March 2007 Detroit Pistons Wiretap

Pistons Advance To Second Round

Apr 28, 2007 8:39 PM

Chauncey Billups scored 25 points, Richard Hamilton added 19 and the Pistons avoided a fourth-quarter meltdown to beat the Magic 97-93 Saturday and sweep the first-round series.

"The one thing we had such a big advantage on them is experience, and the only way you can get better at that is to go through it," Billups said. "I'm sure there are a lot of things they would change coming down the stretch."

The sweep was Detroit's first in the playoffs since 1990, when the "Bad Boys" won a second consecutive NBA title.

Yahoo!

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Wallace Reaches Out With Tips For Howard

Apr 28, 2007 6:30 AM

Piston bad boy Rasheed Wallace has a special interest in Magic center Dwight Howard, with whom he has chatted before and during games.

"I've been doing that with a few young guys that I like. Dwight is one of them. Earlier in the season, I told him we'd been watching him on film, and he really needed to learn how to pass out of double teams. He needed to work on some kind of jumper," Wallace said Friday after the Detroit Pistons practice. "I'm not saying do it now, but maybe over the summer."

Wallace said he has talked to Howard several times about diversifying his game and developing a stronger rapport with his point guard.

"I look at that team and I think Dwight and Jameer [Nelson] will be here longer than anyone, that's in my opinion. They should get that pick-and-roll down, like a [John] Stockton-and-[Karl] Malone thing, where they are really a threat with it. I told him, 'It could make you a force.'"

Orlando Sentinel

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Pistons Beat The Magic To Take 3-0 Series Lead

Apr 27, 2007 1:55 AM

The Pistons showed they know how to close out quarters. Now they want to close out another series.

Tayshaun Prince scored 23 points, Chauncey Billups added 21 and the Pistons beat Orlando 93-77 Thursday night to take a 3-0 lead in the first-round playoff series.

The victory ended a postseason trend for the Pistons -- they had lost their last six Game 3s when leading 2-0 -- and left them one victory from advancing to the second round.

Game 4 is Saturday in Orlando.

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Pistons Take 2-0 Lead Over Magic

Apr 23, 2007 9:47 PM

The Detroit Pistons took a commanding 2-0 lead in their first round series against the Orlando Magic on Monday night, winning game 2 98-90.  The series now shifts to Florida for games 3 and 4.

The Pistons again had a balanced attack, with five players scoring in double digits, led by Richard Hamilton's 22 points and Chauncey Billups, who scored 21.

The Magic were led by Hedo Turkoglu's 22 points, while Grant Hill scored 21.

Dwight Howard was held to only 8 points for the game, which included a three point play in the last 10 seconds of the 4th quarter.

RealGM.com

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Darko 'Doesn't Care' About Detroit Fans' Boos

Apr 23, 2007 5:13 AM

Booing him early and often, Detroit Pistons fans let Darko Milicic know they still begrudge him for being a bust.

The Pistons drafted Milicic second overall in 2003 -- passing on Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh -- and traded him two-plus seasons later after he averaged fewer than two points a game as a seldom-used reserve.

Milicic said in the past, and reiterated Sunday, he just wants to play.

The 7-foot, 250-pound center from Serbia-Montenegro was jeered and taunted throughout the game, particularly while shooting free throws.

"I don't really care," he insisted. "Back home fans used to throw baseball [bats] at me. They used to try to kill me back home, that's why I don't even care."

Sports Illustrated

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Porter Wants Another Chance, Eyes Sacramento Job

Apr 22, 2007 2:00 PM

With the Sacramento Kings firing of head coach Eric Musselman last week, Pistons lead assistant Terry Porter may become a candidate to become his successor.

Porter said on Saturday that he would like another opportunity to be a head coach.

"Yeah, I want to get to that position again," said Porter, "but we're trying to win a championship. That's what my focus is on right now."

Porter, whose first stint as an NBA assistant was during the 2002-2003 season in Sacramento, was the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks from 2003-2005.

Bay City Times

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Dumars Aims To Keep Core

Apr 22, 2007 1:58 PM

Joe Dumars has his Pistons in the playoff with the top seed in the Eastern Conference and in order to do so again in the future, he will aim to keep his core group of players together.

"I have no intentions of breaking up our core," said Dumars, "It's not so important to break up the core as it is to keep adding to the core. Usually when you break up a core, it's because you don't like the core any more. That's far from the case with me.

"That's why I look at our team and believe you have to keep adding to the core," Dumars said. "That's how you stay fresh. That's how you continue to be one of the elite teams. That's how you can lose a guy like Ben Wallace (now with Chicago) and still come back and have the number one seed in the East (Conference)."

Bay City Times

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Pistons Cruise To Game 1 Win

Apr 21, 2007 10:28 PM

The Detroit Pistons demonstrated Saturday night why they could return to the conference finals for a fifth consecutive season.

The Orlando Magic proved they have a ways to go.

The Pistons never trailed in a 100-92 victory, while the Magic -- the only playoff team with a losing record -- turned the ball over 21 times, missed 18 free throws and never really threatened to win.

Richard Hamilton scored 22 points, Rasheed Wallace had 16 and midseason addition Chris Webber added 12 for the Pistons, the No. 1 seed in the East.

Detroit point guard Chauncey Billups, dubbed Mr. Big Shot for his clutch play, made his free throws down the stretch but otherwise wasn't needed in that capacity Saturday. Instead, he had 22 points and 11 assists while holding his counterpart, Jameer Nelson, to 10 points. Nelson fouled out with 25 seconds remaining.

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Atkins To The Rockets?

Apr 20, 2007 7:11 AM

Odds are Chucky Atkins has played his final game as a member of the Memphis Grizzlies. Atkins, 32, just completed the one-year contract he signed last summer and is now a free agent.

After averaging 13.2 points and a career-high 4.6 assists per game this season, Atkins hopes to land a multi-year deal with a contending team.

''I'm just going to wait and see how everything plays out,'' Atkins said. ''I'm interested in any team that has the possibility of going all the way. I know Houston has some interest in me. Obviously Denver, Miami, Orlando, Detroit. I've been hearing my name circulate around a lot of teams. I'm going to sit back and enjoy the summer and see what happens.''

Memphis Commercial Appeal

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Murray Escapes Gunshots Fired Into His Home

Apr 18, 2007 11:27 PM

Detroit Pistons guard Flip Murray says gunshots were fired into his home after two people in masks approached a female friend who was returning with him from a nightclub. Police said no one was injured.

There are no suspects and the intent of the masked males was not clear, police said Wednesday.

SI.com

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Parker Led Raptors Move Closer To Playoff Home Court

ESPN

Pistons Recall Amir Johnson

Press Release

Detroit Clinches Home-Court Advantage In The East

Yahoo!

Retirement Or Knicks, Says Webber

New York Post

Knicks Running Out Of Time And Healthy Bodies

Yahoo!

LeBron Held In Check By Pistons

Yahoo!

Pistons Fan Arrested For Throwing Object At Bulls' Thomas

Chicago Tribune

Sinus Infection KOs Big Ben But Bulls Rip Pistons

ESPN