Detroit Pistons Blog – Page 96 – NBA Blog

Pistons summer league team roster

The Detroit Pistons announced today their roster for the NBA Summer League presented by EA Sports in Las Vegas, NV. The Pistons will play five games versus L.A. Lakers, L.A. Clippers, Milwaukee, Dallas and Charlotte from July 11 through July 18. All games will be played at the Thomas & Mack Center or Cox Pavilion located on the campus of UNLV.

InsideHoops.com will have full summer league info and coverage. Our initial info update comes tonight or Tuesday.

Following is the Pistons Summer League Roster:

NO PLAYER POS HT WT COLLEGE/COUNTRY BIRTHDATE NBA EXP.

6 Alex Acker G 6-5 185 Pepperdine 1/21/83 1 year
28 Arron Afflalo G 6-5 215 UCLA 10/15/85 1 year
23 Derrick Allen F 6-8 238 Mississippi 7/17/80 R
7 Will Bynum G 6-0 185 Georgia Tech 1/4/83 1 year
34 Ryvon Coville F 6-9 250 Detroit 3/1/84 R
20 Kentrell Gransberry F/C 6-9 270 South Florida 8/1/85 R
25 Amir Johnson F 6-9 210 Westchester HS (L.A.) 5/1/87 3 years
44 Trent Plaisted F 6-11 245 BYU 10/20/86 R
35 Cheikh Samb C 7-1 195 Senegal 10/22/84 1 year
14 Walter Sharpe F 6-9 245 Alabama-Birmingham 7/16/86 R
12 Marcus Stout G 6-4 195 Fordham 6/20/86 R
3 Rodney Stuckey G 6-5 205 Eastern Washington 4/21/86 1 year
8 Deron Washington G/F 6-7 210 Virginia Tech 12/12/85 R

Chris Douglas-Roberts got bad draft advice

The Detroit News (Chris McCosky) reports: “Chris Douglas-Roberts was never an option for the Pistons, and the fact that he fell to No. 40 in the draft was like a reality check from the basketball gods. The Pistons were the first team to call him. Even before official workouts began, the Pistons asked Douglas-Roberts, a kid from Detroit, if he wanted to begin his workouts with them. He refused. They asked him again the Monday of draft week if he wanted to conclude his workouts with the Pistons. He refused again. Douglas-Roberts got some bad advice. He thought he would be picked a lot higher than No. 29. Instead, by refusing to work out for the last 10 teams in the draft, he cost himself first-round guaranteed money.”

Pistons have made good late first round picks

The Detroit News (Chris McCosky) reports: Here’s the thing about the Pistons and late first-round picks — they don’t generally throw them away. In the past few years they have plucked Arron Afflalo (27th), Jason Maxiell (26th), Carlos Delfino (25th) and Tayshaun Prince (23rd) out of the back end of the draft. So with the 29th pick tonight in the NBA draft, the Pistons are expecting to get another useful player. “No question, the goal is to get value, get the best player regardless of where you pick them,” Scott Perry, Pistons vice president of basketball, said. “That’s the rewarding part of the evaluation and scouting process. To be able to find a player in the later stages who can become an integral part of your rotation, that’s really the exciting part.”

Pistons coach Michael Curry has his assistants

New Pistons head coach Michael Curry now has his assistants.

Detroit Pistons President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars announced today that the team has signed Darrell Walker, Pat Sullivan and Harold Ellis as assistant coaches.

See more info here.

The big question for Detroit is what their roster will look like last year. I was surprised that Flip Saunders got fired. The team had a terrific regular season, and they were better than everyone in the East except the team that wound up winning the league championship. It’s not like they lost to the Hawks or Wizards or something. But still, management seems to feel change has to happen, and Rasheed Wallace and Chauncey Billups, two guys getting up there in age a little, are still the favorites to go, if any of the core does get sent away.

Mark Madsen cannot believe Flip Saunders was fired

Mark Madsen writing on his own blog: “I cannot believe that Flip Saunders was fired. I cannot believe it. This man can flat out coach and while I hope that the Pistons have success in the future, let’s not forget that Flips tenure as head coach of Detroit took the Pistons deep into the playoffs every year. Coaching is not an exact science and it’s not easy at the NBA level with mature and grown men all of whom have strong competitive natures. I wish Detroit well, but they lost a gem with Flip.”

