Saturday at The Palace a half hour before tip off and I still wasn’t feelin’ it for a Pistons/Bulls conference semi-finals match-up.

I was watching people stream into the parking lot, sitting in my office overlooking the west and north lots. They were tailgating or just hanging out or making their way into the arena. At least 98% are in their best red, white and blue. It was quiet in my office, cool and comfortable.

And I wasn’t feelin’ it.

All week, I was reading in the newspaper about the rivalry. I heard it on the radio at least five times a day. I saw it on television in every sports broadcast. This was it… it’s back…the rivals are going at it…Detroit and Chicago…Pistons and Bulls…300 miles apart…the rivalry picks up where it left off.

Heck, I even authorized a week long series on the Pistons Web site devoted to the years we played the Bulls in the conference semis and conference finals and what a rivalry it was.

But I wasn’t feelin’ it…

I was here back in the day when it was Michael and Scottie and Paxson and Cartwright and Horace coming to the Palace. It was Phil Jackson talking in the newspaper all week long and it was Chicago radio and television talking about what a bunch of thugs the Pistons were. It was us against them and they were coming into our house. That was a rivalry and those were the games.

Maybe it was the innocence of it all because we hadn’t been there before. Maybe it was the excitement of continuing to advance in the playoffs and anticipating the opportunity to play in the NBA Finals. We didn’t know what to expect but we were really, really excited about it.

And I wasn’t feelin’ that…it wasn’t there.

I know what you are saying…”Dave, you’re a member of the Palace staff. Your team is hosting one of the best playoff match-ups you guys have had in years. The Bulls are back in town and the games matter. Quit talking about the old days. I don’t remember and I don’t care. I was a kid. How in the heck do you expect me to get fired up for this series, if you aren’t?”

I have to agree…if I’m not feelin’ it, how can I expect everyone else to be feelin’ it? Got to practice what you preach, don’t you?

And then it happened.

I didn’t realize the time, but we were right at tip-off. I was busy watching people file in and the time had gotten away from me. It was game time…and then I heard it.

The Pistons intros are the best in the league. We are constantly being held as a best practices for the league on how to introduce your players. Mason is a big part of it because he has his own unique style. The multimedia group is a big part of it because they do a great job with the videos AND the music. We even use fire to drive home the point that this is a blue-collar town forged out of heat, pressure and hard work. But what really makes our intros unique is the sound…the loud BOOM that accentuates the announcement of the final name in the Pistons line-up: Chauncey Billups…

BOOM!!

There it was…the wake-up call I needed.

We often hold strategy meetings and we talk about all of the factors that we may be going against when we want to sell someone a ticket to our game. We talk about things like price, locations, availability, fan experience, bang for the buck and making in worth someone’s while to come out to The Palace.

We talk about all these things knowing full well that every single one of our games is on television. And, honestly, that is one of the biggest things we fight when we have these strategy meeting. Inevitably, it is our CEO Tom Wilson who crystallizes the whole thing by saying, “We need people to watch our games on television and say to themselves, ‘Man, I wish I was there.’”

Yeah, I know…I’ve been drinking the Kool-Aid for a while. And I definitely go against what Public Enemy used to say and I do believe the hype. So, I understand that I am biased…I get it.

But I swear that when I heard that BOOM… I felt it. I actually said to myself, “Man, I need to be down there.”

So I threw on my suit coat, rushed to elevator and went down to the arena. I walked out through the Pistons tunnel, a spot I had come out and stood a hundred or so times since I have been here, and there it was.

The place was buzzin’. Thunderstix bangin’…kids, adults cheerin’…chanting…DEEE-TROIT BASKETBALL…we had it going. And suddenly, I was feelin’ it.

I was feelin’ it…

I was cheering when we hit three’s. I was screaming for fouls even when I knew there wasn’t one. I was pumping my fist when the Bulls missed a shot and we got the rebound. I didn’t boo with the rest of the crowd when Ben got the ball, but I smiled.

It was like the old days. The crowd cheered every foul on the Bulls…just like they did when it was Scottie or Jordan. They jumped up and screamed when we hit jump shots, and lay-ups and three’s…just like it was Joe or Isiah or Laimbeer. Big dunks and blocked shots…all got crazy ovations.

And it was only the first quarter.

Yeah, this is playoff basketball. This is the Pistons versus the Bulls. This is a great match-up with two great teams. This is a rivalry again.

BOOM! I’m feelin it now…I hope you are too.

P.S. The Bulls scored 69 points to the Pistons 95 and Detroit took a 1-0 lead in the series. Yeah, now I’m REALLY feelin’ it. See you Monday night for Game Two.