Looking at Detroit For What It Really Is (or Was)

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↵Not to kick the Pistons while they’re down. After all, yesterday Dumars proclaimed himself “disgusted,” vowed to make a major trade, and said he blamed everyone. But this latest Pistons collapse, or implosion, or disappearing act, makes you wonder: Why does this team have such a good reputation?↵
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↵Granted, there’s the all-for-one attitude, the lack of egos, and the refusal of any All-Star to anoint himself one. But whether or not Flip Saunders belongs at the helm of a championship contender, the bottom line is that this core wasn’t always tough, hard-working, honorable, and a model for basketball purists everywhere. Sure, there’s chemistry, and a willingness to work together and make sure everyone’s playing at their best. In principle, the Pistons are a marvel.↵
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↵However, these playoffs were all too typical of a team that, while its always flourished in the regular season, and made the conference finals every year since my bar mitzvah, frequently came up short. Or gave up. Or lacked vision and focus when it mattered. Put simply, if this weren’t such a great group of guys, playing in a city that loves its sports and gets mentioned a lot in stump speeches, someone would call them lazy. Or spacey. Or any number of the other things that stick to, you know, those teams.↵
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↵So if this is twilight for these Pistons, I just hope we can give them their real due on the way out—as beneficiaries of a double-standard who were far as flawed, and frustrating, as the Mavs or Suns.↵