I still think it’s #SendAMessage defense/effort wise but I could be wrong
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If you were around for the Bad Boys days, then you love him. If you were around for the prime of the '03-'09 teams, then you probably like him. I’m not sure what those of the last 15 years think of him, but I could see this forum in particular not being a huge fan…but his voice is classic.
I also (as a once aspiring PBP guy) LOVE how Blaha calls the time of the game. Its not 2:15 remaining…its “2 and 15 remaining”. Such a small trademark of his.
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Messages are never, ever, sent about a player’s inability to play any aspect of offense. Just defense. Makes sense (no it doesn’t)
If Killian Hayes starts the first game, I’m going to literally explode
Ivey spent January on at about league average true shooting, surprisingly strong three point shooting, and pretty impressive play-making assist numbers.
Killian Hayes has never shot over 28% from three, is a poor scorer inside the arc, and an inferior playmaker. He’s a “better defender” in such a way that there is no stat that can quantify the difference in team defense between Ivey’s presence and Hayes’.
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He’s got many classics: “The glasser goes!”, “With the long gun.”, “The Palace Prince” (now dated), and “Count that baby and a foul!”, among many others.
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I’ve only heard him call an MSU game recently, and they were losing. So, other than the in-game shout-outs, that didn’t color my impression of him. I don’t even know whether I knew of his MSU affiliation until moving back to Michigan. If he gave shoutouts from '85-'93, when I first was following the Pistons, it didn’t make much of an impression on me.
Oh yeah, he’s got a ton of them! I’ve always used the Joe Dumars “rainbow gun and he got it” in my driveway as a kid.
I feel like the way he calls the time of the game is less-known, though maybe I’m wrong. But I’ve never heard another announcer do it, personally.
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I hear you and I certainly hope Killian never starts for this franchise again barring injury
I’d still have Ivey as the 4th most important player on the roster to prioritize
But I do strongly believe Ivey had no idea how/nor the interest in playing on this team in a role where he isn’t a loud primary option. He was great last year when everyone that mattered got shut down and it was the Ivey show (which is why to some extent I think it makes sense to have him run the bench unit)
The issues with Ivey have always been defensive buy-in and offensive pouty body language stuff. He’s a box score guy not a little things guy. And that’s mostly fine! But if Cade and Ausar are what they look like (basketball geniuses, one who should be making every offensive decision and one who appears a great play finisher, secondary decision maker)…they don’t need a shooting guard who just wants to get his 20 and do nothing else alongside them unless that player is going to fully buy-in defensively
I think you still need Ivey, beacuse Thompson is never going to be a scorer, Duren is a center, and you need a second guy who can play with the ball in the halfcourt. I just don’t see making Cade do a Doncic as a feasible long term play.
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People keep saying that about Thompson’s offense but he’s scoring already isn’t he? Like I’ve seen nothing that says he won’t score a good amount this year even without running action for him
After the draft the narrative was that they’ll bring him along slow, he can’t shoot, offense isn’t there and as soon as Monty took over he was like uhhhh yeah Ausar can’t come off the floor he’s starting
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Two and Twenty-Three to play
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I don’t disagree about the starting, but I don’t know that 12 ppg on 37% shooting, mostly 2’s is a massive endorsement of his scoring. I like him a bunch (as you’ll recall from the volume I wrote about about him) but I don’t think he’s more than a 10-12 ppg guy in 30-35 mpg, unless he’s shooting way more than he should
More fundamentally:
Making Cade play massive minutes next to Thompson, Hayes, Stewart, and Duren is like an elaborate Edgar Allan Poe plot. That’s not an indictment of any those players individually (well, it is of Hayes) and more a statement the lineup is from 2002 and completely out of touch with vaguely modern basketball.
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agreed
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The bricks used to trap Cade behind a wall for eternity, in this case, will be metaphorical ones fired by the other 4.
That one may be unique to Blaha, but it’s one that I think is pretty noticeable.
When I lived in LA, I loved Chick Hearn. He had such a great style of describing the action and had a lot of unique phrases too. I think he may have even coined the term “slam dunk.” Even though the HBO series Showtime has a lot of embellishments, it sounds like there was some truth to him being an asshole to his partners. Al Michaels has a story about how awful working with him was.
Regardless, he was a great listen.
Ralph Lawler was very good on Clippers broadcasts. With the team being so bad most years, he was able to bring some humor to the games.
When I lived in Austin, I watched a lot of Spurs games. I think the PBP guy was okay, but not memorable. Later, they added Sean Elliott, and he was a total homer. And, he was an awful Piston, so it really sucked to have to listen to him.
As for who takes the role when Blaha retires, I hope they pass on Johnny Kane. He’s been picking up games over the last 3 or so years. He’s a likeable guy and is very enthusiastic. He’s also gotten better with time, but I think he is still a little behind the play. Also, a pet peeve of mine is that he gets just as excited about opponents making plays as he is when the Pistons do something well. I don’t want a super homer but I like a home PBP announcer who tempers their enthusiasm for the opponents some.
I think I’d really like Kane as the Tigers PBP. His energy would be a big upgrade to Shep (who, strangely enough, I thought was really good calling Michigan Basketball) and the game would be the right speed for him.
This take may be polarizing, but my current top choice for a Blaha-replacement would be Gus Johnson. Plenty of energy, and he’s a Detroit guy. I don’t know if he’d be interested, but I think you make the call if you’re the Pistons/Bally.
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It’s always “two and twenty” in my head.
Definitely was a Shep fan when calling UM games as well!
I’m not anti-Gus, I just wish he was a little more selective when he turns on the “extra”. I also think he would probably have the same issue as Johnny Kane when it comes to opponents scoring 
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Drafted Ausar in fantasy
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Maybe, but I think other national PBPers have been able to pull it off like Marv Albert with the Knicks, Mark Jones with the Kings, and Kevin Harlan with the Timberwolves.
Great point. I am not against it, especially with exciting young players! Gus definitely has great moments of seeing what’s happening and being able to relay it. Who is his partner here, though? His underrated strong suit is teeing up the other guy…
Two favorite Blahaisms: when he calls Kelsey “Gregory”, and “fires and it falls” (totally not a euphemism).
He’s a real pro. The way he engages Kelser is so much better than what most PBP guys can do. Johnny Kane can’t do it at all.
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