Wallace is expected back in uniform tonight when the Pistons the Cavaliers.
He said the foot is not 100 percent but has noticeably improved since he injured it Feb. 25 against Chicago. He practiced for about an hour yesterday.
“I always like getting up against teams like this even when I was younger. It gives you that little spice, that little pep in your step. That’s what I like,” Wallace said.Wallace”
“Any time you play a team in your division it’s always a rivalry, especially where they’ve been. We had a great series with them last year as far as going seven games,” Saunders said. “When you’re playing against LeBron James is one of the great players in the league, it’s always a challenge.”
So far this season, the Pistons have played well against James. Tayshaun Prince gets the bulk of the defensive responsibility, but it takes solid team defense to control him.
“I’ve always thought one of the most important things about his game is his ability as far as court awareness and how he passes the basketball. When you double-team him he always knows where the open man is, he always finds the open guys,” Prince said. “What we’ve done, we’ve been doing a good job of defensive rotations, that’s why we’ve had success the last couple times.”
Since the Cavs took Game 5 in Detroit in May, the Pistons have mercilessly won four straight. In those four, the Cavs haven’t been able to crack the 80-point barrier.
“We’ve got to find a way to execute down the stretch against them,” Cavs coach Mike Brown said. “We played OK basketball against them in the first three quarters.”
“We’ve got 20-plus games left; there’s no doubt we could catch them,” James said. “That’s why (tonight’s) game is so important.”