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Air France Lifts Off

has finally lived up to the hype that surrounded him on draft night. Pietrus was declared as a poor man?s Michael Jordan by many NBA scouts who traveled to France to see him. This season, Mickael Pietrus has emerged from the injured list to rejuvenate the floundering franchise. Pietrus has only been back for two games, and in the first one, he launched multiple airballs, but that is beside the point.

Pietrus? mere presence has energized the G-Men, which is especially crucial since the team has started most of their recent games flatter than a week old can of cola. Mickael doesn?t just impact the defense. Air France can provide lots of offense, and quickly. Like 19 points in 15 minutes quickly. Having a weapon like that on the bench is invaluable, especially if Mike Dunleavy is having on off night (which has been happening less frequently of late. Coincidence?).

Pietrus? presence also helps the team in several not-so-apparent ways. Having Pietrus available means that Jason Richardson no longer has to guard the toughest assignment all night long, giving him more energy to use on the offensive end. What`s more, MP gives Coach Monty a potent scorer to spell JR so he no longer has to log 40+ minutes per night and burn out before the All-Star break.