Michael Curry to be new Pistons coach

The Detroit Pistons have called a press conference for Tuesday, June 10 to announce the team’s new head coach.

The AP reports: Michael Curry will be the next coach of the Detroit Pistons after having played for the team and worked as an assistant… Curry agreed to a three-year deal worth $2.5 million a year, with the team holding the option for a fourth season.

Phoenix Suns hire Terry Porter as new head coach

The Phoenix Suns named Terry Porter the 13th head coach in franchise history, the club announced today.

“We are excited to have Terry as our new head coach,” said Suns President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Steve Kerr. “He is a strong leader and communicator, as fans of the NBA have seen since his days as a point guard. He is a tough-nosed competitor. Those qualities only enhance his experience as a head coach and assistant and provide a tremendous foundation for him to lead our basketball team.”

In Porter’s 22-year NBA tenure, his teams have made a staggering 20 playoff appearances, including two trips to the NBA Finals (1990, ‘92), six appearances in the conference finals (‘90, ’91, ’92, ’01, ’07, ’08) and eight division championships (’91, ’92, ’99, ’01, ’02, ’03, ’07, ’08). The former guard’s career spans two seasons as a head coach (Milwaukee), three as an assistant coach (Sacramento, Detroit) and 17 as a player in the NBA (Portland, Minnesota, Miami, San Antonio). It includes experience under some of the most respected coaches in league history: Jack Ramsay (1985-86), Rick Adelman (1989-94; 2002-03), Flip Saunders (1995-98; 2006-08), Pat Riley (1998-99) and Gregg Popovich (1999-02).

Porter takes the reins of his second NBA team after serving as the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2003-04 and 2004-05 seasons. In his rookie campaign, Porter’s Bucks were the highest scoring team in the Eastern Conference (fourth-highest in the NBA) while committing the East’s fewest turnovers. Milwaukee earned a playoff berth that season before being defeated by the eventual NBA Champion Detroit Pistons. The loss of starting point guard T.J. Ford for the entire 2004-05 season limited the club to a 30-52 record the following year. In two seasons with the Bucks, Porter’s clubs went a combined 71-93 and were an impressive 50-32 at home.

Porter’s wide-ranging basketball expertise is evident on both sides of the floor. As a player, his teams in Portland (1985-95) and Minnesota (1995-98) ranked in the top four in scoring offense in nine of his first 13 NBA seasons, including a league-best 117.9-point average in 1986-87 with the Trail Blazers. His last four seasons were spent in Miami (1998-99) and San Antonio (1999-2002) with clubs that each finished in the top three in scoring defense. As an assistant coach with Sacramento in 2002-03, the Kings finished third in the NBA in scoring offense. Porter takes the Suns’ helm after serving the last two seasons (2006-08) as an assistant with Detroit, who ranked in the top two in scoring defense both campaigns, and allowed a league-low 90.1 points in 2007-08.

The Milwaukee native is a two-time NBA All-Star (1991, 1993) and won the 1993 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, an honor also earned by Suns legend Kevin Johnson (1990-91) and current guard Steve Nash (2006-07). In 17 NBA seasons as a player, Porter established career averages of 12.2 points and 5.6 assists in 1,274 games after originally being selected with the 24th overall pick of the 1985 NBA Draft by Portland. The 6-3 guard retired following the 2002 season with 7,160 career assists, 11th-most in NBA history, including 5,319 assists as a member of the Trail Blazers, which still stands as a franchise record. Porter also still holds the NBA Finals record for most free-throws made in a single game without a miss (15; June 7, 1990).

The youngest of six children, Porter received his degree in communications from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. In 1999, he was given the university’s Distinguished Alumnus Award.

Pistons may want Mike Woodson

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Sekou Smith) reports the following via blog: According to my spy the Detroit Pistons have asked for permission to speak with Hawks coach Mike Woodson (that’s his title for at least the next 26 days or so unless something breaks before the end of the month) about their vacant coaching position. Solid reports out of Detroit have Pistons assistant Michael Curry lined up for the job. But the Pistons have apparently covered their bases if that doesn’t work out by contacting the representative of Woodson, who was the lead assistant on Larry Brown’s staff when the Pistons won the NBA title in 2004.

