All Things Considered 4-4 is a Good Start

In my first-month preview a few entries back, I had the Pistons standing at exactly 4-4 after their first eight games. Lo and behold, that prediction resembles their current success. So why am I impressed with the Pistons start to this season? They’ve played most all of their games without stalwarts Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince, yet seemingly haven’t missed a beat.

Last night in their 98-75 win at home against Charlotte, the offense was clicking on all cylinders and the team hit 55.6 percent of their shots against what was supposed to be one of the top defenses in the league. Of course, the Bobcats were without Raja Bell and they were left without anybody capable of guarding Ben Gordon and Will Bynum. Those two players hit 15-of-22 shots and combined for 38 points. That efficiency helped the home team to a 35-point lead at one point.

But the most impressive player of the night was unquestionably Charlie Villanueva. CV-31 put together his best game of the season with 30 points on 17 shots in 31 minutes. He did his damage inside and out and was the beneficiary of 10 of Detroit’s 26 assists.

Rodney Stuckey delivered seven assists on the night, only the second time in eight games that the point guard has dished more than four dimes. Stuckey excelled against Raymond Felton and D.J. Augustin. Neither player could stop him on the offensive end. Stuckey, who’s averaging only 3.7 assists per game, needs to focus more on this type of distribution. When he’s dishing it out, the Pistons have enough shooters to convert a lot of open shots.

Finally, Big Ben Wallace posted his second straight game of three steals and three blocks. He’s clearly the best defender on this team and is playing as well as he has since he originally left Detroit back in 2006. John Kuester asks virtually nothing of his specialist on the offensive end, but the former Defensive Player of the Year is more than making up for it by shutting down opposing frontcourts.

A .500 record doesn’t normally bring optimism for Pistons fans. However, this roster is completely revamped, missing two of its best players, and playing for a rookie head coach. That’s normally a formula for a disastrous start. Yet the Pistons have defended home court since losing to the Thunder back on October 30. They showed what they are capable of against the Bobcats last night, but now they’ll have to show that type of teamwork on the road.

Rough Road Ahead

The Pistons have a couple days off before resuming their schedule at Washington on Saturday. They’ll then return home to play the Mavericks on Sunday. Both games will be tough for these new-look Pistons, but both are winnable. Notching at least one win in their next two will be critical, because the next five games will be one of the toughest stretches of the entire 2009-10 season.

A four-game road trip starts in Los Angeles against the Lakers on Tuesday, followed by a game in Portland the very next night. The Pistons then play at Utah and at Phoenix before coming home to take on the Cavaliers. Given the brutal stretch, two wins would surpass my expectations and a .500 record two weeks for now would convince me this is a playoff team…already. However, I think those goals are of the lofty variety.

Tags: Ben Gordon, Ben Wallace, Charlie Villanueva, Pistons beat Bobcats, Pistons blog, Pistons schedule, Will Bynum