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MONDAY, October 13, 2008
Casey (St. Joseph, Mich.): With the way Afflalo has been playing, and our depth in the backcourt, is there any chance he will get some significant time backing up Tayshaun Prince at small forward?
Langlois: He’s making a strong case to crack the rotation, Casey. Michael Curry last week said eight players will see at least 15 minutes a night. Afflalo was in the next group of three – Kwame Brown and Walter Herrmann were the others – who could force their way into the mix depending on the matchup. If Afflalo’s in the game at the same time as Rip Hamilton, one of them will guard the opposition small forward.
Christian (Grosse Pointe, Mich.): I just wanted to thank George Blaha and Greg “Special K” Kelser for all the great work they do. I hope Pistons fans know how lucky we are to have such a great broadcasting crew. It was music to my ears hearing George and Greg do last Wednesday’s game knowing that the season is just around the corner.
Langlois: Thanks for the note, Christian. It’s pretty rare to have both halves of the broadcast equation with the type of longevity and familiarity the Pistons’ pair has. They are as instantly identifiable with the Pistons as the players are.
Terrance (Detroit): Can you really see this team getting much better from the defensive effort they will get from Amir, Maxiell and Brown? Because that’s the key to a championship for me.
Langlois: I’m sure Curry would say that defense requires all five guys on the floor at one time to work as one, and for the individuals within that unit to win their one-on-one battles as the first component. What Amir brings to the starting unit is an element it otherwise doesn’t have in abundance – top-end athleticism and youthful exuberance. I suspect it will take him a while to grow comfortably into a niche with those four veterans, but I don’t think Curry is going to be impulsive in his decisions, either. He’ll give it time, as long as he’s getting the effort he demands and seeing progress. I think the defense overall will be a more consistent force this year. Statistically, there wasn’t much to quibble with about the defense under Flip Saunders. But it wasn’t an everyday thing.
Amy (Ecorse, Mich.): I want to know why Rasheed Wallace changed his uniform number from 36 to 30.
Langlois: OK, time for a new Mailbag FAQ.
Brian (Lansing, Mich.): I’m a huge Sheed fan – great player, great person. But in looking at a team like Portland, which seems to have a surplus of young bigs, it seems like it will have to move somebody – Frye, Webster, Diogu are all restricted free agents next year. What are the chances that a return to Portland is in the cards for Sheed and what’s his motivation this year other than the next contract somewhere else?
Langlois: The Blazers traded Wallace not for basketball reasons but because they had taken huge PR hits – remember the Jail Blazers? – and Wallace, as the most recognizable face, became one of the casualties. So I don’t know that Portland would entertain the idea of revisiting the darkest period in franchise history. But it’s a little cynical, don’t you think, to question what Wallace’s motivation for this season would be? He’s after another championship. To the extent he’s conscious of his contract status, he knows that nothing would enhance it quite like carrying the Pistons to another title.
Sam (West Lafayette, Ind.): The Pistons are the deepest team in the NBA this year, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a team with this much depth.
Langlois: I think when you get down to 10, 11 and 12 these Pistons might have better quality than even the old Bad Boys. But when you talk about one through nine, I’d hold off just yet. Rodney Stuckey, Antonio McDyess and Jason Maxiell indeed would be the envy of most, if not all, of today’s NBA teams. But the 1988-89 champions came off the bench with Vinnie Johnson, Dennis Rodman, John Salley and James Edwards. That group alone, given a competent point guard to round out the lineup, would have been enough to qualify for the playoffs. Then again, it’s an apples and oranges comparison. There were 25 teams in the league that year and the salary cap was not a concern. There’s no way you could amass a bench quite like that one today … although I think this one is the modern-day equivalent.
Mike (East Lansing, Mich.): The best way to use Stuckey is in a lineup with him, Afflalo and Rip; or him, Billups and Prince. Switching those two lineups throughout the game for the 30 minutes that Stuckey is in would definitely qualify as change of pace.
Langlois: The lineup of Stuckey, Afflalo and Billups played superbly together in last week’s preseason win over Milwaukee, too. I think Stuckey is versatile and dynamic enough that he’ll produce positive results no matter which two of the four or five other perimeter players – don’t forget Walter Herrmann as a possibility, either – he’s out there with.
Mac (San Diego): I’m a loyal Pistons fan, but tell me why I should believe this year will be different than any other. I’m always positive, but I do believe we are the Braves of the NBA. Am I to assume the bench and the coach will make the difference?