Why the Celtics reached the Finals

NBA.com writes: “5) They finally figured out how to win on the road. After failing to do so against Cleveland and Atlanta, Boston managed to pull off two victories in Detroit against one of the best home teams in basketball. 4) Outside of a disappointing Game 2, the C’s stayed strong at home. Boston went undefeated on its homecourt in its first two series and didn’t blink after dropping one at the Garden. 3) After having a rough postseason, Ray Allen finally awoke for big performances in Games 5 and 6. The “Big Three” was starting to look more like a dynamic duo, but Allen pulled himself together in the final two games of the series, erupting for 29 points in Game 5 and posting 17 on Friday. 2) The Celtics figured out how to disrupt every aspect of Tayshaun Prince’s game. Boston held him to 6.3 points per game over the prior three contests and didn’t stop in Game 6. He struggled, going 3-of-10 from the field on Friday. Even after coming up with a crucial steal in the final minutes, he reverted back to his abnormal form as James Posey came from behind, swiping the ball straight out of his hands and dashing Detroit’s final hopes. The staple of Pistons’ basketball looked anything but against Boston. 1) Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. When you combine the “Truth” with the “Big Ticket” and put them against the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals, you get 44 points per game and a 4-2 series victory.”

May 30: Celtics 89, Pistons 81

The AP reports: Paul Pierce scored 27 points, Ray Allen had 17 and Kevin Garnett added 16 to lift the Boston Celtics to an 89-81 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Friday night in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals… After playing two Game 7s, the Celtics will get a needed break before hosting Kobe Bryant and the Lakers on Thursday night… The Pistons blew a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter and lost in Game 6 of the conference finals for the third straight year. They were eliminated on their home court for the first time during a six-year run that included a trip to the conference finals each year and the 2004 title… Chauncey Billups played well and Richard Hamilton scored 21, but the rest of their teammates had lackluster efforts—especially Rasheed Wallace… Wallace scored just four points on 2-of-12 shooting and had three turnovers in what might’ve been his last game as a Piston and could’ve been Flip Saunders’ last as Detroit’s coach. President of basketball operations Joe Dumars will likely make some sort of moves on the bench, the court or both.

Ticker reports: The Celtics, who avoided a third straight Game Seven this postseason, outscored the Pistons 29-13 in the final period to secure the victory. Boston used a powerful 23-6 run to seal the win… After Jason Maxiell gave Detroit a 74-72 edge with a fadeaway jumper, Pierce sliced through the lane and completed a three-point play to give the Celtics the lead for good with 5:25 remaining… Billups scored 29 points for Detroit, which lost in the Eastern Conference finals for the third straight season. The defeat already has raised questions about the job security of coach Flip Saunders.

InsideHoops.com Stat Notes: The Celtics shot 44.4%, the Pistons 42.0%. Both teams were awful from three-point range. The Celtics hit 20-of-27 free throws, the Pistons 17-of-21. Rebounding was close. The Pistons had 19 assists, the Celtics just 14.

For the Celtics, Pierce (8-of-12, 10-of-13 free throws) had 27 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Ray Allen (6-of-12, 3-of-8 threes) was alive with 17 points and 6 rebounds. Kevin Garnett (just 7-of-16 with a mere 4 free throw attempts) had 16 points and just 6 rebounds with 4 assists. Kendrick Perkins had 7 points and 7 rebounds. Rajon Rondo needed 13 shots for his 11 points and 4 rebounds. James Posey had 4 rebounds and two steals.

For the Pistons, Billups (9-of-20) had 29 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Richard Hamilton (9-of-14) had 21 points and 2 blocks. But then, a severe dropoff: Tayshaun Prince (3-of-10) had 10 points and 4 rebounds. Jason Maxiell (3-of-4) had 7 with 2 steals off the bench. Antonio McDyess (2-of-3) had just 6 points and 6 rebounds. Rasheed Wallace (awful 2-of-12) had 4 points and 10 rebounds. Rodney Stuckey (just 1-of-4) scored 4.