SECTION C
Highly anticipated draft yields dividends
April 28-May 4, 2010
Suh and Best Lions No. 1 picks
By Leland Stein III
ALLEN PARK – Just like Opening Day for the
In the Game
By Leland Stein III
What’s next for Pistons?
AUBURN HILLS – I can truly say halle-
lujah the Pistons’ 2009-10 NBA campaign is over. It was painful watching them fall to the depths they did – finishing with a woeful 27-55 record.
As the NBA Playoffs get into full bloom,
it is kind of strange not getting in my car and heading up the 75 Freeway to The Palace in Auburn Hills. Instead I’m sitting at home waiting for the NBA Finals before I’ll be at another NBA game. I think as De- troit fans endure its second consecutive season watching the NBA Playoffs without the Pistons in it, maybe most will reflect on how good it has been for area basket- ball aficionados for almost a decade.
What’s next for the Pistons? Can they
be fixed? Does Joe Dumars pull a basket- ball playing rabbit out his magic hat? Is John Kuester the right coach to lead the Pistons rebuilding process?
Detroit Tigers every year, likewise the NFL Draft for the Lions is a time for hopeful thought and dreams of a possible rebirth as a competitive NFL team.
Who can argue that the Detroit Lions fran-
chise needs a rebirth? The woeful 2008 season that produced an incredible 0-16 record was fol- lowed with a nearly equally woeful 2009 cam- paign that finished with 2-14 record.
COMMENTARY
Lions general manager Martin Mayhew and
his staff came in last year and implemented a solid if not spectacular 2009 draft, getting three players with measurable potential, quarterback Matthew Stafford, tight end Brandon Pettigrew and safety Louis Delmas.
Consequently, the 2010 NFL Draft would be
the litmus test for many in deciding if the Lions are indeed headed in a positive direction. As I pulled into the Lions headquarters in Allen Park, there was a group of Lions fans already clad in Ndamukong Suh’s number 90 jersey. Moments later a limo pulled up and out pops Suh and his family. He stops and takes pictures with the fans and autograph items, then heads into the press conference.
The NFL has simply become bigger than life
and it knows it, as evidenced by the league ex- tending the draft to a three-day event in New York’s Radio City Music Hall. To illustrate that football is really America’s favorite pastime, the draft television ratings knocked every other sport — baseball, hockey and basketball — on their collective behinds.
Well, it is the hope of Mayhew and coach Jim
Schwartz that their two first round draft picks knock the NFL and the Detroit fans on their col- lective behinds.
Suh, the Nebraska All-American defensive
lineman, taken with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft is by all accounts the best player in the draft.
“Every step along the way,” Schwartz said in
RICHARD HAMILTON may be gone.
Questions, questions are everywhere
and this offseason will go a long way in determining how long it will be before the Pistons become a competitive NBA team again.
I was a little disappointed in how Kue-
ster used this team. I remember in the pre-season press conference Dumars ac- knowledged that this would be a rebuild- ing year, yet, we come into the season and young players like Austin Daye, DaJuan Summers, Kwame Brown and Chris Wilcox were basically ignored. They would play one game and sit for four, and play one game, then sit for another four. People can quarrel and squabble all day on whether any of the abovementioned players were ready or have the skills to help the Pistons’ win games. But the only real proof would have been playing each of them every game for at least 15 minutes or more all season. Now what we have is questions marks about all of these men.
Kuester fell in love with rookie Jonas
Jerebko playing him ahead of Charlie Vil- lanueva. As a result the fans and others turned on Charlie V and he became one scapegoat for this dismal season. I totally disagree with Villanueva being the bad guy in all this. I like Jerebko’s hustle, but his playing over 2200 minutes, second after Rodney Stuckey, was misguided. All Those minutes should have been distrib- uted throughout the team. For example Wilcox only played 440 minutes, Sum- mers got 405, Brown stepped foot on the court for 659, Daye squeezed in 914 and Villanueva 1800 minutes.
