko drops a triple dub.

I thought the pick was lottery protected...

Top 5 protected.

I thought it was top 3, but it is 5. whatever, same thing, the magic won't fall that far.

I thought it was top 7?

It's Top 7 if I recall, for 07, and unprotected in 08 if we don't get it in 07. The 9th or 10th pick would be fantastic

Google search and sort of combination of "darko, draft pick, protection, lottery, pistons, magic" and there is talk about it being 5. NBAdraft.net has it as 5.

I swear I thought it was lottery protected. Of course, at times, I am wrong... and this appears to be one of those times. Ah well.

Yeah according to an ESPN article I just found from the trade it's Top 5 protected. Not too bad. They'd have to fall really hard to get 4 or 5 anyways. and lottery was always out of the question (as far as us getting the pick)

CDub out with a digititus to optical illuminus (left) or a finger to the left eye.

And a Tech on Rasheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed Wallace and another on Rip.

Damn, Dwight Howard is a beast. And I bet a lot of cats on "The Mount Rushmore of Dunking" would like to change the score they gave him on the sticker-oop.
http://i15.tinypic.com/4h9zoux.jpg

L Hunter has been playing better lately. A spark of the bench

DH is a beast.

Does anybody here still think Busto is going to be a star?

I think Paul Silas is right, career journeyman.

I think his b-ball IQ is just too low to become great anymore. Time will tell.

D Howard is probably my favorite non-Piston, now that KG turned bitch.

If DH wasn't so damn preachy, if the Magic uni's weren't horrid and if Orl wasn't owned by a con artist, I'd consider a jersey purchase.

Did I just hear 30 FT attempts by the OMag this HALF? WTF? Seriously WTF? I hope I heard that wrong.

I'm hoping Tay's injury is a rasberry on the knee and not a diconecti meticulus kneeus.

Joe may have to get us a backup for Tay tomorrow now.

Touchy calls by the ref. The techs were ridiculous. NBA refs are really bad lately.

dwight howard is 100 percent athlete. his shooting stroke sucks though.

He seems okay, thank goodness. That was potential title-hope-ending.

D Howard is probably my favorite non-Piston, now that KG turned bitch.

If DH wasn't so damn preachy, if the Magic uni's weren't horrid and if Orl wasn't owned by a con artist, I'd consider a jersey purchase.
factoring your atheist views on the christian phenom? tisk tisk

A 62 point half? When did we turn into Phoenix?

FWIW, DH is shaping up to be a darn good Christian role-model. Even the atheists out there ought to admire the fact that he's stuck to his guns even with the state of culture in the NBA.

the cav game is well into the 4th, we're just starting the break.

30 free throws will do that.

Did they just slip Tay a Vicodin?

Brian Hill: "This is fucking ridiculous!"[smilie=laugh.gif]

1st quarter took about 50 mins. A gagillion foul calls.

was tay's injury bad? didnt see it. i wouldnt mind him sitting down for a few weeks. im 95% our record and seeding are completely meaningless, might as well get fresh.

He went down at half court on a fast break and went screeching down the floor. It sounded like fingers on a chalk board, but he got up and shot his FTs.

Man, nice lob to Rasheed from CWebb.

I would reeealy like to hear a We Want Darko chant during this blowout 4th quarter.

1.) is there a mercy rule?

2.) theres some obnoxious Darko hecklers out there. some drunk bafoon screaming "you only have 5 points!!!!!" repeatedly. I think its jon green in disguise. [smilie=jefffoster.:

A few observations from the game:

I wonder how many offensive fouls Dice gets. He seems to average at least one a game for an illegal screen. Kinda funny.

Billups defense seems to be a little lax as of late. He's been allowing the opposing point guards to rack up some points.

Flip Murray just flat out sucks.

C. Webb looks like he's having fun.

Orlando really looks like a one man team now.


That's all.

Good win. C-Webb was unstoppable in the 2nd half. Great to see him unleash the arsenal. Chauncey was solid offensively, mediocre defensively. good to see Max get 6 pts and 6 boards in less than a quarter of playing time. He needs more stints like that. Rebounding will always be key for him. Delfino made some plays in everyway but scoring (as usual). Lindsey played great.

Hopefully we get more of the same on Friday.

You know, I'm becoming more and more content with Delfino making plays but not scoring. It's become obvious that he's not going to be the scorer off the bench that everyone wants him to be, but once Hunter leaves, he could be the bigtime hustle and defense guy coming off the bench. You always need someone like that to rejuvinate the team. We just need to get him into slasher mode on offense, something to work on in the offseason. He's solid on defense, plays hard, and is respectable enough on offense that teams can't ignore him. There's nothing wrong with that.

chauncy doesnt guard little guys too well. not a big deal, not many players in the nba do. and more importantly, when it comes down to it, chuancy will absolutely obliterate them at the other end.

i saw some old game tape of wilt chamberlain on espn the other day. i have to say him and dwight have damn near the exact same body and athletecism. and yea, im saying dwight could become one of the very greatest players of all time.

