| Off And On And Now They're On Authored by David Biderman - May 21, 2007 - 11:42 pm
Calling the Detroit Pistons a “light-switch” team is an understatement.
They look more like a walking study in psychology. A group whose mental state takes precedence over its physical capabilities.
Going back to their championship season three seasons ago, the Pistons have repeatedly shocked their fans by losing when they should win and winning when they shouldn’t.
Exhibit A: Their finals appearance against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2003-04. Detroit was the underdog, but only because the Lakers were the glamorous team. Astute followers knew Los Angeles had internal problems while the Pistons were running on all cylinders.
Detroit won the first game in Los Angeles by double-digits, putting the former champs on their backs. The Pistons seemed poised to upset the tinsel-town team, only to lose the next game by eight and relinquish their advantage.
Those who know the history books remember Detroit stormed back to win the next three games and win the title, but the glimpse of unpredictability lingered. The Pistons haven’t won any rings since, and their inconsistent play has remained very, well, consistent.
The following year Detroit simply lost to a better team in the Spurs, but the last two seasons have revealed several flaws in the Pistons’ over-confidence.
Last year Detroit won its first two postseason games against the overwhelmed Milwaukee Bucks, only to lose by 20 in the third match and lose the chance to sweep. In the next round against the Cleveland Cavaliers the Pistons seized a 2-0 series lead, but then lost the next three games. The subsequent lack of rest contributed to Detroit’s loss against the Miami Heat in the conference finals.
And now Detroit is at it again. After dusting aside the Orlando Magic in this year’s opening round, the Pistons jumped on the Chicago Bulls to gain an insurmountable 3-0 advantage.
The big lead – and chance for extra rest – was all for not, however, as Detroit hardly showed up in the next two games, losing by an average of 15.5 points. The Pistons finally closed out the series in the game six, but the damage was done. Instead of earning time to heal, Detroit now has a maximum four days to relax.
So why do they do it? It would be easy to say that they just aren’t that good, but that excuse undermines the excellence of the Pistons players.
Detroit’s starters must realize that their inability to close teams out has cost them in the past, and will likely do so again.
Rasheed Wallace is a bit of a head-case, but Tayshaun Prince, Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton and Chris Webber are smart guys. They know the price they will inevitably pay.
The answer is psychological.
Athletes in every sport step it up when they feel pushed. If there’s no pressure, there’s no urgency. No urgency results in lackadaisical play.
It’s why terrific teams struggle to win 70 games in one season, and it’s why all-time greats often burn out sooner than their peers.
And it’s also why the Pistons can’t put play consistently when facing lesser teams.
Though the Western Conference is deemed the superior half of the league, no team over there looks forward to a pairing with the Pistons.
Detroit, however, even with prior experience blowing advantages, has done it again. It’s taken a good opportunity and thrown it down the drain. And when the Pistons switch gets stuck in the coming weeks, it should be a surprise to nobody; not even them. |
