On Monday, I engaged in a one hour chat on the Detroit Free Press’ website. Overall, I was grateful for the platform, and we as Pistons fans destroyed any lingering tension with a focus on ball-movement and defense.

I do, however, think it’s imperative to show what the actual Press writer said at times compared to how I responded. I created this website as more of a balance to the ESPN-like negativity that many media outlets show all the time. I believe not only are they uninformed, but not as real of fans as those die-hard Detroiters. Here’s what he had to say:

  • 1) The Pistons were NEVER going to contend for the title this year. The goal is/was to make the postseason. That’s it. Needs progression,.
    by Brian Manzullo February 22 at 4:01 PM
  • 2) There are obviously holes on this team that people are right to nitpick, but any team that’s a fringe bubble team is going to have holes.

That’s how he started the chat. SUCH A PUSSY ASS BITCH! First of all putting “never” in all caps? Obviously not a real fan. Established. For many of these writers its no longer a passion and just a job. And then, instead of offering any solutions, he wrote us off in #2 there.

I swooped right in and led the charge for an hour by offering snippets of my Pistons articles and showing HOW we can do better instead of simply whining:

I enjoyed Aron Baynes’ postgame last night I think it’s really important for us to get back to the early season defense we provided thanks to our MMA training! For real though we need to go hard for a full 48 we’re still young and immensely talented but we do drift through quarters at times by Snarf February 22 at 4:05 PM

There were a lot of silent fans there, and this is the problem with the 24 hour 21st century news world, too often it’s just hype to sell ads and not real reporting. We needed hope and answers. From then on, I would consistently make major points that he would pretty much just re-state in his own words! At least the information was getting to the people…

I tried to school him on our coach. Like many writers, he was dumping everything on guys in their mid-20s, not focusing on an adult man in charge assigned to “coach,” meaning he clearly has a job –

Sometimes coaches spend so much time analyzing and lose their feel for the game. Gotta be like the “Zen” Master esp. we a young team i watch these awful runs sometimes by Snarf February 22 at 4:25 PM
There’s only so much a coach can do, though. Team needs to play better, period
by Brian Manzullo February 22 at 4:26 PM Whenever I watch the Pistons, it’s almost like I can tell when it’s going to be a “good Pistons” game or a “bad Pistons” kind of night. Really Jekyll-and-Hyde, mostly Hyde lately.

 

What a dick! I retorted:

@BrianManzullo @BrianManzullo i disagree its both of their faults
by SnarfFebruary 22 at 4:26 PM

@BrianManzullo We’re pretty talented and showed it at times I think it plays more to the youth how we’re jeckly and hyde

  • we have the size and strength and athleticism to really play better D if we want i think the current era is a distractable group and stan van needs to keep them focused
    by SnarfFebruary 22 at 4:30 PM
  • Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson continue to drift through defense, and our offense has lost it’s flow. Not only are we capable, but we can actually compete (as illustrated in those difficult wins) with the best, if we choose to.
Snarf: Would agree with all that.
by Brian Manzullo February 22 at 4:31 PM (so at least he’s not a total assclown lol truly not the worst guy but kind of… kind of…)

 

It showed obviously in Cleveland when Van Gundy ended the 3rd with withering troops on a 10-0 Cavs run, then let them storm back in the final minutes down 18 with a 12-0 run, never signaling timeout. HEY MANZULLO, take your head out of your ass and instead of writing dick cliches, realize why one the youngest teams in the league might be losing their focus due to age and actually address it.

The key was for Detroit to realize what we’ve been saying on this site: the talent IS there and it just needs to be managed better. These guys are capable of beating anyone when they are 100% focused and trying their hardest.

I really miss chanting DETROIT BASKETBALL! more! I think the 3s get us a little off focus van gundy loves them but traditionally detroit is built on defense and i believe our fans really respond to that
by SnarfFebruary 22 at 4:34 PM

The fans were definitely getting into it now, giving their own solid takes in conjunction with the defensive and teamwork beliefs. This translated to a nice win on Monday night, creating a palpable excitement due to all this Pistons support and involvement. We haven’t made the playoffs in a long time, and everyone is ready.

But then Manzullo really crossed the line. I defended the unselfishness of the two guys we just traded ( I see 5+ amazing scorers, but they can’t share the ball! Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova were extremely unselfish… sometimes those glue guys are invaluable. by Snarf February 22 at 4:36 PM), and he said:

Eh, Jennings and Ilyasova were expendable. I’m not losing sleep over that one
by Brian Manzullo February 22 at 4:37 PM

 

Whoa. What a fucking dick! I liked the overall style of the chat and I don’t want to be a dick myself, but wow, how can he call himself a Detroit Free Press writer or a Pistons fan? WTF? So insensitive at the very least.

Jennings just finished a year of rehab! My dad and I watched him in Grand Rapids and it was so exciting to see him again. He single-handedly saved the Pistons off the bench as soon as he returned, throwing oops, pushing the tempo, draining cold-blooded 3s, and injecting some swagger into our lineup. I will always respect and appreciate his time in Detroit. by SnarfFebruary 22 at 4:38 PM

And it was totally silent. Usually people pop up messages non-stop, but for at least a solid minute no one said anything, From then on, I felt like the tide had turned on this guy and any cynicism and was re-focused on how we can improve. NO ONE SAID ANYTHING IN RESPONSE! I posted:

And Ersan aka James Franco, the wall!! The charge taking king who had his game face on from the tipoff, he was very precise and calculated with his feet and overall style, a classic European rule hound. He, also, will truly be missed.

The young PF we traded for will probably help us a lot. But our feelings are not immune to fantasy basketball… and this one stings a little, no matter how smart it is.

Again, pretty much quiet. We spent the last quarter of the chat praising the team with the focus clearly on defense and passing. And other fans chimed in backing up Jennings, too. Finally, one fan admitted we’d talked him out of tanking, and more real Pistons fans made sure to state that was NOT happening. I thanked Manzullo, but I thought the world should see for itself just how un-supportive many of these so-called writers are for their hometown team.

(Not ME!)

At the very end, even more people seemed to be on board. Again, Brian tried to downplay how close we’ve been in recent years, to which I rebuttaled:

I can feel our collective frustration… its been too long with too many decent teams in what was a weak east to not make the playoffs… we gotta do our thing these final 25 games and at least play harder
by Snarf February 22 at 4:48 PM
..and making the playoffs and growing will be a good springboard for next year..
by tigers2goodFebruary 22 at 4:50 PM
I dont think we were that bad last year pretty unlucky with the injury to jennings i think everyone is pretty talented in the NBA and youd be surprised how much coaching hustle and just going hard for 48 on defense can make a difference

I knew we could do it. It’s all about using our energy to help these guys and give answers to the public as journalists, not dissuade their interest with negativity and backlash. I just kept providing solutions –

It starts with Reggie Jackson and Andre Drummond. The two superstars seem to shift gears at will, a problem with the cell-phone era. Life does not start and stop at your convenience! Ask Walter in The Big Lebowski, no? Too often I see the stars hang their head when a call goes against them. And that’s how you literally take yourself out of the game – free your mind and the body will follow.
by SnarfFebruary 22 at 4:53 PM

If you really give a fuck, you can’t give up when the going gets tough.

Good luck Pistons, thanks for leading us Brian, and dont lose hope boys
by Snarf February 22 at 4:54 PM