After re-signing Rasheed Wallace - the catalyst in Detroit's transformation from good to great after his trade-deadline acquisition - and adding Antonio McDyess as a free agent, the Pistons looked like a solid bet to return to the Finals, with the Pacers as the primary obstacle in their way. So when a seemingly-innocent 97-82 Indiana win on Nov. 19 devolved into Mayhem in Motown, the ensuing Pacers suspensions seemed to clear Detroit's path. (A shooting guard and a center down in Miami had other ideas, but that's a story for another time.)

Heavy is the head that wears the crown, and the Pistons stumbled a bit, seemingly as affected by the brawl as the Pacers despite losing only Ben Wallace for any appreciable length of time (and only six games at that). After a Dec. 30 loss to the Heat at The Palace of Auburn Hills, the Pistons were 15-13, a division title in question. Detroit started 2005 with an 8-1 run before tripping again, losing four straight games. Since then, however, the Pistons have been running on all cylinders, winning 13 of 14 games and eight straight before losing last night at Phoenix by a 100-97 final. More impressive than the wins has been how lopsided they've been; Detroit's average margin of victory during the eight-game winning streak was a remarkable 16.4 points per game, including four by 20 or more.

Remarkably, during their eight-game winning streak, the Pistons posted Offensive and Defensive Ratings (112.9 and 92.5, respectively) that would both lead the NBA over the course of the season. Their bigger improvement has been on offense, where they have been 10.7 points per 100 possessions better than their season average, as compared to a +4.1 improvement on defense. The Pistons shot 49.2% from the field during the winning streak and 42.1% from downtown.

The Seattle SuperSonics have also played well since the All-Star break, winning five of six games despite playing five of the six on the road (then again, since they have identical 20-8 records at home and on the road, is that such a bad thing?). The Sonics start a four-game homestand tonight, and all four games are against playoff teams - Detroit, Phoenix, Houston and Chicago. Three of the four teams (all but Phoenix) rank in the NBA's top five in Defensive Rating, but that might not scare the Sonics that much. With their deliberate offensive execution and opportunistic fast-breaking, the Sonics have had success this season against the NBA's top defensive teams, going 13-3 against the top ten defenses. By contrast, they're 13-7 against the top ten offenses.

