I Think Chauncey Billups May Be Throwing Games

I have been holding off on writing this blog for quite some time. I did not want to believe it. It's not because I'm some sort of huge Chauncey Billups fan. Players come and go. He's not my favorite player on the team, and he never was. I just didn't want to believe that someone on MY team could be capable of such a grievous atrocity. That is a crime for which beheading is the only adequate punishment. I have had several instances in the past in which I suspected that Chauncey may be fucking up on purpose, but I intentionally let it go. I was beginning to forget about all the things he had done in the past that bothered me, and I was ready to put it behind me…then came last Saturday night.

The Pistons were on top of the NBA. Boston had a better record, but everyone knew who the better team was. We had beaten Boston on their own floor, Boston's 3^rd loss of the season, and neither team had lost since. The Pistons were favored to win this game, and they should have. Much more importantly, however, they COULD have. But I will come back to the Boston game later. First, let us go back to last years Eastern Conference Finals versus the Cleveland Cavaliers.

In what turned out to be the final game, there was a crucial play that essentially helped me make up my mind that Chauncey was throwing the series. He had done several questionable things up to this point, but on a particularly vital play at the end of the game, his fucking up went to whole new levels. He got the ball at the top of the 3-point line for a wide open three. He passed up the open 3 (how often does he do that?), drove down the lane, and then passed up another open shot. He then made the cardinal mistake of jumping up in the air with no place to go (and no real reason for doing it) then passed the ball directly to Drew Gooden as if he were wearing a Pistons jersey. Then, to top it all off, Gooden, just happy to have the ball, actually turned in the OPPOSITE direction of Cleveland's basket just to make sure he could secure the ball and the possession. Then, for no reason, Chauncey fouled him while we were in the penalty, sending him to the line, when a foul was not necessary. Finally, to seal the deal with Satan, he laughed. What the fuck was so goddamn funny? We were about to be knocked out of the playoffs by a DRASTICALLY inferior team, it was all his fault, and he somehow found reason to smile. Rasheed should have left him where he stood.

Fast forward to last Saturday, Jan. 5^th, 2008 versus Boston at the Palace. The Pistons were up by 3 entering the 4^th quarter, Chauncey's sins of last season long forgotten. Midway through the quarter, Boston tied the game, and eventually took the lead. With the Pistons still down by a respectable margin, no more than two possessions, Chauncey decided he wanted to "take over." After several poorly run plays, resulting in no points, Chauncey decided he would take the game into his own hands, forcing several bad shots against multiple Boston defenders. After missing two free throws, and a three-pointer, Chauncey was not finished throwing the game. With the Pistons still only down by 4, with just under 1 minute left, Chauncey was going to the line. He made his first free throw, and then missed the second. Before we continue, I would just like to point out that, going into the 4^th quarter, Chauncey was 5-5 from the line with 16 points on 4-9 shooting. So anyway, after Chauncey missed his second free throw, now making him 1-4 from the line in the past 2 minutes, he took the ball back behind the 3-pt line, as if playing street ball. Rather than running a good play, or doing anything even remotely smart, he cleared the court as if he was going to take his defender one-on-one, then forced a 3 with a hand in his face, which he air-balled. 0-3 in the 4^th quarter, all from behind the 3-pt line. 1-4 from the free throw line. As the buzzer sounded on the Pistons loss, Chauncey, with a smile on his face yet again after SOLELY costing the Pistons game, congratulates KG with a tap on the back. Sound familiar?

Let us not forget these other interesting notes. During LeBron's breakout Game 5, Chauncey, pretending to be some sort of hero, asked Flip to guard LeBron, then proceeded to get embarrassed. Why the hell would he even entertain the idea of guarding LeBron James? Does he not know that Tayshaun Prince is FAR superior to anyone on the team, and most players in the league, when it comes to guarding players like LeBron, T-Mac, and Kobe? Rasheed and Rip were both visibly pissed after the series, and even Lindsey Hunter was heard to remake "Something ain't right."

So after Saturday's performance in Boston, I would like to officially state that I am now of the opinion that Chauncey Billups is throwing games. All I can really do is hope that the ultimate goal is still to win the championship and that he is only throwing insignificant games for an extra piece of change right now.