Lakers 93 Pistons 85 Final

[biggunsbob]

Preview

Detroit
(23-39)
Los Angeles
(16-46)



http://espn.go.com/nba/preview?id=400579243

All-Time

Primary team FtW/Detroit: 149-228 in these games.
Points for FtW/Detroit: 38396
Points against FtW/Detroit: 39637

 

[everyoneneedsasmil]

The Lakers are horrible, and the Pistons should win tonight. That said, I hope the Pistons lose. A high pick is more valuable than a meaningless win right now.

This offseason is feeling depressing already. Monroe is all but gone. SVG has been a great coach but pretty poor GM. Jackson was not the answer and should definitely not be retained for big money. Drummond is the only player on the team with a bright future. Ideally the team can find a true running mate for Andre, but I don't see it without lucking out in the lottery.

 

[sggatecl]

35 three pointers...hilarious. People will try to blame this on Reggie Jackson but everyone not named Monroe or Drummond looked awful. Meeks was meh.

 

[xer0]

Reggie Jackson is trash.

 

[tomdalton22]

35 three pointers...hilarious. People will try to blame this on Reggie Jackson but everyone not named Monroe or Drummond looked awful. Meeks was meh.

This roster is terrible. Looks like SVG getting rid of J Smoove was a great move until he traded for J Smoove Jr! That may be the worst performance of the year by a Piston PG. 1-9 shooting, 0-4 from 3, 3 assists and 5 turnovers. WOW

 

[dubbsco]

The whole team sucked. Don't pin it on him. Tolliver 1-7, Dinwiddie 1-6, Meeks 4-10, KCP 5-14.

 

[tomdalton22]

The whole team sucked. Don't pin it on him. Tolliver 1-7, Dinwiddie 1-6, Meeks 4-10, KCP 5-14.

Tolliver & Dinwiddie should never be playing 20+ minutes a game. They are end of the bench type players. I think at minimum you want a player to have at least as many points as shots. KCP had 15 points on 14 shots which is fine. Meeks had 12 points on 10 shots which is also fine.

 

[everyoneneedsasmil]

The team has 2 players with real talent/skill: Drummond and Monroe. The system was able to make that work for a while when it had fitting pieces (dropping Smith, shooters at 4 positions). Since Jennings went down and then the trades, the team has gone back to the ill-fitting Smith team from the start of the year.

We have no PGs that can shoot. Both our SGs are average at best shooters. Our SFs can't shoot. Tolliver is an acceptable shooter for a PF.

If we look at the trades, I think the team might actually have planned to tank. Singler was the best shooter on the team, Jonas was the best shooter at PF, and Augustin was the best shooter at PG. A team that was finding success with the 1-in, 4-out style essentially dumped all their best shooters for an inefficient scoring guard and a washed up veteran. The names and media purported value of each player makes the trades look like an attempt to compete, but the reality of the situation is that SVG actively crapped on a working system for something we have already seen DOESN'T work. Maybe he's a better GM than I've been thinking to this point.

 

[biggunsbob]

The trade unfortunately made this team worse.. SVG and his staff over valuated Jackson and we gave up 2 decent role players for him make the team worse then before..

Team lost by 8 points and our point guard stunk.

Jackson was 1 for 9 and 0-4 from three for 2 points 3 assists, 2 rebounds and 5 turnovers. Did he get hurt or benched? The thing about DJ was he hardly ever turned the ball over.. Now he wasn't a 40 minute guy but he was a 15-20 minute nice bench player... I hate this trade more and more each day.

 

[biggunsbob]

The team has 2 players with real talent/skill: Drummond and Monroe. The system was able to make that work for a while when it had fitting pieces (dropping Smith, shooters at 4 positions). Since Jennings went down and then the trades, the team has gone back to the ill-fitting Smith team from the start of the year.

We have no PGs that can shoot. Both our SGs are average at best shooters. Our SFs can't shoot. Tolliver is an acceptable shooter for a PF.

If we look at the trades, I think the team might actually have planned to tank. Singler was the best shooter on the team, Jonas was the best shooter at PF, and Augustin was the best shooter at PG. A team that was finding success with the 1-in, 4-out style essentially dumped all their best shooters for an inefficient scoring guard and a washed up veteran. The names and media purported value of each player makes the trades look like an attempt to compete, but the reality of the situation is that SVG actively crapped on a working system for something we have already seen DOESN'T work. Maybe he's a better GM than I've been thinking to this point.

I hope you are right

 

[dubbsco]

SVG is the best thing to happen to this program in a long time. They'll be competitive in a couple years. Joe D truly did lasting damage to these guys.

 

[everyoneneedsasmil]

I'm starting to really believe the tanking plan. Look, SVG the coach is too passionate and demanding to actively lose games. But SVG the GM may very well be smart enough to realize that no one can win with a team of ill-fitting, untalented players. Honestly, we don't know that SVG actually expected to get better by dropping Smith. That may have been an early ploy to race for the top pick.

Plans changed when the team started winning, but the season has essentially been over since Jennings' injury. The problem was that things were actually working too well at that point. The trades, if you look at them as a total process rather than individual moves, points directly to tanking. Jerebko was actually one of our best players on a per-minute basis, but he was also a free agent this summer. Singler was our best SF, but again a free agent. Augustin was playing too well in the starting role. SVG the GM decided to dump anyone who was getting in the way of tanking and who wasn't going to be around long term.

SVG is taking the road Joe D never had the stomach for. He gave the team half a season to build an assessment, but is actually following through with how that assessment turned out. Detroit is not going to land free agents, and players want out. The only way to truly turn things around is by finding new core players that can develop the team into something completely new. A two-man core that actually fits (ideally Russell-Drummond or Mudiay-Drummond) could do that. It's a lot easier to fill in with role players when you have stars to carry the main load.

 

[tomdalton22]

With the lack of talent on this team I think they are going to be forced to try and keep Monroe.

 

[everyoneneedsasmil]

With the lack of talent on this team I think they are going to be forced to try and keep Monroe.

I hardly think you need the word "forced" there. Monroe is a good player. In fact, I think most advanced metrics would say he is our BEST player. He's also pretty easily worth a market max contract this year. There's no reason NOT to offer him that unless we get a top 2 pick and intend to take Okafor or Towns.