Larry Brown made sure the Detroit Pistons didn't bask in their glory too long after stunning Los Angeles in the opening game of the NBA Finals.
"As soon as we got in the locker room, he said, `Nice win, but we were in the same situation in Philly," Detroit's Mike James said Monday.
Since 1984, the team that won Game 1 of the Finals has lost the series just six times, and Brown knows what it's like to be on the wrong end of that statistic.
PHOTO: REUTERS
The Lakers overcame a series-opening loss in 2001, beating the Brown-coached Philadelphia 76ers by winning four straight games.
"If you have the Lakers down, you have to keep them down and we learned that the hard way," Sixers guard Eric Snow said.
Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is Tuesday in Los Angeles. Then series shifts to The Palace in Auburn Hills for at least two games -- three, if necessary.
The Pistons believe their 87-75 victory on Sunday was not a fluke for two reasons -- their depth and defense.
Detroit's 11-man rotation overcame the star-stacked Lakers, just as it did in the Pistons' regular-season victory over Los Angeles.
"We've got guys coming off the bench that bring the same effort that the starters have," Ben Wallace said. ``That's what's been carrying us all season.''
Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant combined for 59 points while none of their teammates scored more than five. Meanwhile, the Pistons had four players in double figures and another four with at least five points.
"Their coaching philosophy is to get everybody involved," said Lakers reserve Derek Fisher, who was 1-of-9 for two points. "They have plays for each guy, they swing the ball, and they don't count on two guys to do all their scoring.
"They got guys off the bench trying to make shots, and that was one of the things that hurt us."
And when Brown goes to his bench, he has options.
He can call on 7-footers Elden Campbell and Mehmet Okur to defend O'Neal, and he even showed he was willing to pit forward Corliss Williamson against the much taller and heavier O'Neal.
"The nice thing is, you've got those options, which is what we really needed," Brown said.
If Brown wants to harass opponents with feisty players, he can plug in guards Lindsey Hunter and Mike James, and forward Darvin Ham.
Many downplayed what the Pistons did defensively before the Finals because they were playing against offensively challenged teams in the Eastern Conference.
Then, Detroit's "D" turned the Lakers into rim-clanging shooters, too.
Los Angeles made just 39.7 percent of its shots and were held under 20 points in three of four quarters.
"Defense wins championships," Rasheed Wallace said. "You can go out there and score a million points, but if you're giving up a million and one, what good is it? Defense is definitely critical at this time in the series, and this time of the season."
Karl Malone, who was held to four points in Game 1, knows the Pistons are confident -- almost cocky -- about their series-opening performance.
"They're feeling really good about themselves, and they should," Malone said.
While some teams count on their shots to fall, the Pistons have shown often that their defense can negate offensive woes. Detroit knows it will not make 46.2 percent of its attempts every game, like it did Sunday.
"Some nights the ball is not going to go in the way you want it to, but if you can maintain your defense and make it tough for other teams to score, you give yourselves a chance," Hunter said.
After Brown reminded his players about his experience in the Finals three years ago, Ben Wallace said the Pistons had a rebuttal.
"We told him, `We're not the same team,'" Wallace said. "That Sixers team relied a little too much on how [Allen] Iverson's night was going. We got different guys that can step up at different times of the game."
THE LAKERS
After avoiding reporters following Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Gary Payton spoke to the media Monday.
But not for long.
"In a minute," Payton replied when asked if he'd be talking.
Then, with practice over, he left the court and headed toward the locker room.
Twenty minutes later, with about 50 media members waiting at a designated podium, Lakers spokesman John Black informed reporters Payton wasn't coming back.
Payton also left Staples Center without comment following his team's 87-75 loss to the Detroit Pistons a night earlier.
It wasn't a good game for Payton, who shot 1-of-4 for three points in 31 minutes while his man, Chauncey Billups, led the Pistons with 22 points. Payton committed his fifth foul with 3 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter and didn't play again until late in the final period.
"I don't know if any of us can understand the emotion that Gary's dealing with at this time," teammate Derek Fisher said. "He came here for one reason only, and he went through a tough season. To get this close to it and to struggle, that's got to be tough.
"We have a responsibility to address the media. We have to respect the fact that Gary's not very pleased with what's going on right now. Hopefully we can come out and play better tomorrow night and you guys will have a chance to talk to him."
NBA spokesman Tim Frank said Payton was fined US$5,000 for his failure to make himself available to the media.
Payton and Karl Malone, who both have Hall of Fame credentials, joined the Lakers at discount prices last summer in search of their first championship rings.
To say he's had a difficult time with his new team would be an understatement. While the 35-year-old guard has started every game, he hasn't hid his disappointment about playing time.
"He doesn't take losing very well," teammate Rick Fox said. "That's understandable.
"He might feel that coming out and talking when he's not in the best place wouldn't be good for the team."
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was