Pistons coach not maximizing talent?

Chris Wilcox

By Leland Stein III
AUBURN HILLS — I think I have figured out what’s wrong with the Pistons. Well, maybe I have a valid hypothesis that I wish I could sit on the Pistons’ bench and explore.
COMMENTARY

Pistons president Joe Dumars has indeed created an unbalanced team in the sense that they have too many players near the same height and playing position. However, that so-called unbalanced team could create problems for others, but it would take a lot of creativity for the head coach John Kuester. Something he seems to be lacking tremendously.

Versus NCAA, athletes always bad guys

Cam Newton

By Leland Stein III
With the United States political debate poisoned by birthers, deathers and wackos who smile proudly while carrying signs comparing the president to the Nazis, many people who don’t even know that Medicare is a government program are some of the loudest opponents to Obama’s health plans.
In fact, all of the administration’s anti-recession initiative are and have been met with a resounding no! The entire Republican Party has decided that it is in favor of absolutely nothing. The president’s stimulus package? No way. Health care reform? Forget about it. There is no end to the political craziness and incredibly, the party’s poll numbers are going up.

Reflections: Box office superpower

Oprah Winfrey & Gayle King

Taking into consideration the fact that Black people comprise about 13 percent of the nation’s population, it is very impressive to note that among the Top 10 grossing actors of all time, four are African American.
They are Samuel L. Jackson, Eddie Murphy, Morgan Freeman and Will Smith. This places them in the company of Tom Hanks, Harrison Ford, Orlando Bloom, Tom Cruise, Bruce Willis and Robin Williams.

Insight, laughs, harsh words and praise

Anita Baker

By Steve Hosley

Over a period of nearly three decades, I must have interviewed a thousand or more singers, musicians, actors, actresses and others in the arts, and most of it I loved.
However, there comes a time when you pretty much put some aspects of your profession aside while holding on to other parts.

Results, no excuses in 2011

My New Year’s resolution is simple. I’m not walking on any crutch in 2011. By crutch I mean the excuses and the reasons we create for not delivering results in our families, places of work, schools and in government where those who are elected are consistently in the habit of explaining why they can’t get simple things done.
And guess what?
Keep your crutches away from me because I won’t give you the time of day if your existence in the coming year is only about unraveling a litany of excuses instead of creative and practical ideas regarding what to do in 2011.

Shop Talk: iPad, road ready

Haven’t you ever thought, “If there was just a way to prop my laptop computer up on the seat during a road trip, we wouldn’t even need an in-car DVD entertainment system for those road trips”?

“New Lux”

The idea of trying to pull off a new entry level luxury car these days can be tricky for a number of reasons.
One, with so many new models to pick from the thought of simply enticing consumers with a nameplate just isn’t as easy as it used to be − no matter how many years a brand’s been on the market.  Chalk it up to a new consumer era driven less by brand loyalty and more by what can I get for the money − that’s still nice.

The 2010 year in review

Oh my goodness . . . the hours and days and years seem to fly by. Yet here I am, mind you very thankful, I’m still here to do what I do and document each year of sports delights.

The biggest little man in NFL

ALLEN PARK — The NFL has established itself as America’s Game. One needs to look no further than what has happened in Detroit over the past 10 years to verify this thought.
The Lions have been the NFL’s most inept team, but they have remained the talk of Detroit and have routinely produced sellouts.
The Lions close out their season this Sunday at Ford Field versus the Minnesota Vikings, and if they can implement a win they will close out the season with a four-game winning streak with a still inglorious 6-10 campaign.

A wish for the New Year

President Barack Obama

By Steve Hosley

Black people in the United States have made remarkable strides despite an array of nightmarish challenges.
I wish Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. could have been here to witness the United States, with its history of deep-seated racism — and that includes what was done to Native Americans — electing its first Black president.
But as a people one of our most damaging, self-created hindrances is the elevation of hard-core, “gangsta” rappers — let’s face it, hoodlums — to a level of stardom where they have a tremendous influence on a lot of young African Americans. (Thank God not all of them.)