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Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Addition by subtraction is a time- honored theory in team improvement. A team gets rid of someone who is either, hurting the team with his attitude, or is standing in the way of someone else, normally younger, and said team thrives. That appears to be the case with the Detroit Pistons. They have gone 7-0 since the shocking release of Josh Smith, a player who has infuriated coaches in the past, but also a player with about $25 million left on his contract. To take such a drastic step as to waive Smith showed how little the Pistons wanted him. Hes mercurial. Truthfully, very little is said about him negatively in terms of being a teammate, or a pain in the posterior. Smiths rap is bad because of his propensity to take too many 3-pointers. Hes a power forward who has played out of position, out of necessity, for both the Pistons and Atlanta Hawks. Smith is an elite athlete and has buckets of talent, but its never truly materialized. And lets be clear, seven consecutive wins since cutting Smith is a reflection on Smith. If the Pistons had won say four games in a row after cutting him, thats not necessarily a true representation of Smith. We could attribute that to the newness of the situation. But, seven? Thats two weeks of perfection. There has to be a reason. How this has all happened, I really dont know, Stan Van Gundy told ESPN.com Van Gundy is not only the coach of the Pistons, but also the president of basketball operations. It was his call to send Smith packing, although, in Tim McMahons piece on ESPN. com, the author clearly states Van Gundy had no problem with Smith off the court, nor his work ethic. What we anticipated was giving different guys opportunities, our young guys. Joshs a 10-year vet in a tough situation at 5-23, and I wanted to give other people opportunities, which was probably going to cut his minutes and take the ball out of his hands some, Van Gundy told ESPN.com. I didnt really think it was fair in that regard. It was easier to do it this way, plus in the future we also get a cap-space benefit, so it helps us for the future. Lets put aside Smith, the personality, for a moment. On the court, this monstrous trio of Smith, Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe was an interesting idea that never worked. Smith and Monroe were both power forwards and Smith had to play small forward. It turned out to be a horrible fit, like me and anything with horizontal stripes. So, the easiest explanation is that re-inserting Monroe into the starting lineup, alongside Kyle Singler at the three spot, is a more natural fit all the way along. You cant emphasize the importance of everyone playing their natural positions. With Singler out there and Monroe on the block and playing like a legitimate force on the interior (15.4 ppg), its opened the floor for the Pistons. They are shooting 40.7 percent from 3-point range during their winning streak. Jodie Meeks return has helped, but his playing time has increased since Smith left. Another factor in stretching the floor has been Jonas Jerebko. Hes averaged 20-plus minutes a game since Smiths departure and is scoring a shade under 6.5 ppg. He is, however, 6-for-12 from beyond the arc. The other revelation has been Brandon Jennings. Hes averaging 19.2 ppg during the win streak, which is a tremendous output. As for Smiths personality, or mere presence, hampering the team, the proof is somewhat in the math. They are 7-0 and their average margin of victory has been 15 points. The wins have come on the road against the Cleveland Cavaliers, who still had LeBron James, albeit a hobbled one, in the lineup. They beat San Antonio on a last-second basket and Dallas in back-to-back nights on the road. Thats extremely impressive. No one on the Pistons is saying anything about Smith, the person, or the teammate. But, it would be naive to ignore the on-court product without him. The Pistons sure seem crisper. Well, weve gotten better on both ends of the floor, Van Gundy said after the win over the Mavericks on Wednesday. The ball is going in the basket that helps quite a bit when the ball goes in. It not only helps obviously for the reason that the ball goes in and you score a point, but I think it gets your energy up when things are going well. Weve also defended a lot better. Also our group, I dont know why, but started Dec. 22 we had three days of practice and from then on its just been different. Guys have worked harder, theyve been more attentive. A lot more together and again we dont have guys that are getting concerned about whos in the game or their playing time, or their shots, or anything else. They just want to win games. Thats not a shot at Smith. Van Gundy was commenting on the fact that, in those two wins in San Antonio and Dallas, different players were in the fourth-quarter lineup. You have guys, four guys that were in the game in a great win last night sitting on the bench on the sideline tonight and loving every minute of it, Van Gundy said. You know Greg Monroe didnt get in the game last night in the fourth quarter. Tonight Andre (Drummond) doesnt get in, in the fourth quarter there at the end of the game. Brandon doesnt get back in, KCP doesnt get back in and guys are into the game. Morale is clearly high and confidence means everything. This group is extraordinarily positive and the scenes from the sidelines as Jerebko, Monroe, Caron Butler, Meeks and D.J. Augustin played the entire fourth quarter, and out-scored the Mavs by seven, tell a tale. Theres a spring in the step of the Pistons right now. Its not a coincidence its happened with Smith in a Houston Rockets uniform. It wasnt a good fit. Now, Monroe and Drummond form