Philadelphia 76ers vs Detroit Pistons Matchup - Part 3

by Ricki Ptakowski

With the Sixers knowing now that they will take on the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs, SIXERS.COM will take a deeper look at the individual match-ups and what the Sixers need to do in order to go deeper into the playoffs.

76ers Bench vs Pistons Bench

6th Man - Lou Williams vs Jason Maxiell

Obviously Williams and Maxiell won’t match-up directly with each other considering Lou is a combo-guard and Maxiell is a power forward; but both players are usually the first person off the bench for their respective teams and are expected to make an impact when they come into the game. For that reason we’ll ‘match’ them up against one another to see who will have the greater impact on the series.

Williams has made huge strides this season, which only marks his third year in the league. The 21 year-old has set career highs in points (11.5), minutes (23.8), and assists (3.2) in his first season seeing regular minutes. LLLLLOOOOUUUUU as the Wachovia Center faithful have chanted throughout the year, has been the Sixers spark off their bench all season. Being able to play the point or shooting guard, Williams gives Head Coach Maurice Cheeks a lot of versatility. But it’s Williams scoring ability that sets him apart. His lightning quick first step and surprisingly good ‘hops’ allows him to blow by defenders and elevate as quickly as anyone in the game. Lou has also shown he can knock down outside shots (35.9 3FG%- tops on team), making him an inside/outside scoring threat. Against Cleveland on Monday, Lou scored 17 points in only 17 minutes of action at one point, showing he can be ‘instant offense’ off the Sixers bench.

One of the difficulties that Williams will have in this series is being able to match-up against the bigger Pistons guards, especially Billups who could back Lou down in the paint. There is no question that Lou can score, but his defense will be tested against Detroit. If Lou can limit the Pistons guards success on their offensive end, he will see big minutes in this series.

Jason Maxiell has quietly put up some impressive numbers in his third season with Detroit. The 6-7 Cincinnati product is undersized for most power forwards, but don’t let that fool you. Maxiell has had the privilege of learning from some of the best bigs in the game- Rasheed Wallace, Ben Wallace, and Antonio McDyess- so what he lacks in size, he makes up for with intelligence. Maxiell also has a great motor. He’ll outwork his opponents on the glass and can finish as well as anyone around the rim. He’ll get big minutes subbing for both Wallace and McDyess.

The key for the Sixers will be to keep a body on Maxiell at all times. Although he can finish around the rim, Maxiell isn’t exactly the best shooter. Until he starts making a few shots, you can bet the Sixers let him shoot all day. But don’t leave him open, because as we said, he’ll get to the rim and make you pay.

Other Sixers Notables

Rodney Carney

Carney gives the Sixers an athletic guard/forward off the bench. The Sixers will look to push the tempo when he is in the game so that they can take advantage of his phenomenal athletic gifts. Carney can also give the Sixers an outside threat. If he can find his touch from behind the arc, look out. The last time Carney faced the Pistons in Detroit he dropped 18 points on them, in a Sixer victory.

Jason Smith

Smith had a solid rookie campaign. He is another athletic big man, who gets to the glass, runs the floor, and hits open jumpers. You probably won’t see huge minutes from Smith, but if he can be effective in his minutes it could give the Sixers a big boost off the bench. Especially when the Pistons go big, the Sixers could counter with Smith at the power forward spot.

Thaddeus Young/ Reggie Evans

We talked about Thad and Reggie yesterday in the front-court matchups, but you’ll definitely see one of them come off the bench. Their goal will to be bring an unmatched energy to the Sixers. Thad will be the scorer, while Reggie will be the defender/rebounder.

Other Piston Notables

Rodney Stuckey

Stuckey got to see a ton of minutes down the stretch for the Pistons as Detroit rested their starters. The rookie didn’t disappoint either averaging 14.0 ppg over the last month of the season, including a 27 point outburst against Minnesota. Stuckey is a big 6-5 combo guard who will spell both Billups and Hamilton at times. Look for the Sixers to test him when he is on the floor to see if the rookie can stand up to the pressure.

Jarvis Hayes

Hayes played in all 82 games for the Pistons averaging 15 minutes per game. Hayes isn’t afraid to shoot the ball, and provides the Pistons with some outside depth. Hayes only shot 37.6% from three-point range, but that didn’t stop him from jacking up almost 200 triples this season. Although he doesn’t shoot that great of a percentage, Hayes can get hot at anytime- he was 7-8 from three-point territory and 6-6 in the 2nd quarter against New Orleans last month, so he has the ability to go off at anytime.

Theo Ratliff

The ex-Sixer played in only 16 games for the Pistons this season after coming over from Minnesota. Ratliff won’t see many minutes, but he can still affect the game like no-other with his shot-blocking ability. If the Sixers are getting to the hole, look for Theo to step in and do his best to stop it. Ratliff could also see some minutes if Wallace gets into foul trouble.

Philly’s reserves were instrumental in the Sixers playoff push, and contributed more than anyone could have ever expected. In their toughest week of the season the bench held off these same Pistons in Detroit and then posted an 18-point comeback against the Chicago Bulls. Efforts like that can’t go unnoticed, and will definitely have an impact when the Sixers have to play their bench for extended periods of time in this series.

X-Factors

Experience- This one goes to the Pistons for obvious reasons. They have been to the Eastern Conference Finals five consecutive seasons, making two NBA Finals appearances, and notched one Championship under their belt. They have put together seven straight 50 win seasons and have generally the same group (Billups, Hamilton, Prince, McDyess, and Wallace) that won it all in 2004-05. These guys are playoff tested, they know what to expect, when to turn it on, and most of all- how to win.

Crowd- Yeah so the Pistons have had 200+ consecutive sell-outs, so what. There is nothing and I mean nothing like a Philadelphia Playoff Crowd. If the Sixers can somehow steal a win in Detroit, the Wachovia Center will be rocking when the Sixers return home for games three and four. And if the Sixers are close look for the Philly Phans to push them to victory. This crowd can turn to sharks if they smell blood in the water... I’m getting chills just thinking about how loud this place is going to get.

Transition Game- These two teams are complete opposites when it comes to the transition game. The Sixers will look to push at any moment, knowing they can run any opponent out of the building; but the Pistons are the dead opposite, they play at a snail’s pace, walking the ball up the court and taking their time to get into a half-court game. The last time these teams met the Sixers had a 29-7 edge in fast break points, and low and behold came away with a victory. If they can get into that type of game, the Sixers will have loads of success.

Rebounding- The Sixers can have an edge in this department too. Between Dalembert, Evans, Young, and Iguodala, the Sixers can dominate the boards, and have done so all season-outrebouding their opponents in 52 of their 82 games. Their plus 2.69 rebounding advantage was 6th in the NBA this season. Rebounding the ball will limit the Pistons second chance points and also start the break which the Sixers need to have success at if they are to come away with four victories.

Free Throw Line- The Sixers will look to get to the line as much as possible. Philly averaged 5.1 more free throw attempts than their opponent this season, ranking second in the league in that category. The Pistons are somewhat of an opposite in this category too. They shot 76.7% ranking 13th in the league. However, the Pistons do have the luxury of Chauncey Billups. Billups will almost certainly get the ball to ice games, considering he is virtually automatic from the charity stripe- 91.7% which ranks him 2nd in the league. If the Sixers are trying to foul at the end of the game, don’t let Chauncey get his hands on it.