This item is for discussion of professional basketball, including 
anything related to the Pistons.

11 responses total.

Who will be the next coach of the Detroit Pistons?  Tom Izzo of Michigan 
State has made it pretty clear he doesn't want to leave the Spartans.  
Joe Dumars, the president of the Pistons, has said he's not really 
interested in any other college coaches.  

George Irvine was hired last year to make Grant Hill happy, and then 
when Hill left for Orlando anyway, Irvine was fired as soon as it was 
convenient.  Did he get a raw deal?

I'm thinking the Pistons will try to bring in a high-profile coach who 
appeals to high-profile players, such as Chris Webber.  They really want 
to bring in Webber.  Every NBA team needs a superstar or two to win, and 
Webber's the best available star.

A lot of buzz has been generated by the possibility of Michael Jordan 
returning to the NBA, this time as a member of the Washington Wizards.  
Rumors have been floating around since shortly after Mario Lemieux 
returned to hockey.

Jordan lived his whole adult life in the center of fame and adulation.  
It must be pretty hard to know you could come back and get a lot of that 
back, and that you're capable of playing pretty well.  I can see why he 
would want to come back.

He retired twice, each time after leading his team, the Chicago Bulls, 
to a series of 3 consecutive NBA championships.  His last play was a 
buzzer shot to come from behind for the win in the NBA championship.  
Everyone who watched knew what was going to happen.  Jordan was going to 
shoot, and he was going to make the shot.  It was a Jordan moment.  How 
could he ever hope to match that?  It was a great way to end a career.

For that reason, and because it's unthinkable to imagine him in another 
NBA team's uniform, I hope he doesn't come out of retirement.

But if he does, I'll watch.

He would be better off staying retired, having gone out on top - 6 
straight NBA championships the last 6 years he played.  If he comes back 
with any team less than one that is on the brink of winning it all - say 
LA Lakers or San Antonio - I would think he would be miserable.  By 
himself, he will not transform a mediocre team into a contender.

Right, I agree.  If he could turn the team from bad to good by just 
being there, he could do it as the president.

Wouldn't you watch the games if he came back?

Athletes, sadly, have more desire than perspective.  Everybody can see that
Michael should stay retired, but I"m not sure that he does.  I had been
figuring that all the speculation was just speculation, but an interview that
Mario Lemieux (whose comeback was far more appropriate and can only be topped
if he wins the Stanley Cup) did with the Hockey News has changed my mind. 
He's talked to Jordan.  "I can't comment on that," he says, and then goes on
to talk about what a Jordan comeback would bring to the table in a positive
manner.

Well... but why *should* he stay retired, if he wants to play 
basketball?  So we'll all remember him as Air Jordan, who won 6 NBA 
championships?  We will anyway.  We all remember Muhammad Ali for his 
spectacular career, and not for the shadow of his former self that lost 
a few rounds at the end, don't we?  And we always will.  We'll always 
remember Air Jordan, too.  (No one thinks of him primarily as a failed 
baseball player, do they?)  If Michael Jordan wants to come back again, 
geez, he's only 38 years old.  If he can still make a few shots, let 
him.  It's his life.

Maybe it would be better for everyone else if he'd start a Senior NBA 
league, like the senior golf circuit, and play with other elder 
statesmen like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird.  Who else could make that 
work but Michael Jordan?

From a certain POV, MJ coming back might be bad for the NBA, PR-wise, either
way (of course the NBA is "hurting" anyway):  If MJ fails, it looks like a
failed gimmicky sales schtick.  If MJ succeeds, what does that say about the
NBA, if a 38-year-old player - regardless of how good he was in his prime -
can thrive?  Don't look for any MJ un-retire endorsements from Com. Stern.

Re #1: Mark my words: Chris Webber will never be a Detroit Piston. Anyone who
thinks otherwise is deluded. I'm getting a little sick of seeing sportscasters
and the public (and apparently Pistons officials, as well) talking about
making a strong push for CWebb. There are going to be a lot of disappointed
people around here after he signs elsewhere. What really bothers me though,
is that people have consistently ignored his very clear signals that he
doesn't want to play here. Which means the Pistons will waste a lot of time
and effort on what will ultimately result in failure. They will then scramble
for some other players and then spend the year trying to explain their
incompetence. If Dumars does not have a carefully thought out Plan B, he may
end up losing his job in the fallout.

So what kind of plan B would you recommend he have?  Webber is the 
biggest star that's a free agent, and everyone wants to sign him.  In 
the NBA, you either have big stars, or you don't compete in the playoffs 
and don't draw fans.  There aren't any magnificent stars coming out of 
college or high school, except maybe Loren Woods; Dumars can't count on 
getting him and can't control whether he gets him or not.

Plan B has to be to build the components of a good team and wait for 
next year to sign or draft some big star.  The media aren't going to 
write stories about that.  All you're going to hear about is Webber, no 
matter what Dumars is really doing.

The Pistons coach for 2001-2002 & 2002-2003 was Rick Carlylse (sp).

The Pistons coach for 2003-2004 & 2004-2005 was/is Larry Brown.

The Pistons were NBA champs in 2004, beating LA in a "5-game sweep".

Heard on sports radio:  Supposedly it is being considered for the NBA to not
allow 3-point baskets until the last 5 minutes of a game.  If true, what the
heck are "they" thinking?!  What, there's too much hoisting of long bombs,
lowering shooting percentages, making for lower scoring?  And they think that
requiring teams to get their points closer in is going to solve anything?
The only thing to counter the clogging of the lane is the threat of 3-point
"punishment".  I hope this is just another bad idea that dies a deserved early
death.

Response not possible - You must register and login before posting.

- Backtalk version 1.3.30 - Copyright 1996-2006, Jan Wolter and Steve Weiss