Rodney Stuckey is warning us all to be prepared.
From an interview with the Flint Journal's Patrick Hayes:
I'll tell you one thing, our defense and defensive standpoint, things are going to be a lot different. We're gonna be picking up full court, trying to get back to our old ways of playing Bad Boys defense. That's something to look forward to this coming year.
That's tough talk from a player going into his second year in the league. It's also a scary thought when one considers that his team ranked fourth in defensive efficiency a season ago.
As good as the Pistons have been over the last couple of regular seasons under Flip Saunders, they have lacked that edge to their defensive identity that they had during Larry Brown's tenure. That was certainly evident in Game 5 against the Cleveland LeBrons in 2007 and at times against the Celtics this year.
The expectation is that Michael Curry is going to provide an infusion of intensity on the defensive end for these Pistons. This team may have just the right mix of savvy and still-able veterans and youthfully boundless energy coming from the youngsters off the bench to execute his plans effectively. Stuckey and banger Jason Maxiell in particular are only expected to play larger roles this coming season, and the bigger names ahead of them (Billups, Hamilton, Prince, Sheed) all look to have at least a couple of productive years left.
While this team isn't going to generate much well-wishing from Celtics fans, the strengthened defense should be quite a sight to see.