Signs of Life?

Anyone who saw game 2 of the Cavs/Pistons series and didn't turn it off at the end of the 3rd quarter saw the Pistons mount a vigorous comeback. At the end of 3, Cleveland led 77-50, and the game wasn't even that close.

The Pistons were flat, slow, uninspired, and just plain not as good as the Cavaliers for the first seven quarters of this series. But during that 4th quarter, when the Pistons went on a 27-7 run and closed the gap to 84-77, they showed that they have a chance to win this series...right?

No.

And here's why.

During the early stages of this ferocious comeback effort, the Cavaliers' starters were not in the game (save Delonte West, who played part of this time). James, Williams, Z, and Varejao were all on the bench. What's far more important, however, is that the Pistons starters weren't in the game. The lineup that torched the Cavs for several minutes did not include Rasheed Wallace, Antonio McDyess or Tayshaun Prince, and most of that time was spent without Rip Hamilton.

The Pistons starters have done absolutely nothing to show that they can hang with the Cavaliers starters.

Granted the Cavaliers should not have let their guard down in such a way as they did last night, but they did end up winning the game. The backups were in and were probably not as focused as they should have been, so the Pistons went on a run. Mike Brown panicked a little (perhaps rightfully so, considering it was back around 12 points when LeBron came back in) and was forced to put in the guys who had already mentally checked out. That's what caused the extra lag when the studs returned, allowing the lead to slip all the way down to 7.

Once the Cavaliers regained focus, they were able to pull away again and end up with the 12 point victory.

The only issue I have is Ben Wallace's playing time. I suspect he's not 100% healthy, but the few minutes he played last night (about 7:30) were tremendous. He had a +8 ratio on less than 8 minutes, which is incredible. 

The stat-sheet gave him 3 rebounds and a blocked shot, but it doesn't explain how much of an impact he was. On a series of three possessions, he did something like this.

1: on defense, he chased down Jason Maxiell and blocked his layup from behind, with the Cavaliers gaining possession.

2: on offense, he had consecutive back-taps after missed shots by the Cavs, with Mo Williams eventually scoring.

3: on defense, he stepped out to stop a pick and roll and slapped the ball away from Rodney Stuckey, sparking a fastbreak for the Cavaliers.

And let's not forget that he played with those Pistons for a few years and has a pretty good idea of how they operate.

I vote Ben Wallace gets more playing time next game.

I'm done.

2 down, 14 left. Go Cavs.