Before any of this Billups-for-Iverson craziness hit the fan, the biggest story out of Detroit in the first two games was the play of Walter Herrmann off the bench. Already a crowd favorite because of his blond ponytail and freakishly huge hands that allow him to start a finger roll from the three-point line, Herrmann is finally getting a chance to play beyond garbage time.For hard-core NBA fans, Herrmann shouldn't be a complete unknown: he put himself on the map over the last month of his rookie season two years ago when he averaged better than 18 points and 5.5 boards on 57% shooting over the final 18 games with the Bobcats. For reasons unknown, Herrmann was all but forgotten about the following season under Sam Vincent. He played just as sparingly for the Pistons following a mid-season trade to Detroit, but Joe Dumars saw enough to re-sign him to a one-year deal as a restricted free agent this year.
How well has he played in the first two games? In 39 minutes, he scored 26 points while shooting 66% (71.4% from three-point land) with nine boards and four assists, good enough to lead the entire league with a 35.37 PER. Obviously, getting too excited this early in the season is downright silly, and considering Herrmann has performed at a high level in the past only to be ignored later, he more so than anyone knows not to get too excited about just a couple of games.
But still, hearing Michael Curry talk after Saturday's game, it sounded clear that Herrmann was forcing himself into the team's plans. "Walter Herrmann was great," said Curry. "Once again, I say with him, don't just look at the shots that he's making. He's going to make shots for us, but he's doing a lot of other things out there on the court that we need.
"I mean, his defense, his one-on-one defense, his team help, his ability to move the basketball offensively, your offense seems to flow when he's out on the court because he doesn't hold the basketball," Curry continued. "He passes, he cuts, he feeds the post. He does all those things that you sometimes you get away from. ... He doesn't force a play. He's not worried if he goes six, seven minutes and doesn't get a shot, he's not trying to force the action. He's just letting it come."
In his short time in Detroit, Herrmann hasn't had to face too many reporters, but after a night like Saturday (16 points, seven boards, 23 minutes) when he had the crowd chanting his name every time he touched the ball, the Argentinian native took questions and did his best to answer in heavily-accented English. "I feel so comfortable," he said. "When you play those minutes, your confidence [goes up] every single game. Today was a single game. We have 80 more games. ... I try to play hard every single game. Sometimes you make your shots, sometimes you miss, but I try to play hard every single time."
