According to DraftExpress, rumors suggest that Indiana forward D.J. White has received a late-first round draft promise; Detroit comes about as a strong possibility given their history.

D.J. White may a promise from the Detroit Pistons at the end of the first round, according to sources with ties to the player. The Pistons have the 29th overall pick and may like the way White’s length and toughness fit into their team’s overall culture. They have not been shy in the past about identifying players they like early on and being aggressive pursuing them—having made a promise to draft Rodney Stuckey with the 15th overall pick right around this time last year, and reportedly also giving DeVon Hardin assurances they would select him in the late first round before he decided to return to school. They did the same exact thing with Jason Maxiell a few years back, which caused him to pull out of the NBA pre-draft camp after just one day, despite then being projected as a 2nd round pick.

White has scheduled many workouts with NBA teams for the weeks leading up to draft, which is not unusual even for players like Stuckey or Maxiell if year’s past is any indication. He will not be playing in the NBA pre-draft camp, which is a pretty good sign that he feels comfortable with where he is projected to be drafted.

White is one of those hard-to-dislike, blue collar bruisers that is more than willing to do anything and everything that is asked of him. In college, he was known for his relentless hard work and extraordinary nose for the ball. In his senior year, however, he also managed to expand his game. As the season progressed, as did the consistency of his mid-range jump shot. When matching that with his soft touch around the basket, he is a guy that defenses can’t abandon.

On the defensive end, he has long reach to his advantage, and is widely considered an above average shot blocker for his size. On the glass? “Fah-get about it”… he gobbles up defensive rebounds in his sleep.

White may struggle in the NBA on the defensive end, as he is not as quick or athletic as his typical matchup will be. But in a limited role, there is no doubt that he can be an effective piece. Think of a less explosive Leon Powe. He’ll never “wow” you, but he’ll get the job done as a cleanup man.

It’ll be interesting to see where he lands, but it’s easy to fathom White being a Joe Dumars kind of guy.

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Posted By: Dustin Chapman

By: Dustin Chapman

The Detroit Pistons have advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the sixth straight year, as they closed out their Semi-Finals series against Orlando on Tuesday night. Sans Chauncey Billups, who sat out the final two games of the series nursing a strained right hamstring, the Pistons pulled out the 91-86 Game 5 victory to complete the series 4-1.

Detroit’s Game 5 win was a bit of an “ugly win,” but in the playoffs, a win is a win nonetheless. Orlando suffered greatly on account of their sloppiness, as they turned the ball over 21 times and failed to execute in the closing minutes of the game. Detroit, on the other hand, played with tremendous care, committing just three turnovers throughout the night.

Perhaps the biggest factor to Detroit’s 26-18 fourth quarter advantage was the energy difference. With the Magic resembling the true meaning of the term “butterfingers” came frustration. With that frustration came lack of focus, thus throwing off their late-game concentration and looking as though they were playing with an irregular heartbeat. Detroit took advantage of that by coming away with multiple hustle plays, acquiring second-chance opportunities, and showing just why they are the more experienced team with annual postseason success. Antonio McDyess, in particular, was a huge energizer for Flip Saunders’ club. The 12-year NBA veteran put together a monster fourth quarter, where he scored 11 points and gobbled up six rebounds to give Detroit a major lift.

Rip Hamilton struggled with his shot in the second half, but despite his perimeter shooting woes, was able to lead his team in scoring. Nineteen of Hamilton’s 31 points came in the second half, and the masked man iced all 16 of his free throw attempts to help give his team a +12 advantage in free throws made (28-16).

Alongside Hamilton in the backcourt for Detroit was rookie Rodney Stuckey, who started in place of the aforementioned injured Chauncey Billups. The first-year guard out of Eastern Washington may have had his best postseason performance to date, as he tallied 15 points, six assists, three rebounds, two steals, and remained controlled by not committing a single turnover. There were multiple times where Stuckey shifted into his second gear, which often left the Magic defense in the dust and gave him a clear path to the basket.

The Piston defense limited Dwight Howard, holding him to just eight shot attempts and forcing him to earn his money at the free throw line. Similar to last season’s first round series, he failed to do so, as he hit just six of his 15 attempts from the charity stripe in Game 5. He did, however, manage to make his presence felt by grabbing 17 rebounds and block three shots.

Regardless, Howard’s defensive activity was not enough to extend the series and play another game in front of his beloved fans at Amway Arena. Stan Van Gundy’s crew should not be ashamed of their season, as they added 12 wins to their 2006-2007 regular season total and got the opportunity to advance to the second round.

While Orlando is fishing, Detroit will be waiting anxiously for their Eastern Conference Finals opponent, which will be the winner of the Boston-Cleveland series that is currently knotted at 2-2. Stay tuned.

After winning game one in their series against the Magic, the Detroit Pistons will need to keep on pumping on the gas or pay the price of splitting at home and having to go to Orlando tied 1-1.

Players Stepping up

Chauncey Billups has looked like the clutch, dominant point guard we all know and loved the past few games in the playoffs. His most recent performance netting him 19 points with 7 assists along with only one turnover. He is most vital to the Piston’s success, being the self-honored leader of the club and taking charge late in games. If the Pistons want to win tonight, Billups will have to best that performance in the previous game.

Stepping in and starting for Antonio McDyess, Jason Maxiell has become a giant baby eater grabbing lots of rebounds and being a force on the defensive end. He needs to keep playing solid D on Dwight Howard and keeping him out of the paint and force him to the perimeter where he is not as comfortable.

Flip on the Rise?

Flip Saunders needs to keep his rotations and adjustments going; he has been solid at that so far in the playoffs. He has kept Jarvis Hayes’s butt glued to the bench where it belongs, and has given Aaron Afflalo extended minutes. I for one however would like to see Walter Herrmann used more tonight to provide strength and quickness as well as a solid slashing presence to attack the Magic defense.

Kaptain’s Keys

1. Keep the man named Dwight Howard from getting easy baskets

The Pistons last game kept Dwight Howard to a lowly 12 points on 5-11 shooting. They forced him to go outside where he is less effective than being inside where he can rack up the dunks. This will be the major factor of winning tonight.

2. SHEEEEEEEEEEED!!!!!!!

Rasheed was a non-factor last game, only hitting 3 shots and barely grabbing any rebounds. He just looked so out of focus last game, and he needs to bounce back and keep working in the paint where he has dominated this post season. No technicals either, two more and he’s suspended for a game.

3. Just go out and play

We all know it, these Pistons like to take it easy once in a while. Well, this is no time to get complacent. They have to maintain focus all throughout the 48 minutes, and send the Magic a message that the Pistons are locked and loaded and are aimed to win.

“He’s only a three”

Another interesting thing to look for tonight is if Rashard Lewis and Theo Ratliff make the court at the same time.  If you can recall, Ratliff was grabbed and thrown by the forward Lewis towards the end of the game on Saturday.  The next day, words were exchanged by Ratliff and Jason Maxiell of the Pistons, and Rashard Lewis and Dwight Howard of the Magic.  To sum it up, Ratliff called Lewis a “three”, or in other words weak and small compared to Ratliff who is a center.

Lewis responded with saying that Ratliff only plays 5 minutes a game basically calling him a scrub.

Ratliff’s teammate Jason Maxiell took a shot at Dwight Howard saying he has a weak lower body and he’s all upper body.  Howard flatly denied that.

It is definitely a game to watch, be sure to tune in on TNT at 7:00 EST.

Go Pistons!
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