Langlois: If you mean can I promise you the Pistons will win the NBA championship this year, sorry, no can do. But I can present a compelling case as to why they go into this season as one of a handful among 30 teams that can say they’ll be in the thick of the fight. They have four players in their starting lineup among the best at their position in the league. They have four young players – Stuckey, Afflalo, Johnson and Maxiell – with considerable room for growth. As much help as they got from their bench in spurts last year, this year’s bench should be markedly better for two reasons: (1) Stuckey, Afflalo and Johnson, at least, will be better; and (2) Michael Curry is going to give them consistent minutes, which will facilitate their progress. Curry’s emphasis on conditioning and defense will make them a more consistently overpowering team defensively. His philosophical shift offensively – getting more players with their hands on the ball, designed to make them less predictable and yield a greater amount of high-percentage shots – should pay dividends in the playoffs, when familiarity tends to smother offenses. Does that add up to a championship? It at least adds up to an honest stab at one. Isn’t the uncertainty of sports a huge part of its appeal?
Sam (St. Louis, Mo.): Last year Flip had a tendency to go back to the starters regardless of their performance. Do you see Curry’s talk about accountability changing that? For example, would he let Afflalo finish a game if Rip was struggling?
Langlois: He won’t be impulsive, Sam. He knows and values the history of his core group. But he tells them the only objective worth chasing is winning and I expect he’ll live by the same creed. If he determines that Arron Afflalo would give him a better chance at winning than Rip Hamilton at that particular moment, I wouldn’t expect him to hesitate. But it won’t be a decision he’d make lightly. He’d have to be convinced that Hamilton – the team’s leading scorer six straight seasons and an All-Star the past three – couldn’t perform as well under the circumstances as Afflalo, and it would take some pretty powerful evidence over the first three quarters for him to come to that conclusion.
Mark (Grand Rapids, Mich.): I’m thinking that the Pistons’ first Sixth Man award since Corliss Williamson is probable this year with Stuckey. Who do you think stands in his way?
Langlois: Manu Ginobili is out for several weeks to start the season, but if Gregg Popovich continues to use him off the bench, he’ll be tough to beat. Leandro Barbosa is another perennial contender. Ben Gordon, if Chicago’s backcourt situation is resolved so that he comes off the bench, will be gunning for a contract and should put up big numbers. New Orleans gave James Posey big money and intends to give him starter’s minutes off its bench, so he’ll be a factor. But Stuckey should be right in the thick of it.
Josh (Ann Arbor, Mich.): I see all the time clips from some point in the Bad Boys era where players wore both the first and last name on jersey. Why was that?
Langlois: Unless there were two players with the same last name on the same team, I can’t recall that. There was a season where Isiah Thomas’ old Indiana teammate, Jim Thomas, was with the team during the preseason. Even though he didn’t stick around, Isiah’s jerseys for that season contained his full name.
Josh (Hsinchu, Taiwan): What’s up with Amir’s foul trouble so far? If he’s working on his defense, can’t he get the fouls under control? Secondly, after watching Bill Walker play for the Celtics so far, does Joe Dumars regret trading to pick up Walter Sharpe and Trent Plaisted instead of just drafting Walker?
Langlois: Amir knows he has a tendency to pick up fouls in bunches. Right now he’s struggling, too, with the fact that he’s guarding starters, many of them veterans with greater strength and experience. But it’s the preseason. Better he get this kind of indoctrination now than a few months from now. As for the draft, it’s a little early to draw any conclusions. The Pistons were well aware of Walker’s ability – and also of his medical history. They like Sharpe’s growth potential. And Michael Curry is a big fan of Plaisted.
Josh (London): Kwame played his best basketball as a Piston in the beginning of the Washington game and was one of the reasons they ran away with the game. Later on, he was inserted into the lineup alongside Detroit’s four perennial starters instead of Amir. Is Michael Curry still trying to figure out which of his big men should start?
Langlois: He’s said all along he wants to experiment with his big men combinations. I think it’s pretty safe to say that all three of the young big guys are going to have the best brought out in them by playing alongside Rasheed Wallace, simply because he’s the most versatile and savvy among the bunch. I think Curry really wants to see Johnson thrive as the starter, but if he thinks a different combination would benefit the team, he won’t hesitate to alter the lineup.
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