Empty the Bench

Detroit Pistons 95, Chicago Bulls 93

The Pistons/Bulls rivalry is back. Ben Wallace returned to Detroit for the first time since signing a 4-year, $60 million contract with the Bulls to face his former team, but it was his replacement that stole the show this afternoon. Detroit’s prodigal son Chris Webber tipped in a wayward Chauncey Billups jump shot with 2.2 seconds to go in the game, and the Pistons held on for the two-point victory after Ben Gordon’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer bounced off the rim.

The first few minutes of the game were filled with dazzling Ben Gordon play on the offensive end (8 points in the first few minutes) and Hubie Brown slobbering all over his mic in discussing Ben Wallace’s “intangibles” on four separate possessions. Gordon and Kirk Heinrich sat for the bulk of the first quarter with two fouls, however, as the Bulls built a 27-25 lead after one and 53-45 advantage at the half.

It got ugly for the Pistons after the turn, hitting only 1 of their last 16 shots with 8 minutes left in the third. An offensive foul and ensuing tech on Ben Wallace, however, woke up the crowd and the players alike, with Detroit cruising to a 12-0 run to trim a 16-point lead to just 2 after three quarters.

With Jason Maxiell providing a huge spark off the bench in the fourth quarter (see ‘Bench Player of the Game’ below), the Pistons clawed their way back behind 20 (yes, 20) offensive boards in the second half and a strong effort from Tayshaun Prince. Prince, who has been wildly inconsistent the past few weeks, scored some big buckets and brought the house down with one of his patented, highlight-reel block shots on a Luol Deng breakaway. How many times have we seen Tayshaun swoop in from out of nowhere to make these bigtime blocks? This is what second-half-of-the-season NBA basketball is all about.

Fantasy Player of the Game: Chris Webber stepped up in a big way amidst the national-television spotlight today when the Pistons called his number. Detroit fans had to love seeing it, especially the ones living in Michigan who’ll never forget C-Webb’s famous choke against North Carolina in the NCAA Finals. Webber scored the best all-around fantasy numbers for today’s contest, capping his 21-point, 9 rebound, 3 steal, and 9-19 FG day with a game-winning tip-in off a missed Chauncey Billups’ jumper with 2.2 seconds to go. He also added his second 3-point shot as a Detroit Piston.

Fantasy Dud of the Game: Hobbled by a “slightly sprained ankle” early in the third quarter, Rasheed Wallace was a total non-factor in the win for the Pistons. ‘Sheed hit an early 3-pointer, and then… nothing. For the day, Wallace was 2-11 FG%, 6 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 steal, and 2 turnovers.

Bench Player of the Game: Chris Duhon had a solid game off the bench for the Bulls (12 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists), but while his fantasy numbers were better than the Pistons’ Jason Maxiell, Detroit took the win and Maxiell provided a huge lift in the second half when his team needed it most. Underwhelming box-score numbers—4 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks—but just about every one of those stats came at opportune moments. We’re huge fans of J-Maxx here at ETB, and think this kid will only get better over time.

And to Wrap It Up… Big Ben Wallace’s much-ballyhooed return to Detroit pretty much lived up to billing, at least in terms of the competitiveness and energy displayed during the game overall. On the day, Wallace posted the kind of ho-hum numbers he’s been putting up all season so far: 6 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 2-8 from the free-throw line. Hey, it’s great to get a few notches in all columns by your fantasy center, but these can’t be the numbers the Bulls enjoy writing a $60 million check for.

Wallace was roundly booed by the home crowd today, starting with his introduction in the Bulls’ starting line-up as “one of the cornerstones of the re-emergence of Detroit Pistons basketball.” The other half of Wallace & Wallace, Rasheed, “was having a laugh,” Andy Millman style, at Ben’s expense in warmups, running over and tossing Ben a headband. It seemed like the loudest cheers of the day were for Big Ben mishaps: an offensive foul call, missing 6 of 8 free throws, a technical foul. The inter-divisonal move by Ben Wallace has clearly brought even more passion into the long-standing rivalry between the Bulls and Pistons, and that can only be a good thing for the NBA.

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