G U A R D S
	Chauncey Billups ensured his spot in NBA history by averaging 21.0 points on 50.9% shooting during last year's NBA Finals to earn MVP honors. Billups became the first player not headed for the Hall of Fame to win Finals MVP since another Pistons guard, current team President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars, won it in 1989. That's not to say Billups isn't a very solid player. He's averaging 16.6 points and a career-high 6.3 assists this season. His field-goal percentage (42.9%) is also a career high. While it remains surprisingly low, Billups is one of the NBA players most underrated by his shooting percentage. The difference between it and his true shooting percentage (59.4%) is the fourth-largest in the NBA. Sonics point guard Luke Ridnour did a good job of getting to the basket against Cleveland, and his nine points were his most in four games. But his shooting slump (likely tied to plantar fasciitis that's been bothering him) was reflected in his 3-for-7 free-throw shooting. Ridnour only missed three free throws in November and December combined.
	The masked man, Detroit guard Richard Hamilton continues to wear a plastic facemask after breaking his nose about this time last year. In 2004, teams with Connecticut guards wearing masks won both the NBA and WNBA Championships (Sue Bird matching Hamilton's feat for the Seattle Storm); not that we're suggesting Ray Allen break his nose or anything, but he might want to wear a mask anyway. While Bird hated wearing the mask, Hamilton has taken to it, and he continues to be the Pistons leading scorer at 19.7 points per game thanks to his off-the-ball movement and one of the league's most accurate midrange jumpers. Allen prefers to do his damage from a little farther away, as he ranks fourth in the NBA with 138 threes. Allen is coming off a fine 31-point effort at Cleveland.
F O R W A R D S
	Tayshaun Prince's development has been an underrated part of the Pistons own development. The 26th pick of the 2002 Draft, Prince played sparingly as a rookie until a breakout playoffs. He started all 80 games he played last season and his long-limbed perimeter defense was a big part of Detroit's lockdown work as a team, but was a later option on offense. This season, Prince has upped his scoring average from 10.3 points per game to 13.7 while improving his field-goal percentage from 46.7% to 49.2% and continuing to D. The result is that the Pistons now have one of the league's best all-around young small forwards. Sonics forward Rashard Lewis has been able to use his strength successfully against Prince, averaging 24.5 points in two matchups with Detroit last season.
	After playing such a key role in the Pistons championship run, Rasheed Wallace has been relatively low-key this season. He's struggling with his shooting; his field-goal percentage (42.4%) is the worst of his career, his three-point percentage (30.8) the worst since he made it a regular part of his arsenal and his free-throw percentage (67.5%) his worst in seven seasons. When properly motivated, Wallace remains a force, and he had 22 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks last night in Phoenix. Detroit's other Wallace, Ben, has set a career path Sonics forward Reggie Evans hopes to emulate. Like Wallace, Evans was undrafted but has emerged as one of the league's top rebounders, in fact the best on a per-minute basis this season.
C E N T E R
	Now 30, Ben Wallace seems to have lost a step from his Defensive Player of the Year prime a couple of seasons ago. At 2.5 blocks per game, Wallace is only sixth in the league, and his per-48 minute mark (3.3) can't compare to the work of those like Sonics center Jerome James (3.9 blocks per 48 minutes). Still, Wallace remains the anchor of one of the league's best defenses, and few players contribute defensively in as many ways as Wallace, who also leads the Pistons in steals per game (1.4) and averages 8.1 defensive rebounds. When the Sonic have had success against Wallace, it's been by taking the ball directly at him, and they'll look to be the aggressors this evening. Wallace is undersized for a center, so the Sonics will probably try to get James some touches in the post early in the game.
B E N C H
	The biggest difference between this Pistons squad and last year's incarnation has been the bench. A quick glance at the Pistons plus-minus page on 82games.com reveals how much the reserves have hurt Detroit this season; the Pistons have been outscored with every regular reserve save McDyess on the court this season. McDyess (right) has been great. In his second year back from nearly two lost years due to knee injuries, McDyess is averaging 10.0 points and 6.4 rebounds and shooting 54.4% from the field. Carlos Arroyo has solidified the Pistons behind Billups since coming from Utah in a January trade, though he's still looking to reclaim his form as the Jazz's starting point in 2003-04. Lindsey Hunter emerged as an outstanding defensive stopper off the bench last season, but has not rated nearly as well this season. Ronald Dupree, a decent defender who is not a major offensive factor, rounds out the rotation. Vladimir Radmanovic was key to the Sonics Wednesday win at Cleveland, scoring 19 points and hitting five threes. Danny Fortson had his best game in some time, recording eight points and seven rebounds, and Nick Collison played 25 strong minutes. His six points and six rebounds don't reflect his fine defense against Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Antonio Daniels had an off night, scoring four points.

TEAM LEADERS ALLEN HAMILTON Allen 24.1 PPG Hamilton 19.7 Evans 9.2 RPG B. Wallace 11.9 Ridnour 6.0 APG Billups 6.3 Ridnour 1.2 SPG B. Wallace 1.4 James 1.2 BPG B. Wallace 2.5 Allen 39.5 MPG Hamilton 38.9

Over the last decade, the Sonics are 19-14 against defending champions.

LAST TIME

The Sonics were never in an 86-65 loss to Detroit at KeyArena on Mar. 7. Playing without Allen, who stayed home because of the flu, the Sonics could not find any offense. Ronald "Flip" Murray, so splendid alongside Allen, scored just five points and took just five shots replacing him as a starter. Lewis had 16 points, but the other four starters scored just 10 points combined. Despite 39 points from the bench (15 from Radmanovic and 11 from Ridnour), the Sonics tied their franchise low for fewest points in a game. They previously scored 65 on Nov. 11, 1990 at the L.A. Clippers in a 78-65 loss. The Sonics trailed by 12 after one quarter and, after briefly rallying in period two, saw Detroit go on a 9-0 run to end the first half up 18. Seattle got no closer in the second half. Rasheed Wallace led the Pistons with 18 points, while Ben Wallace had 12 points and 14 rebounds.

INJURIES

Sonics - Guard Mateen Cleaves (sprained right thumb) and forward Damien Wilkins (patellar tendinitis, right knee) are on the injured list.

Detroit - Guard Carlos Delfino (arthroscopic surgery, right knee) is on the injured list.

For more analysis before tonight's game, listen to David Locke on the Sonics Pregame Show starting at 6:50 on KJR 950 AM and 7:00 on Sonics Radio Network stations.