Posted by highfivesucka:
I actually think they never fell off, really. they have slowly begun to decline since LB left them, and then ben wallace left, so there's been changes they had to get used to every year. they are in year 2 with Flip and no big ben, and I think they finally have the adjustments made and solidified. meanwhile Dumars slowly harvests quality youth and develops them by giving them serious playing time (Maxiell, Stuckey, Afflalo). Cleveland getting past them last year was partly because they were so terrible with Webber, and partly because LeBron just happened to have an insanely good series. in any case, this year they are clearly poised to make another legit run at a title.
The key is their youth is really, really good. You can add Amir Johnson to that list too. There vets are obviously great, but their bench are also their future starters, which is unreal. I picked Detroit to come out of the East for this reason... their depth is absurd and I don't think it's coincidence they already beat the Celtics.
1/4/2008 6:53 PM