As the season went on Kuester let the
press believe that Villanueva’s defensive effort was why Jerebko was playing way more than the veteran forward. The fact of the matter is Jerebko works hard, but I did not see him shutting down any great players, nor did it reflect in wins as the team only won 27 games.
Villanueva averaged 12 points, dropped
a team high 99 three-pointer shots and was second on the team in blocks with 55. Jerebko averaged 9 points, made 36 three-pointers and blocked 29 shots.
Next season veterans Richard Hamil-
ton and Tayshaun Prince may be gone. Jason Maxiell and Brown may also be playing somewhere else. And no way should Chucky Atkins be back. Unless a big trade happens Ben Gordon, Villanue- va, Stuckey, Will Bynum, Daye, Jerebko, Summers should all be back for the 2010- 11 season.
What about Ben Wallace? Well, I would
not bring him back. His best years are behind him. Many sang his praises this season, because I think no one expected anything from him. He hustled and played hard, but a small center that cannot score playing along side a forward, Jerebko, who is not a scorer, puts too much pres- sure on the other three starters. If one is having an off day it is down to two scor- ers. That is why in too many games the Pistons found themselves behind after the first quarter.
Many have their eye on the bevy of free
agents like Chris Bosh, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Amare Stoudemire and David Lee; however, in the Pistons’ pres- ent state, they do not look enticing to the superstar looking to win a NBA title.
One thing for sure is this will be an in-
teresting and important offseason.
Leland Stein III can be reached at lel-
stein3@aol.com.
the press conference, “he (Suh) solidified our thought that he was the best player in college football. During some downtime I would flip a game on and I would just be shocked at the way he would dominate a game. We were very fortu- nate to have a situation where the Rams needed a quarterback at No. 1 and we were able to get him.”
Said Suh: “Detroit fans are obviously very at-
tuned to their football and they love it. I’m very happy to be a part of this city and I’m looking for- ward to getting to know a lot of them and, most importantly, help this team compete for champi- onships.”
At 6-foot-4, 307 pounds, what makes Suh spe-
cial is his balance and footwork, which he honed playing soccer up until the eighth grade.
“I got a little big for soccer,” he said, “and I
started getting too many red cards. I definitely have grown to love football. It’s fun to kind of beat up on those little guys over there (pointing to Jahvid Best).”
LIONS GM Martin Mayhew (left), Jahvid Best, coach Jim Schwartz, Ndamukong Suh and Tom
Lewand. – Andre Smith photos
After the Suh pick the Lions traded up in the
draft to ensure they could get California running back Best with the 30th overall pick in the first round. The 5-foot-10, 200 pound back was re- garded as the fastest running back in the draft, scooting through the 40 yard dash in a very fast 4.3.
Many fans questioned the pick because de-
fense is the glaring weakness on this team. Others are concerned that Best could not finish his junior year because of a concussion. But, my feeling on this is you cannot teach speed. It is worth the risk to have a potential back that can blow by defenders.
“We watched the coaching tape,” Schwartz
said about Best, “saw the matchups, the explo- siveness and you see the huge gains that he makes and the way that he affects the game of
football. When you put a game on, he was domi- nating that game, whether it was in the passing game — he has great hands — whether it’s as a receiver, whether it’s as a running back, running inside, running outside, wild cat, whatever it is, he was the best player on the field and it was against good competition.”
With their third round pick the Lions took
Iowa cornerback Amari Spievey. “He’s a tough, physical player,” Schwartz said,
“and he’s got good instincts in the pass game.” The Lions draft feels good to me now, but as
is always the case, when they suit up the truth will come to light.
Leland Stein can be reached at lelstein3@
aol.com.
Burt’s hockey dream came true
By Leland Stein III
Detroit and Ford Field were the history makers
at the recent NCAA Frozen Four national hockey championship at Ford Field as a record crowd of 37,592 attended the title contest.
