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Keith Langlois: Good evening, everyone. We're a little more than an hour from tipoff and we have more than 20 questions in the queue already. I'll answer many of them, though I see some are variations of others, so I'll do my best. Hard to get a pulse on the entire rest of the nation, Lisa, but the nature of media coverage is to focus on stars, right or wrong, because there's the belief that the public will be more apt to pay attention when it's someone they know -- or at least are led to believe they know -- on a personal level. As for the Pistons' offense, the Cavs again -- for reasons no one has adequately explained -- are putting a chokehold on Detroit's multifaceted attack.
Keith Langlois: It will be different without Larry Hughes, not expected to play. I'd think Billups will go at rookie Daniel Gibson, who besides the gap in experience also gives up several inches and much bulk and strength to Billups. But if Billups isn't feeling it, even that won't matter. When he tried to attack Gibson in Game 3, it often backfired by relegating his teammates to standing around and watching.
Keith Langlois: Because their offense has never gotten on a roll in this series. It's tough to pull away from any team if you never find one stretch during a game where you score on, say, 80 percent of your possessions for a sustained period. Give some credit to Cleveland's defense for that.
Keith Langlois: Well, the Cavs have something to say about the way the Pistons play. By taking the ball out of Billups' hands with their aggressive double-teaming -- though, truth be told, the Cavs didn't do as much of it in Game 3 -- the Pistons have looked disoriented on offense. That's surprising, too, because they should be comfortable with Tayshaun Prince running the offense from the wing or Chris Webber doing so in the post.
Keith Langlois: That's a great question, Pittsburgh. I think it's fair to assume that how the playoffs play out will have some impact on Joe Dumars' thought process during the off-season. I don't think I'm going out on a limb to suggest that if the Pistons lose to Cleveland, Dumars might be more apt to make a bold move or two this summer because it's fair to assume the Cavs are only going to get better as LeBron James, 22, matures and the front office finds better complementary players to put around him.
Keith Langlois: On most teams, there's very little room for debate on such a question. The Lakers? Kobe Bryant. The Cavs? LeBron James. Minnesota? Kevin Garnett. Dallas? Dirk Nowitzki. San Antonio? Tim Duncan. I think the consensus around the league is that Detroit's MVP is Chauncey Billups, but most coaches would also say that the key to the team is Rasheed Wallace. And still others would say that Rip Hamilton's consistent 20 points a night are invaluable. And then you'd have those arguing for Tayshaun Prince's superb defense and terrific all-around game.
Keith Langlois: I'm sure Flip is comfortable with the options he's given his team to counter anything the Cavs have thrown at them. At some point, it's up to the players to make the right decisions and execute them quickly and assertively.
Keith Langlois: He'll certainly be fined, but there will be no suspension.
Keith Langlois: All credit to Gibson for knocking down shots, but the reason he's had them is because the Pistons have clearly decided that they're going to make players other than LeBron James beat them. If Gibson continues to shoot 50 percent or better from behind the 3-point arc, at some point the Pistons might instruct whoever is guarding him to be less aggressive in help defense on James.
Keith Langlois: San Antonio is going to be the odds-on favorite to win the NBA Finals, especially if the Spurs dispose of Utah in five games, as is possible with a home win on Wednesday night. But just because the Pistons look out of sorts against Cleveland doesn't mean they'll be similarly stymied by San Antonio's defense. Different matchups will yield different results -- not necessarily better or wosre, just different.
Keith Langlois: Easier said than done, Jim. The Cavs, like the Pistons, are packing the paint and doing a good job of limiting all open jumps shots within 18 or so feet. And, remember this: The Pistons, for all their strengths, are not really blessed with anyone whose strong suit is taking his man off the dribble. The one who best fits that description is Flip Murray, which is perhaps the best reason he's played more in this series than he did against Chicago.
Keith Langlois: The Cavs have been very aggressive getting their hands on him, staying with him and having their big men get subtle bumps on him as he's running through screens. The officials would help the Pistons out if they'd call a few of those fouls, but the tone of this series has been established -- don't expect too many whistles either way.
Keith Langlois: What would seem the obvious answer is this: The Pistons should be more efficient offensively without Hughes' size and quickness to neutralize Chauncey Billups, but the Cavs should be better offensively. LeBron James needs good spot-up shooters to complement his ability to penetrate and draw defenders to him, but Hughes is simply incapable of making defenses pay for that strategy. So maybe we're in for a game in the 90s tonight.
Keith Langlois: Careful, Moe. When the Pistons win this thing, you'll want to be diplomatic in your gloating around the boss.
Keith Langlois: He'd better, Corey. The Pistons aren't nearly the same deadly efficient team when he's not playing up to his normal level.
