Ted Kulfan: Pistons Insider

Richard Hamilton in Huskies heaven

Auburn Hills

There was an interesting sidelight to Detroit's game last week in Memphis.

And for a change, it didn't revolve around Allen Iverson.

It was the point that a University of Connecticut reunion could have, or should have, broken out at any moment.

There certainly were enough Huskies -- three for the Pistons and three for the Grizzlies.

The Pistons contingent includes Richard Hamilton, Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon.

The Grizzlies group includes Rudy Gay, Hasheem Thabeet and Marcus Williams.

"You know, I always told y'all Connecticut has the best program in the world," said Hamilton, who doesn't miss an opportunity to boast about his Huskies.

Certainly, all the Huskies in the NBA attest to the bragging.

Add guards Ray Allen (Boston) and Caron Butler (Washington) and you have some of the better players in the league, notably at the guard/forward position.

Hamilton, Allen, Butler, Gordon and Gay are some of the more prolific perimeter players.

"We produce the best guards in the world," Hamilton said.

It's tough to argue.

Part of that reason might be because of the competitiveness Jim Calhoun expects from his players on a yearly basis.

Just watching Gordon and Hamilton compete against each other during practice has been a revelation, especially for coach John Kuester.

"It's been real interesting to watch how both of them push each other to become better players," Kuester said. "If you didn't know Ben and Rip had such a special relationship, you'd think that one of them didn't like the other."

High hopes for Jerebko

After a standout exhibition season, second-round pick Jonas Jerebko has gotten lost in the shuffle for playing time, which isn't surprising for rookies early.

But Kuester was quick to point out he believes Jerebko will be an effective player.

"He's going to be outstanding," Kuester said. "He has a real good work ethic, rebounds, plays with a lot of emotion. He has gotten a lot of minutes because we have a logjam (at the forward spots), but he's going to be a valuable player in the NBA."

Jerebko played some Friday at the small forward position, which shows Kuester has confidence in him at either spot.

"He's athletic enough to create problems with his size," Kuester said. "He's an energy player."

Big Ben: Boards will come

One of the reasons the Pistons are struggling rebounding, according to Ben Wallace , is the fact the offense isn't quite in sync.

"Once we get our offense straightened out, it'll allow us to get a little better on the defensive end and get better board coverage," Wallace said. "Right now we're not as patient as we should be and it's getting us out of place.

"We're not able to get back and box out."

ted.kulfan@detnews.com (313) 223-4606