MIAMI -- For years, the Detroit Pistons have been successful in part by their leadership-by-committee approach. Within that group, a player or two surfaced and took upon greater responsibility for the team's well-being.
Detroit has been inconsistent all season, with several reasons behind its less-than-stellar play. A lack of leadership among players has to be near the top of the list.
Pistons coach Michael Curry said the committee approach to leadership can work, "but at some point, good teams have to have a dominant voice within the players that really sets the tone on how you perform each night. Someone has to, and someone will emerge within our team as we continue to change and go forward."
That leader needs to step up for Detroit soon because this season quickly is slipping away.
Detroit comes into tonight's game against Miami riding a season-worst six game losing streak that has dropped them to .500 (27-27).
The mounting losses clearly are starting to wear on the players.
In the past couple weeks, players have dropped not-so-subtle hints blaming the team's poor play on roster changes that began with the Nov. 3 trade of Chauncey Billups to Denver for Allen Iverson.
Curry, in not-so-subtle terms, has said players need to play with more fight if they want to turn things around.
There appears to be an increasing disconnect between Curry and his players, the kind of issues a team leader would work to hash out before things become worse.
Things are getting progressively worse, and there are no signs from within the Pistons roster that anyone is ready, let alone willing, to stand up and be accountable for this team's success moving forward.
Pistons forward Antonio McDyess said there is a leadership void on the team.
"We don't have that one guy that steps in, gets on a person for doing something wrong," McDyess said.
"We have certain nights where one person would say something, and another would, but we need that one person who will be there, and we know that they got our back and that they'll get on us when we do wrong and direct us when we're going wrong. We don't have that."
Former Pistons Ben Wallace was that kind of player.
Following a Game 4 loss to Orlando in the first round of the 2003 playoffs, Detroit trailed 3-1 in the best-of-seven series.
After the loss, Wallace called out his teammates publicly for the first time.
Detroit responded with three wins in a row, and advanced to the first of six consecutive trips to the Eastern Conference finals.
"It's tough to go out and be a leader when you're not certain about the style that you're playing," said Wallace, who now plays for Cleveland. "Once they find their identity, everybody will be on the same page and a leader will emerge.
"Until then, it's going to be some uncertainty. You don't know whose coat-tail you need to pull."