Keith Langlois: James has such a unique skill set -- nobody that fast is supposed to be that strong -- that he'll do more than just hang with anybody in the league. But the Pistons are fortunate to have an excellent defender at his position in Prince. Prince and excellent defensive rotations enable the Pistons to mitigate James' damage to a greater degree than most of Cleveland's opponents.
Keith Langlois: Not making any predictions, Sagar. There's no question the key factors for the Pistons are to make LeBron James work hard for every point and to get the backcourt of Billups and Hamilton going.
Keith Langlois: No sense changing the starting lineup, Moe. Webber was very good in the first quarter of Game 3. They need minutes from him and McDyess doesn't want to start, so I don't think there's any question about the starting lineup.
Keith Langlois: Not a bad start. The Pistons struggled with their shooting early -- 2 of 10 -- but I thought they were having much better success in finding good shots. Billups and Hamilton look more like themselves so far. I expect Cleveland to go to Anderson Varejao soon after this timeout, and then it will be interesting to see if Flip Saunders counters with Jason Maxiell for Webber.
Keith Langlois: You're right. Discretion was the better part of valor. If it's the fourth quarter, you step in and take a hard foul. Not in the first.
Keith Langlois: I think the Pistons are making a conscious effort to take shots earlier in the shot clock tonight to avoid getting caught with nothing going late in the clock. I also think Billups and Hamilton are looking to be more aggressive and are hunting open shots.
Keith Langlois: Down four at the end of one quarter, but there were some encouraging signs for the Pistons. The Cavs are ahead thanks to a really, really good quarter by a few support players, Drew Gooden mostly. Just as P.J. Brown had that 20-point first half against the Pistons in Game 6 at Chicago, Rasheed Wallace is going to have to adjust a little to pay some more attention to Gooden and trust Tayshaun Prince a little more to handle LeBron James one on one.
Keith Langlois: The support players from Cleveland are hurting the Pistons -- guys like Gooden and Gibson. Chauncey Billups has to walk a fine line now. He's gotten himself going. Now he needs to get other guys off -- Prince, Wallace, McDyess, et al.
Keith Langlois: Delfino's foul was just one of those things. It was a loose ball he was chasing and Gibson had the angle. You see that play a handful of times every night. If you want to question anything, it was Delfino's decision to shoot a quick 3 from the dead corner.
Keith Langlois: Flip Saunders will certainly be making full use of the extended playoff halftime tonight, because he has some serious adjustments to consider on both ends. While the Pistons were better offensively for much of the first half, they did hit a really bad patch in the second quarter where they went about eight minutes without a basket. Defensively, they are not doing a good job of keeping Daniel Gibson -- and whoever thought we'd be talking about this guy? -- out of the lane. Just bad defense by the Pistons, JD.
Keith Langlois: I think the 3-pointer Lindsey Hunter hit was very big. A double-digit lead in a game where 85 points might win it is huge. I wouldn't be surprised to see more of Hunter after halftime. Some nights the Pistons' follow his defensive lead. He gives them all an extra bounce in his step.
Keith Langlois: Good call, Joe. Lindsey would be the obvious candidate to guard Gibson. But you hesitate to start basing your game plan on a second-round rookie.
Keith Langlois: The Pistons have cut it to 3 in the first few minutes of the third quarter, so they're definitely right back in it. But they could be ahead already if they'd been a little more efficient offensively. The Cavs have been very tentative on their end and have yet to score a point. Still, the Pistons aren't complaining. They could have found themselves almost out of the game at halftime but cut the lead back to seven and now they need to keep the doubts gnawing at Cleveland's confidence level.
Keith Langlois: So far, so good in the third, Mo. We'll see if any of Cleveland's role players can give them a lift in this half.
Keith Langlois: The Pistons definitely look like the better team right now. We'll see how Flip Saunders decides to rest his perimeter players. It's going to be critical that the game doesn't get away from them while he tries to grab a few minutes here and there for Billups, Hamilton and Prince. Wouldn't be surprised if Prince goes the distance and Billups and Hamilton sit for just a few minutes each -- possibly with Lindsey Hunter matched up against Daniel Gibson, who continues to be the story of the game. Rasheed Wallace is going to be well rested. Nice to see Antonio McDyess making an impact this quarter.
Keith Langlois: A good third quarter for the Pistons that was almost a great third quarter. If the Cavs don't get two big baskets from Donyell Marshall -- one a 3-pointer -- and another from Gibson, they could have had something approaching a double-digits lead going into the fourth. Instead, they're up two. That's a far sight better than being down a dozen, as they were just a few minutes before halftime, but the Cavs have some life. LeBron James was very quiet in that quarter. We'll see if Cleveland's role players can make a handful of shots in this quarter with the Cavs' season hanging in the balance.