Sure, Boston College was a big story as the
Eagles have appeared in the Frozen Four 10 times in the last 13 years and four of the last five years. The Eagles lost to Wisconsin in 2006 (2-1) and to Michigan State in 2007 (3-1). Boston Col- lege avenged the loss to Wisconsin, winning 5-0 at Ford Field.
Boston College’s win was great, but the feel
good story of the event was Rochester (N.Y.) In- stitute of Technology making the Final Four. But wait, it gets even better, as the Tigers were led by Detroit native Cameron Burt.
Burt, 23, a 2005 graduate from Detroit Com-
munication & Media Arts, led the Tigers with 16 goals and 47 points. At a smallish 5-foot-10, 160- pounds, the sophomore forward showed heart and grit by earning the Atlantic Hockey tourna- ment MVP.
Burt’s team came to Detroit on a wild, unbe-
lievable 12-game winning streak. They pulled off a shocking 2-1 upset of top-seeded Denver in the East Regional opener, then defeated New Hamp- shire, 6-2, in the title game.
Dreams do come true. One dream Burt had was to play for Wayne
State, but the school dropped hockey following the 2007-08 season. So, after three seasons of junior hockey, he found himself attending Roch- ester (N.Y.) Institute of Technology. A school that
Cameron Burt – Dan Graschuck photo
had never been to the Final Four, does not offer scholarships and has only been competing at the Division I level for five seasons.
“It’s a dream,” said Burt, one of the few Af-
rican Americans playing college hockey. “I feel very fortunate to have the chance to come home and play. It’s a great opportunity. Quite as it is kept, Detroit has some outstanding African- Americans players and programs. I think we do as well and any city in that regard.”
RIT may have lost in the semi-finals, but it
was a win-win situation for Burt. No one was more happy that his father, Ernest
Burt.
Golfweek releases free mobile app
Golfweek magazine – the publication preferred by serious golfers – an-
nounced the release of its first mobile application, which delivers break- ing golf news, up-to-the-minute rankings, complete tour coverage and exclusive Golfweek content directly to users’ smartphone devices. The user-friendly Golfweek application will also boast an optimized reading experience as well as cross-device compatibility across all mobile brows- ers and device types, including iPhone, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile and Android smartphones.
Immediately available for free download at
www.Golfweek.com/Mobile,
through any major smartphone storefront or by texting “golfweek” to 222377, the application will allow viewers to instantly access Golfweek’s broad spectrum of interactive resources and features, such as:
• Automatic real-time updates • Up-to-the-minute headlines, reports and staff blogs • Enhanced rich media • Intuitive, easy-to-use navigation • Customizable favorites
• Advanced distribution options and archival capabilities • Image, text and click-to-call ad functionality “The launch of Golfweek’s mobile app significantly extends our brand’s
reach, and we pride ourselves on being ahead of today’s cutting-edge tech- nology,” said Clayton Morris, president/publisher of Golfweek. “By em- bracing all aspects of technology, we have worked to create a multiplat- form application that reaches more than just the standard smartphone.”
In addition to providing free access to breaking golf news and stories,
the application will also allow users to easily share content via social media outlets, as well as automatically download full text articles for im- mediate offline reading without a wireless connection.
“This latest venture is only one step in our overall strategy for new and
emerging media,” added Morris. “At Golfweek, we’re constantly exploring innovative opportunities that will allow us to continue to enhance our content, engage consumers and further develop our suite of dynamic mul- timedia platforms.”
To learn more about Golfweek and its extensive transmedia offerings,
visit
www.Golfweek.com.
“My dad didn’t want us to just play the tra-
ditional African-American sports like football and basketball,” Cameron’s told reporters. “He wanted us to try something different.”
Ernest recalled how he took Brandon, 9 at the
time, and Cameron, 5, to watch a PAL Detroit Hockey Association game.
“Once they saw it they got hooked,” Ernest
told reporters. The rest is history.
Leland Stein III can be reached at lelstein3@
aol.com.
NDAMUKONG SUH greets Lions fans.
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