When Darko fumbled the ball out of bounds off his feet , they cut to Billups on the bench and I swear he mouthed "Bitchass"

The Magic did not look like a playoff team last night, that's for sure.

Let's see how they look at home tomorrow.


Brian Hill: "This is fucking ridiculous!"[smilie=laugh.gif]That was awesome.


factoring your atheist views on the christian phenom? tisk tisk Naw, not really. I see a distinction between preachy (pushing your views on others) and being devout (feeling strongly about something).

Exhibit A: http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=1769153


"I want to be able to speak to non-Christians so that I can get them saved or change their lives around," Howard said before last week's Roundball Classic in Chicago.

Glenn he was talking about the potential christians in the spiritual voting market. the hardcore atheists need not apply. :yingyang: [smilie=llama_banan:


probably was preachy, too bad its a factor for ya'

Anybody have any updates on Tay's knee?

Anybody have any updates on Tay's knee?
http://espn.go.com/photo/2007/0221/nba_ap_wade_275.jpg

http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/sp/getty/55/fullj.getty-71797611ae005_pistons_magic_9_21_15_pm.jpg

Anybody have any updates on Tay's knee?

Yeah, it looks like he has a knee.

http://img230.imageshack.us/img230/3096/moochae3.jpg

Smilie that, I had to make it myself because there was no mooch.

Nice use of the off-arm, CDel. Even better dunking on that overrated specialist JJ Reddick.

And didn't Howard say he wanted to change the NBA logo to the cross at one point?

Glenn he was talking about the potential christians in the spiritual voting market. the hardcore atheists need not apply. :yingyang: [smilie=llama_banan:


probably was preachy, too bad its a factor for ya'

born agains are very misunderstood. they got to save your soul or they arent doing their job.

Theres much worse things to be adamant about in life. I prefer him heckling Glenn about catching some holy ghost, rather than fighting at the strip club like stephen jackson.

I like Howard, but if he shows up on my front porch with a copy of Watchtower Magazine, he's getting the door slammed in his face.

I like Howard, but if he shows up on my front porch with a copy of Watchtower Magazine, he's getting the door slammed in his face.
you have a tall well reinforced door at your home. you never know if he's a hardcore "beat the holy ghost into you" type. either way those arent christians who do that. they are those punkass witnesses. totally different.[smilie=peepwall.gi:

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarkooo..........

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarkooo..........

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarkooo..........

Part Deux.

How much does home court matter in the NBA?

The Pistons beat the Magic at home two days ago by 22 points.

Tonight in Orlando, they are favored by 2.5

How much does home court matter in the NBA?

The Pistons beat the Magic at home two days ago by 22 points.

Tonight in Orlando, they are favored by 2.5

2.5? Thats the highest I've seen it. 1.5 is more like it.

My bad. Looks about right. It might have moved over the night.

It's the house that Darko built.

i saw 3. shocking. in my head i figured 8 sounded about right. didnt we just blow them out? hmmm... keeping myself from gambling on tonight's game is going to be pretty hard.

damn, fell asleep, no bet. rats.

We need DD in the game.

We are getting pounded in the paint tonight.

I'm liking Delfi's game more and more. But to be fair, he didn't play like this last year either.

We need DD in the game.

There you go

Dwight wasn't nearly as much a factor with DD in the game, then when Sheed and CWebb are back, it's a Dwight highlight reel.

That was a borderline embarrassing display of interior defense for the most part.

I want to say "Fuck you" to Dwight Howard, but that was a damn good play.

Gone are the days of putting peeps on their wallet when they keep coming in the paint.

I just visualized the way Billy Laims use to do it, hard foul and simply walk over to his spot for the guys FT's, while the other team attempted to scrape the player off the floor.

Dale Davis Dunks!!!!

I thought he should have done that the first time he had the ball. Passed it around a little and still got the dunk

Delfino with 7 boards,3 being offensive and 3 steals.

He's a hustla...based on boxscores

This is the best he's played imo. He has hustled and done just everything.

One thing that will make Webber more valuable here is that when he has an off night like tonight, we can pick up the slack. something he hasn't had since his days in sac town.

if Dwight Howard ever develops a post game, the East is in deep trouble.

thank goodness he has none yet.

It wasn't pretty but a good road win. 1 loss so far this month?

