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Last Updated:
Mar 19th, 2008 - 07:43:02 |
Rip and Chauncey
An All-World Back Court
There have been a handful of duos that have stood the test of time.
They transcended their universe and became a standard by which others
could try to measure up against … Jordan and Pippin, Tram and Whitaker,
Walt Frazier and Earl ‘The Pearl’ Monroe, Simon and Garfunkel, Butch
Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. There’s something about these great duos;
they make each other even better; they compliment each other; in fact,
it’s almost as if they’re joined at the hip. And that’s the best part.
No great success truly goes solo in this life, even the Lone Ranger had
Tonto.
Richard Clay Hamilton and Chauncey Billups, quietly and efficiently,
are as productive as any duo that’s walked the planet. Together this
season, they’ve combined each game for 40 points, 7 rebounds, 13
assists and two steals night after night. The result? They lead their
Detroit Pistons to victory over 80% of the time.
Make no mistake, playing for a unit that prides itself on teamwork,
competence and the organized chaos they wreak on over-matched
opponents, Rip and Chauncey are the leaders of a band that’s produced
hit music to the ears of their legions of loyal fans.
You have to love everything about Chauncey and Rip: the way they talk,
the way they move and the way they conduct their business. But most of
all, you have to love the heart, grit and soul they displayed in their
mission to get to this point. Both were named to their first All-Star
Team on Feb 9, 2006 and that is a testament to their diligence.
Combined with their skill it is their will that makes them who they
are. They became overnight sensations, even though it took the better
part of a decade.
Chauncey Billups, appropriately nicknamed "Smooth," grew up in Colorado
where he starred in football and basketball in High School. A talented
strong safety on the football team, he was also a McDonald's High
School All-American in basketball, earning a scholarship to the Big 12
University of Colorado.
But the odyssey that led him to Detroit was certainly one that could be
defined as the road less traveled. After one non-descript rookie year
in Boston in ’97-'98, it was off to Toronto, Denver and then Minnesota.
Starting this millennium as a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves,
revisionist historians will easily point out this was a seminal event.
In addition to starting all but five games in those two seasons, he
matched up with then T-Wolve coach Flip Saunders. Saunders saw the
leadership qualities that are engrained in Chauncey Billups and a bond
was formed. Billups not only wanted the ball for the right reasons, but
he was a killer in the clutch and he made everybody around him play
better. He seemed to have an uncanny knack to always be in the right
place at the right time as the result of anticipation, hustle and great
court sense. Chauncey’s on-court decisions in the heat of battle are
things to behold.
Even though it would be a full four years later before being reunited
with Coach Flip Saunders, the kindred spirit remained alive and well,
as evidenced by their relationship and highly productive resume.
And speaking of kindred spirits, Chauncey and his backcourt teammate
Rip Hamilton have united to become an All-World tandem any way you
slice it. They teamed up for the first time in 2002-2003 and led the
Pistons to their first 50-win campaign since 1991. They followed up the
next season by clowning all over Kobe Bryant and the heavily-favored
L.A. Lakers four games to one in the NBA Finals.
Last year they took San Antonio to task, almost capturing back-to-back
championships and in 2006 they are back again, right where they need to
be.
Like Chauncey, Rip also arrived in Detroit not necessarily the way the
crow flies. After being drafted by the Washington Wizards out of the
University of Connecticut in 1999, he had three relatively productive
season, before impatient GM Michael Jordan decided to trade Rip to
Detroit as part of deal that brought the Wizards the seemingly more
productive Jerry Stackhouse. Meanwhile, Stackhouse is long gone from
Washington as is Michael Jordan, but Rip remains the other half of the
best backcourt duo in the NBA. In much the same way Joe Dumars
frequently bested Michael Jordan on the court, he got the better of him
in this deal too.
Perennially among the NBA's leaders in free throw percentage, scoring
and assists, Rip Hamilton also became the fifth of six players in
Pistons' franchise history to score over 1,000 postseason points.
Joining players like Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Bill Laimbeer and Vinnie
Johnson, Hamilton’s postseason scoring average of 20 in playoff
competition is not only awesome, it’s helped to make the Pistons a
fixture in the NBA Finals. Rip is a great guy, too. In 2004, Sporting
News Magazine named him one of the "good guys in sports"’ for his
community initiatives in Detroit with projects like Read to Achieve and
his contribution of time at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen.
There is one other player in that Pistons' postseason 1,000-point club.
His name? You guessed it — Chauncey Billups. You’ll also notice that
Isaiah Thomas and Joe Dumars are on that list as well. No one could
argue they formed an All-World backcourt. In addition to leading the
Pistons to a couple of NBA Championships, they are also members of The
Basketball Hall-of-Fame. Mentioning Chauncey and Rip in the same
sentence as Isaiah and Joe D. is not only appropriate, it’s absolutely
accurate.
Rip Hamilton and Chauncey Billups also form an All-World backcourt.
They are smart, tough and talented. They are team players and fan
favorites. They win basketball games, and they’ve won the hearts and
minds of Detroit's fans. They’ve won the respect of their peers and the
admiration of their bosses.
Will they be Hall-of-Famers someday? I like their chances. And for now, All-World will do just fine. | RDW
Special $12 tickets for Pistons'
first round playoff home games will go on sale April 20 at 10 a.m. at
the Palace of Auburn Hills box office. Any remaining $12 tickets and
some additional tickets will be available via www.ticketmaster.com or 248.377.0100 beginning at 11 a.m.
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