this weekend

11/30/8

3:22 a.m.

this weekend

i am fortunate to have a co-worker who tapes some of the Pistons games during the regular season, so i can watch them the next day...and i just heard that Iverson, in all his infinite wisdom on being a teammate, didnt show for a Pistons meeting, and decided to skip town, to celebrate with the family...now, i dont know what to make of that, other than, of all the players in the league, past and present, is not Allen Iverson the one person, who, if seriously unsure about what the team policy is on absences, for holidays, or otherwise, should check with someone before finalizing a decision, and acting on it...make note: this is the opening salvo, in the all-too-familiar, Iverson effort to wrestle control of a team in his favor, irrespective of the ultimate outcome vis-a-vis wins and losses...

he is the ultimate me-first basketball player, he sabotages environments in order to get his way, and he has no concept of what it takes to win in the NBA, or at any level, if he cannot completely control the situation, and make everyone react to his antics...Iverson, i am counting the days, until you are no longer a Piston, which coincides nicely with the day that Rasheed and McDyess should come off the books, next year...essentially, i like this Pistons team as i argued in one of the opening entries of this blog, but it is still a team that needs one more year before they can win the EC again...

that line-up that Curry had in during the recent Knicks game, deep in to the 4th quarter of: Stuckey, Afflalo, Prince, Maxiell, and Amir was fun...i mean DET is something else, and Joe Dumars has put together a good program, with the youngsters, and Curry showcased it with his youngest veteran, in Tayshaun, and they are just fun to watch on the court...everyone knows their role, and they are happy to both defer to the playmaking of T.P., as well as get in to position to be the most effective when the ball swings their way...i had my doubts, as i mentioned earlier in this blog, about Maxiell and Amir being able to handle the front-court, at their size, but i think if you put Tay as the #3 position, in with them, they become pretty much good-enough, on defense, and actually really interesting, on offense...

i liked it, and though i like Rip, i want to see more of it...

i still dont know how much i am going to be able to stay with it, on the hoops blog, but i had a moment on Friday nite, when i walked in to a bar, that i had to go to, to conduct business with a potential partner, and i was treated to the 2nd half of another Izzo-led, Michigan State-run clinic in college basketball...the Spartans are just without question, the best thing about the college game, as they just play right...so, i know, it will all end come the Big 10 regular season, but i am going to enjoy it, the month of december...

douglas dooley

3:57 a.m.