Pistons get off to hot start
The Pistons got off to a nice start during their season-opening 96-74 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies at the Fed Ex Forum. They totally controlled the second half with a nice offensive game that the dysfunctional Grizzlies could not match.
I want to temper this entry a bit by reminding you that Memphis is one of the worse teams in the NBA that was missing a couple of key parts. However, you saw what the Pistons want too do. They attacked the basket and applied a lot of pressure on the Grizzlies defense.
It was fun and exciting. The Pistons will score a lot of points this season. And I am willing to bet they will brag a lot about their defense in the coming days. I'm still not buying into them being a great or even a good defensive team just yet.
Memphis missed a number of open jumpers early and became frustrated with its own ineptitude and the Pistons superior offense. The better teams will find more success because the Pistons remain a work in progress defensively.
You saw an active and fresh Ben Wallace. And you will see a bunch of that early in the season. The key is can he hold up during the grind of a long season? My guess is he won't although coach John Kuester will monitor his minutes to try to get him through the season. He will have strong games now and then when he can find fresh legs. But leadership will be Big Ben's strength.
He should be the Pistons best post defender even on sluggish days. He will need more help and Wallace's first order should be trying to teach Charlie Villanueva how to defend the post better who allows his man to post too deep without much confrontation.
I can be reached at Terry.Foster@detnews.com or 313-222-1494.