the interior nucleus. Good 3-point shooters are taking 3-point shots. Its all fitting. Remember this, the Pistons are just 2 1/2 games out of the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. The playoffs are more than in reach, so while Smith may have been a decent guy, his good-bye has the Pistons firing. RANDOM THOUGHTS - At its surface, two first-round picks for Timofey Mozgov seems like a lot. But, both picks werent originally Clevelands so maybe the Cavs feel like its house money. They desperately need a center. Mozgov may not be an athletic, ideal fit, but hes better than nothing. Thats what you want from someone who goes for two first-rounders - hes better than nothing. - The East backcourt situation is tough for the All-Star game. John Wall and Dwyane Wade are going to start, which is not terrible. Kyle Lowry and Jimmy Butler are going. Two guards get selected as reserves, three frontcourt players, then two additional players at any position. Jeff Teague of the Atlanta Hawks and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Hornets both deserve consideration and the backup frontcourt situation is ... shaky, so maybe one of the two has a chance. - Its no surprise the Memphis Grizzlies want Luol Deng or Jeff Green. Deng probably isnt available, but Green is incredibly available. He has a player option for $9.4 million, which Id imagine hell pick up for next season. What does Boston want? Do they make someone take Gerald Wallace and his $10 million contract for next season? - With the Baseball Hall of Fame on peoples minds, the only interesting first-ballot candidate worth discussing this year is Dikembe Mutombo. Four Defensive Player of the Year awards, eight All-Stars, three times on the All- NBA team makes him a pretty strong choice. Hes curried enough good favor in his lifetime that voters probably put him in this year. No beef from me. - Movie moment - Back to the Future is on peoples minds since 2015 was a year in the trilogy and we clearly arent flying to work via jet pack. But, what always cracked me up, and I love the original and hate the sequels, was how Marty had time to sing another song at the dance. To say his plan was predicated on timing was an understatement. His only chance at traveling TO THE FUTURE, mind you, was based on the exact timing of a lightning strike to a clock tower. Maybe he passes on the encore at the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance to make sure everything is exactly where it needs to be for his intricate return home 30 years in the future. - TV moment - I will miss Parenthood. Its a really great show. I hope they dont kill Zeek. Air Max 720 Clearance .A. Dickey, even though he was coming off a Cy Young Award in 2012. Many felt the Jays would regret giving up righthanded pitcher prospect Noah Syndergaard and catcher Travis DArnaud over the long haul. Air Max 720 For Sale . CBS Sports Jon Heyman is reporting that Santana will sign a one-year deal, likely in the next two days with one of a trio of suitors, with the Toronto Blue Jays believed to be heavily involved. http://www.cheapairmax720nz.com/ . They have homered once every 27.3 at bats, which just happens to be the third best mark in the American League, albeit just 10 games into the season. Wholesale Air Max 720 NZ . Bayern winger Franck Ribery marked his league return after recovering from a cracked rib by scoring two goals and setting up two more as the league leaders inflicted the heaviest home defeat on Bremen in the Bundesliga. Air Max 720 NZ Sale . - Veteran Kings defenceman Robyn Regehr, sidelined since Game 1 of the Anaheim series, says hes close to returning.BASSANO DEL GRAPPA, Italy -- Colombias Nairo Quintana showed off his climbing strength and increased his lead in the Giro dItalia with a victory Friday in the 19th stage, a mountain time trial. Quintana, runner-up at last years Tour de France, clocked 1 hour, 5 minutes, 37 seconds over the 26.8-kilometre (16.7-mile) route from Bassano del Grappa to Cima Grappa. Italys Fabio Aru finished second, 17 seconds behind, and Colombias Rigoberto Uran was third, 1:26 behind. "I had a great feeling and I took full advantage of it," said Quintana, who rides for the Movistar team. "I was really well prepared." After his second stage win in this years race, Quintana moved 3:07 ahead of Uran in the overall standings. Aru moved ahead of Pierre Roland into third, 3:48 back. Victorias Ryder Hesjedal dropped to ninth overall after finishing 26th in Fridays stage. Svein Tuft of Langley, B.C., was 138th Friday and sat 155th overall. Giuseppe Martinelli, Arus team director with Astana, continued to discuss the controversial 16th stage, which was also won by Quintana amid questions whether the dangeerous descent from the Stelvio pass was supposed to be neutralized or not.dddddddddddd "I think that conditioned the race," Martinelli said. "Quintana probably would still have won but not with a three-minute advantage (on Aru)." The opening five kilometres (three miles) of the time trial were nearly flat but then the road tilted uphill dramatically, reaching a gradient of 14 per cent at one point. Many riders changed bikes after the flat section, going from a specialized time trial version to their regular road bikes for the climb. Quintana even changed his helmet. "It only cost me a few seconds," Quintana said. "I was really calm. We practiced it." Stage 20 on Saturday is the races last mountain leg, a 167-kilometre (104-mile) route that starts in Maniago and finishes with a climb up the demanding Monte Zoncolan. "I think I already did today what the fans wanted to see," Quintana said. "Tomorrow I hope me and my team can control the stage." The race ends on flatter ground Sunday in the northeastern port city of Trieste. ' ' '