I don't have many traditions. Most people find tradition in their religion. Although I did grow up Jewish, a religion rich with tradition, nothing really stuck for me. So, I'm searching for some that fit. One of the only traditions that I have so far is my yearly October trip to Grand Rapids to see the Pistons play at the VanAndel Arena with Daniel and his brother David. Daniel and I have a strange thing going lately. We usually only see each other out of state or at some event like this. Unfortunately this year Daniel was on a business trip but I took the trek with Brooke and met David and Elliot at the game tonight anyway.
The drive was long, the chicken was raw, the game was good, but we lost. Driving through Chicago in the afternoon is always a nightmare. We made it through the city in an hour and a half and to the arena in about 5. Nevertheless, we made it. Our seats were pretty good, we sat low in the lower bowl across from the Washington bench. When we sat down Brooke went to get some food. She came back with hot dogs and buffalo tenders. I love hot dogs at a game, there's nothing like it! The chicken tenders were a different story. Those things were cold, pink and disgustingly raw. How is it possible to fry up some tender strips and keep them raw? Anyway, Ben and Rasheed were still out tonight but Eldon and Antonio filled in well and the Pistons got off to a good start but it didn't last. Despite the loss, the game was very entertaining. Darko played a ton of minutes and looked ok at times. He's still pretty tentative out there but he's starting to show some promise. The real excitement of the game was Carlos Delfino. That kid can play. He looked a little lost on defense at times but he was dropping threes and making plays at the basket that were incredible. Off of an inbounds pass, Delfino drove to the baseline and reversed jammed in a packed lane. It brought the crowd to it's feet and set up some great expectations for the rest of the season. I think he'll be an exciting player watch. My guess is, when this season is all said and done, he'll be one of the top rookies provided he gets the play time. Even-though Smush Parker is a long shot to make the team he had a nice game tonight as well. He probably deserves a sport over Horace Jenkins although Jenkins has a guaranteed contract. I'm sure it'll be a tough decision for Joe in the next week but he always makes the right one. Despite a long drive, some raw chicken and preseason loss, I had a lot of fun tonight. We missed Daniel but since this is an official tradition we'll see him next year and next time we'll be doing it court side.
