Billups will be big
More Finals: Seven reasons why the Spurs will win Game 7
SAN ANTONIO – Still steaming from the Detroit Pistons' devastating Game 5 loss, Joe Dumars walked onto the team charter fully expecting a long, bitter flight to South Texas.
No one else shared his pain, at least not visibly.
"If you had a hidden camera on the plane, you could not tell if we had lost a big game or won a big game," the Pistons' president of basketball operations said. "The mood stays exactly the same. The same guys play cards, the same guys play video games, the same guys watch movies. Nothing changes.
"I think that [calmness] gives you a chance to win – if you can stay within yourself and not get out of character."
It's like what Larry Brown and the Pistons always say: This is who they are. This is what they do.
And these are the seven reasons why the Pistons will keep the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
1. They've been there, done that.
The Pistons already have won a Game 7 on the road this postseason, eliminating Miami in the East finals. They also took out New Jersey in a Game 7 at home in last year's East semis. The Spurs? Their Big Three – Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker – never have played in a Game 7.
2. Home-court is no longer an advantage.
Ginobili said so himself. A veteran of series-deciding games as a two-time Italian League MVP, Ginobili believes playing at the SBC Center doesn't give the Spurs an edge. Also, the Pistons just proved they can beat the Spurs on their own court, winning in San Antonio for the first time since 1997.
3. Rasheed finally knows he's needed.
It took something monumental – like his admittedly "bonehead" decision to leave Robert Horry open for the game-winning three-pointer in Game 5 – to shake Rasheed Wallace out of his sleepwalking state. 'Sheed responded with an emphatic and effective Game 6, scoring 16 points and making every touch difficult for Tim Duncan. The Pistons are 8-0 in the postseason when Wallace scores 20 points. Thursday night could be the night he finally reaches that plateau in the Finals.
4. Rip has deciphered Bowen's defense.
Brown told Richard Hamilton to stop pump-faking Bruce Bowen and just shoot the ball. That explains why Rip looked somewhat comfortable against the Spurs' lockdown defender in Game 6. When he wasn't having his trademark mask accidentally knocked off his face by Bowen, Hamilton was shooting with confidence in scoring 23 points, his highest point total on the road in the Finals.
5. Dan Crawford won't be refereeing.
The Pistons' archenemy of officials worked Games 2 and 6, so – unless the league wants to play a cruel joke on Detroit – Crawford will be nowhere near the SBC Center. The Pistons' ongoing beef with Crawford takes away from their focus. They won't have to worry about him in Game 7.
6. LB's love is a powerful thing.
Brown told his players that he loved them during a late fourth-quarter timeout. "At that time, I really wasn't in a sentimental state," Chauncey Billups said. "I was just like, 'A'ight man. What are we running, though?' " Brown might have expressed those feelings because this series could mark the end of his tenure in Detroit – or his coaching career for that matter, if his health problems aren't solved in the offseason. The point is that the Pistons are giving their all for Brown again, which some speculated wasn't the case when the "Brown-to-Cleveland GM" rumor became a distraction earlier in these playoffs. So if the Pistons lose, at least they'll never have to say they're sorry.
7. They have their own Big Shot.
All Dumars ever wants for his Pistons in a big game is to get to the four-minute mark with a chance to win. "That's all you can hope for on the road in a big game," he said. Dumars feels so confident about his team in those situations because of their collective coolness, and no Piston embodies that persona better than Mr. Big Shot himself – Billups. With his .917 free-throw shooting percentage in the Finals, he is Detroit's closer when it has the lead. Before Billups left Wednesday's practice, he was asked if his Pistons were going to win their second straight title. He didn't hesitate to give his answer.
"Yeah."
