The Detroit Pistons entered the 2013-14 season with a pep in their step.
They added new pieces to the starting lineup. They made their annual replacement at head coach. Mike Abdenour’s mustache never looked better.
Unfortunately, the early returns were fairly ho-hum. Most wins were followed by a loss, road victories were difficult to come by, and Maurice Cheeks’ facial expression remained that signature “neutral” throughout the month of November.
As a Pistons fan, you wanted a reason to get excited. You wanted some type of reassurance that this could actually be a playoff team; that the “Ben Gordon/Charlie Villanueva/John Kuester/Michael Curry/Allen Iverson” days are long in the rear view, and that happier times are ahead.
Turning Down the Heat
Confirmation came on Tuesday night with a signature, early-season triumph, 107-97, in the City that Rony Seikaly built. Never mind that the Heat entered the contest as two-time defending champs and winners of ten straight. The Pistons were determined to announce their return to NBA relevance; to finally awake from this five-year nap.
The visitors were in control for almost the full 48 minutes. Through three quarters, there was rarely a time when the Heat fans were heard. Any LeBron James drive was answered with a Kyle Singler 3. Greg Monroe put up his quiet 16 like he does every night. No Heat player grabbed more than six boards -- Andre Drummond hauled in 18.
And yet, as is tradition, the better team always makes a charge in the final stanza. The Pistons led by 14 to open the fourth. Less than halfway through the period, the advantage had been whittled to three.
James was starting to attack the rim nearly every time down. Rodney Stuckey, the Pistons’ bench ace, was turning the ball over with alarming regularity, as if it had suddenly become fashionable to do so. They were unraveling like a tumbling ball of yarn. Mo Cheeks remained stone-faced.
Almost Slipped Away
The favorites smelled blood, their defense turned up to full blast, refusing to even allow a shot attempt on most possessions. The underdogs eyed the clock, desperate, willing the seconds to tick faster, for their lead to hold up for just a few more minutes.
Then it happened. With the shot clock nearing zero and another disastrous Pistons’ offensive set about to expire, Brandon Jennings did the unthinkable -- he made a basket. There was no passing, no ball movement, and he was well-guarded from several feet beyond the three-point line.
None of it mattered.
This night belonged to the Pistons, and their most important off-season acquisition was going to make sure it didn’t slip away.
When the final horn blared, the Pistons were 10 points better. Miami’s 10-game win streak went poof. And the Pistons escaped to the locker room knowing that just two more W’s would put them squarely at 10 and 10 on the young season.
The Sports Book of Logic is always reminding us not to overreact to singular events. “It’s just one game,” the book says. “It’s only the regular season,” we read in the chapter entitled “Hold Your Horses.”
But sometimes it’s just more fun to let the horses go free; to let one win symbolize the turnaround of a franchise; to opt for over-excitement instead of restrained optimism.
The Pistons didn’t clinch a spot in the NBA Finals last night. They didn’t even make it back to .500. But for a team with almost nothing to show for the last half-decade of basketball, it was a moment to celebrate.
Of course, that’s assuming they follow it up with a win against the hapless Milwaukee Bucks tonight.
Otherwise, I take it all back.
