Pumping Pistons...

All right, so who is emerging as the beast of the East? Several familiar faces, one aged all-star who still has game, and a coach who wants to win it all...

The Detroit Pistons.

Winners of 5 straight now, they dismantled Cleveland before the Super Bowl and the nation got to see that this squad is still a beast. Ball movement, fundamentals, shot selection, rebounding, effort, hunger level, chip on the shoulder, team work for great defense and more than passable offense, on and on, the Pistons have it all.

They are capable of the same play at home and away from home--in fact, they are the only team in the East that has a winning road record. That would be borderline incredible except for the fact that it seems like 90% of the East is at or below .500 (in actuality, flip the nine, and that's the percent of losing teams in the East. On the other hand, it's the same percentage of winning teams in the West--surprised? We always hear about how terrible the East is, it's just that the top 6 teams out West are better than the top 6 in the East...that's all)

Now they've added Chris Webber and assimilated him into the Pistons way of doing things, to great effect. Consider the double-double (18 points, 11 rebounds) he dropped against the Lakers, the ease he created for the rest of the team. Rasheed had similar stats, Hamilton scored 16, Prince 20, and Billups led with nine assists and four steals--barely any points, but only because he didn't have to score, it was an easy victory. And if Webber doesn't step up? Any of their other starters can. Then, McDyess can come off the bench, add presence and D, and right there you have a quality 6-man squad. Of all Eastern Conference teams, there is no doubt they have the most experience, no doubt they have heart, and no doubt that they are going to make a long run in the playoffs...

But that is where the major concern comes in. Can this team, essentially a six man roster, make it to the end? Do they have the legs? They are not as old as the Heat last year, which should be a good sign, but they do not have a Wade on their squad. And what about injuries? For now, they are all right, but what happens if someone goes down? When Nazr Mohammed gets healthy, he'll provide another big body for Detroit, but Lindsay Hunter is not capable of carrying this team. Still, losing a key player is a huge deal for any team and the Pistons are capable of overcoming any hole, maybe more so than any other team. They've done it in the past, no reason they should not start doing it now. Who knows, maybe Carlos Delfino could suddenly start playing and lead for an injured Hamilton, or what have you.

The fact of the matter is that the Pistons are a team everyone is afraid of, and rightly so. Losing Ben Wallace was not the end of them, they've moved on, and are leading the conference, first to hit thirty and looking like first overall. They started slow, raised the haters, and on the ever popular wings of the old battle cry, 'no one believed in us!' they are flying high again.

As a machine, these pistons are oiled and ready to go the distance. The next team I profile will be the team I believe comes out of the East, beating the Pistons in a classic seven game series... a team that will provide plenty of fodder for the newspapers...the Chicago Bulls...