I'm liking Delfi's game more and more. But to be fair, he didn't play like this last year either.

And to be fair, he didn't get consistent minutes last year. He was getting DNPs, 2 minute stints, etc. Right now he's got a good idea of how much he's going to play, and when it's going to be. He still doesn't play enough IMO. A guy who can get you 6-7 boards (in 15-18minutes), a couple steals, draw some charges, and play very good D should see more than 15-18 minutes. With the East being the way it is, we don't need Rip playing 40+ per night. It's not going to cost us many (any?) games giving Delfino 5-6 of those.

It's just a shame he doesn't get more minutes with the primary offensive distributers (Webber or Chauncey). He's stuck on the floor with Lindsey, who can't create O or run the break, and Rip, who creates for himself (especially when he's with the 2nd unit). Which leaves him standing in the corner, making pointless cuts (because they won't pass it to him) or waiting on the perimeter for a three point shot. Delfino would be perfect paired with C-Webb. He can feed the post as well as anyone on the team, and C-Webb could get him the easy bucket or two on cuts, to help kickstart his offensive game.

Unfortunately, Flip likes to stack our main unit with offensive-specialists and our 2nd unit with defensive-specialists. There isn't a whole lot of balance.

Delfino with 7 boards,3 being offensive and 3 steals.

He's a hustla...based on boxscores


He def had a lot of energy out there. Especially in the first half when he collected all his rebounds...He was running all around the bigs gobblin up everything.

One thing i just dont get about his game here (on the pistons) is that he doesnt slash like ever. We all see it once in a while...he will run down and throw a power dunk and amaze us. But most of the time he just stands out by the 3 point line and waits...getting out of rythm and then taking a shot that he doesnt seem to want to. Watch his games from the national team and youl see he was primarily a slasher getting quick buckets and hardly ever settling for jumpers. I dont know if its flip just not being comfortable to run an isolation play for a bench player or what, but untill he has the freedom to do that i dont see him ever being a consistant scorer.

Just my 2 cents...

FP22 and robcat911... your posts are somewhat conflicting but both mostly right. Good reads from both of you.

Anyway, good job Pistons for improving our draft pick :thumbs up:

One thing i just dont get about his game here (on the pistons) is that he doesnt slash like ever.
This pissed me off when we brought Flip Murray in. They raved over how he could slash. Why did we need someone else to slash off the bench when we had Delfino? How was FlipM gonna do that and run PG at the same time? And why is Delfino shooting spot-up threes when he's only really wanting to take threes when he's in a rhythm?

GRrr... well, we won, and Delfino was a big part of that, and that's good.

This pissed me off when we brought Flip Murray in. They raved over how he could slash. Why did we need someone else to slash off the bench when we had Delfino? How was FlipM gonna do that and run PG at the same time? And why is Delfino shooting spot-up threes when he's only really wanting to take threes when he's in a rhythm?

GRrr... well, we won, and Delfino was a big part of that, and that's good.

Yeah he slashes just fine into a sure block.

He does a lot of slashing. We bring him in the game and he slashes our lead from 20 to 2.

[QUOTE=FP22]And to be fair, he didn't get consistent minutes last year. He was getting DNPs, 2 minute stints, etc. QUOTE]

Well once he put his the tissue box down, stopped whinning and started playing NBA basketball his minutes went up.

He wasn't this good in years past. Thats not meant as a hack on him, everybody needs time to develop. I just completely disagree that he would have been doing this all along had he got consistent minutes.

Its just my opinion, but I'm right.

This place is hilarious.

Yeah he slashes just fine into a sure block.


Yea he does get blocked when he goes up soft....which you have to expect from a overseas player.....but when you go up stong with it (like max) youl generally at least get a foul called, and thats what i see him doing in the future.

Think back to his dunk on okafor....good times. He should do that....all the time. lol

Yea he does get blocked when he goes up soft....which you have to expect from a overseas player.....but when you go up stong with it (like max) youl generally at least get a foul called, and thats what i see him doing in the future.

Think back to his dunk on okafor....good times. He should do that....all the time. lol
I think he was referring to FlipM getting blocked. Seems like you're talking Fino.

Dwight wasn't nearly as much a factor with DD in the game, then when Sheed and CWebb are back, it's a Dwight highlight reel.
DD has the highest +/- in the game for us, with CWebb having the lowest.

On Orlando's side, Bo Outlaw had the highest +/-, with Darko having the lowest.

A dark foreshadowing of our future if I've ever seen one.

The Magic TV guy (Matt Goukas I think) said that the Pistons "turned the 4th quarter into a root canal."

I loved that line.

Its just my opinion, but I'm right.
you developed a time machine?