Keith Langlois: Antonio McDyess has been the Pistons' best player in the second half after a strangely listless first half. Now the question is how long can he stay on the floor before he needs a break. My guess is if Flip Saunders gives him any time, it'll be Jason Maxiell back in there for him. Maxiell has been terrific tonight defending the pick and roll and the one thing the Pistons don't want to allow now is LeBron James going down the middle for a dunk to energize the building and his teammates. James has made two very tough long two-pointers this quarter with Tayshaun Prince on him. But Prince has to keep playing off of him a little bit and make him take those shots. The Pistons can live with LeBron taking 22-footers.
Keith Langlois: The Cavs just went on a 6-0 run after the Pistons had taken a 77-74 lead. The Pistons' offense is good when they're getting player and ball movement, but not when they're playing isolation basketball. LeBron James has arrived. He's making jump shots, taking the ball to the basket and knocking down free throws. Drew Gooden also hit a baseline jumper that will serve to keep the Pistons honest. Looks like we're in for another woolly finish.
Keith Langlois: Absolutely, Al. Offensive execution is the biggest key. It's usually the Pistons' forte, but Cleveland's been good at throwing their offense out of whack.
Keith Langlois: LeBron James just hit a very tough fadeaway near the 3-point line to put the Cavs up eight with about three minutes to go. Drew Gooden has hit three big baseline jump shots in the quarter. The Pistons had momentum and the Cavs back on their heels with about eight minutes to go. This has to shake the Pistons a little -- when they have a team in that position, their offensive execution is usually flawless. But it hasn't been against Cleveland. Even in their Game 2 win, they allowed the Cavs a chance to win it at the end by suffering numerous turnovers. This will be another very disappointing loss if it doesn't turn around quickly.
Keith Langlois: They've made it awfully difficult for themselves, but they're within four and have the ball with about 90 seconds to go. A basket and a stop and the heat's back on Cleveland.
Keith Langlois: Very disappointing last eight minutes for the Pistons, Joe. They seemed to be in control when Drew Gooden picked up that technical foul for mauling Rasheed Wallace. But the Cavs definitely made better decisions and bigger plays than the Pistons down the stretch. That's the shocker. Once the Pistons took the lead, they should have put the Cavs away. OK, guys, I'm going to step away from the chat for 30 minutes or so to listen to what the coaches and players might have to say, then I'll come back to knock out some more answers before winding this up to write my blog. Check back with Pistons.com throughout the night and tomorrow.
Keith Langlois: Ten years old? Get to bad, you whippersnapper. I agree it turned out to be a questionable decision, but mostly because Pavlovic got there to make him alter the shot. Normally a 3 in transitiion is a pretty good shot for Billups, plus he was ensuring that the Pistons would have one more possession. There was a little less than 40 seconds left in the game when he took it. It would have looked great for the Pistons if Pavlovic had run into him and fouled him in the act of shooting.
Keith Langlois: That's a great question, but it's impossible to answer at this point. If the Pistons go on to win this series, then I think his lack of consistent production will be largely forgotten. If the Cavs win, then I would have to believe it's going to affect his market value.
Keith Langlois: I hear you, CJ, but he's got so much strength and explosion that he's great at creating space for himself. And when help comes, he's a very good passer whose complete willingness to trust his teammates -- in contrast to, say, Kobe Bryant -- must be a factor in their willingness to take big shots.
Keith Langlois: Cleveland's ability to confound Detroit offensively, and throw Billups well off of his game, is definitely the story of the series so far, Kevin.
Keith Langlois: C'mon, John. That's more than a little over the top, don't you think? He made two or three bad plays down the stretch tonight, and that's surprising, but he's been a long way from the worst player on the court in this series.
Keith Langlois: If you're talking about the play near mid-court late in the game, I think the replay showed Chauncey tripped over his own feet on that one. Looked like a pretty good no-call to me. I thought the officiating was pretty good tonight, actually.
Keith Langlois: Nothing to argue with their, Calvin. Even Chauncey admitted that Cleveland made big plays down the stretch and he made a few mistakes.
Keith Langlois: A pretty rational conclusion. McDyess missed two shots that he normally makes, Rasheed traveled and drew a technical and threw up an air ball from 3, Chauncey made the mistakes we've already talked about ... they all share in this loss.
Keith Langlois: Looks like we're running out of Mailbag questions. Check back with Pistons.com shortly for my blog and also look for Ryan Pretzer's game story. I'll be back at practice tomorrow and have another story up by late afternoon on further reaction from Game 4 and a look ahead to Game 5. Good night and thanks to all who participated in our chat.
