Pistons' Jackson ready to 'fight Goliath' in 1st round
Being the eighth seed heading into the postseason usually spells doom. In fact, only five squads have gone on to knock off the No. 1 seed since the playoffs expanded to a 16-team format back in 1984.
Nonetheless, point guard Reggie Jackson of the Detroit Pistons is embracing the challenge that comes with going head-to-head with the defending Eastern Conference champions in the Cleveland Cavaliers.
"The world's not picking us anyway," Jackson said following his team's 99-93 loss to the Miami Heat on Tuesday. "They're supposed to be the title contenders in the East. If we're not favored anyway, you might as well get your crack at them, right? Of course, David may not have wanted to fight Goliath, but I don't want to fight Goliath's homeboy, or his little brother. I want to go fight Goliath."
It's that underdog mentality that Jackson believes his Pistons teammates have in spades, and they'll need it to push themselves to pull off a monumental upset in the opening round.
"I think that's how this locker room feels," Jackson said. "I think they'll probably hear this. You know, they're a tough team, and respectfully so, they're No. 1 in the East, one of the best teams in the league. But we're hungry. We're hungry to prove ourselves. We're hungry and we're ready for the challenge."
The experience edge clearly goes to the Cavaliers, who are coming off a trip to the NBA Finals, which they lost in six games to the Golden State Warriors. The Pistons haven't qualified for the playoffs since 2008-09, and with no one in the starting lineup over the age of 26, it remains to be seen whether they'll crumble under the spotlight.
"Of course, they've been there," Jackson said. "They were in the Finals last year. They have a guy (LeBron James) who has been in five straight Finals and has been arguably the best player in the world for damn near a decade. They've got a lot of talent. Of course, you've got Kyrie (Irving), you've got Kevin Love, you've got guys that you never talk about who have some playoff experience and have played well.
"But I think we're just a hungry team who is looking forward to the challenge and really wants to make a name for themselves and prove that we're about something."
The NBA playoffs will begin on April 16, with Game 1 between the Pistons and Cavs going down Saturday or Sunday at Quicken Loans Arena.