Losing

Ryen Russillo made (approximately) this point the other day on the show: The 76ers, a team trying to lose, are 2-20. The Pistons, a team trying to win, are 4-19. That's kind of depressing if you're a Pistons fan.

?

My interest level in the NBA is somewhere between golf and tennis, but even I was surprised to hear the rumors about Isiah Thomas and the Pistons. The general consensus is that there's no way the Pistons would bring him on as GM and that there's nothing to it. That's got to right, doesn't it? Even I know Thomas was a historically bad GM (largely because Russillo has talked about it). And following Dumars? I know things are a little crazy in Detroit right now, but not that crazy... right?

Three-peat

Would there be a better owner for the Pistons than Mike Ilitch? I can't say I support moving the team downtown, because at least I might go to the Palace to watch a game where I'm not interested in ever setting foot in Detroit ever again, but overall I can't think of a better move for the fans.

Gordon and Villanueva

I don't follow the NBA that closely, but this seems like a pretty big deal for the Pistons.

Yeahbuhwhat?

Iverson for Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess and Cheikh Samb? Why?

Kwame Brown?

Uh, I hope Dumars has something else up his sleeve, because I'm not sure he can convince anyone that Kwame Brown is the answer. Not to any of the questions the Pistons are asking anyway.

Around Detroit

According to the Detroit News, Michael Curry will be introduced as the new coach of the Pistons at a press conference tomorrow. I guess they weren't looking for a guy with experience?

In Red Wings news, Dominik Hasek announced his retirement after 16 seasons as an NHL goalie. Hasek isn't exactly leaving on top after being replaced by Chris Osgood near the beginning of the playoffs, but how many chances do you get to leave after hoisting the Cup?

Flipped

Okay, now that Dumars has tossed coach Flip Saunders, who else are the Pistons going to get rid of? Dumars said: "Make no mistake, everybody's in play now." The consensus seems to be that Rasheed will be dealt (I think I should take the time to note that bringing in Wallace was not the disaster I thought it would be; all things considered, it was a pretty successful move). Here's the most notable names on Detroit's roster:

Chauncey Billups
Rodney Stuckey
Lindsey Hunter
Tayshaun Prince
Antonio McDyess
Richard Hamilton
Rasheed Wallace
Theo Ratliff
Jason Maxiell

Would Dumars really part with Prince, Billups, or Rip? If so, who is out there that's worth pursuing? It doesn't seem to me there's a guy like Garnett available so that the Pistons could go out and copy the Celtics.

SLAM!

So, did the Pistons' window for winning another championship just slam closed? It's especially galling to see them lose to the Celtics after listening to the media anoint the Celtics the champions as soon as they made the big trade. I don't care much about basketball, but I would have taken a lot of satisfaction in them being beaten. Oh well. Go Wings!

Still Un-freakin'-Believable

Good News Everyone

According to ESPN's Ric Bucher, Chauncey Billups has agreed to a multi-year contract with the Pistons.

Mo Pete?

With the acquisition of Chris Webber the Pistons have too many big men and will be looking to get some backcourt help. Apparently the Pistons have expressed interest in Morris Peterson, the former Michigan State star, among others. I was and still am rather skeptical about the Webber signing, but somehow I think I'd feel better if Detroit picked up a Spartan to offset the recent Wolverine addition. Also, he's only called real timeouts in championship games, and never perjured himself.