Bulls/Pistons Preview

Finally, after six long days, the Bulls and Pistons will face-off in Detroit tomorrow night. A stirring sweep of the Heat have put the Bulls in this position, with the opportunity to take out the defending champs and the team that has been the best in their conference since the turn of the millennium in consecutive rounds. While beating the Heat was the first step, defeating the Pistons would be a coronation for the Bulls, placing themselves in the Eastern Conference elite for the foreseeable future.

Of course, beating the Pistons is no small order, and a series win certainly won’t come as easily as it did a round before. Simply, the Bulls will not be able to exploit the same matchups against Detroit as they did versus the Heat, nor will the Bulls be so much younger or more athletic. The Heat crossed the line from “veterans” to “old”, a line Detroit will not cross for a few more years. Most of the Pistons are in their prime; they are legitimate title contenders this season, but they better not let the opportunity go to waste because they certainly aren’t getting any younger. The Heat may have been able to salvage a few games in the first round with a healthy Dwayne Wade, but with him a little nicked up, the Heat were no more formidable then a team like the Washington Wizards. The Pistons present a unique problem because, like the Bulls, they have four guys who can spring for 20 at any point. Without Wade being 100%, the Heat were relying on Shaq to carry a heavier load and needed guys like Posey, Kapano, and Jason Williams to step up. They didn’t, and the result was a four game sweep.

The Bulls were confident versus the Heat, but have to make sure they aren’t overly confident after sweeping them. Truth be told, the Heat weren’t good. They never had a chance in the first place versus our Bulls, so overconfidence in this second round could be a potential problem. The thing that negates that is coach Scott Skiles who said repeatedly his team should celebrate their first round victory, but not bask in it. This series against the Pistons, no matter their confidence level, is going to difficult.

Luol Deng, fresh off his NBA Sportsman of the Year award, enjoyed a breakout series in the first round. The way he played shocked a lot of people nationally, but Deng has been doing that sort of thing all year. The reason he was able to take his game a step further versus Miami is because of mismatch problems he presented; Kapono never had a chance to handle him, and a not-fully-healthy Wade had to focus all his energy on the offensive end. The Pistons have their own version of Luol and his name is Tayshaun Prince. While not as versatile and polished a scorer as Deng, Prince is a superior defensive player. His length and size, at 6’9 and 215 lbs, will frustrate Deng offensively, and that matchup could decide the series.

The other intriguing matchup will come between Ben Gordon and Chauncey Billups. For the Bulls, a big series from Billups should be their chief concern. Billups wasn’t great this season, missing 12 games and seeing his scoring average drop 1.5, but he’s a free agent when his playoffs end. A big series versus the Bulls could mean big money, whether it’s from the Pistons or another team like the Heat or Lakers. Billups started his contract push during the Pistons first round sweep of the Orlando Magic, averaging over 22 points per game, up from 16.5 in the regular season.

Gordon and Billups are similar players. They are the exact same size and both are the primary options for their teams with the game on the line. Gordon missed a shot as time expired to beat Detroit earlier in the season, but has hit numerous game winners during his tenure as a Bull. Gordon was fantastic in the first round against the Heat, but will find a harder time getting his points this round with either Billups or Rip Hamilton guarding him. The Bulls offense has looked lost at times this season when Gordon isn’t on his game; if the Bulls beat the Pistons, Gordon’s scoring will be a necessity not a luxury.

By all accounts, this series should be outstanding. Maybe not like Warriors v. Mavericks, but every game should be hard fought by two blue collar teams who know this round will be the toughest until they reach the NBA Finals. While the Pistons’ experience and athleticism will present the Bulls with a different set of problems then Miami created, we still like the Bulls in this series. People forget this Pistons team isn’t nearly as good as last year’s club that flirted with winning 70 games at one point. It’s true that Detroit had more wins then any Eastern Conference team, but they only won 53 games. Three teams won more games then that in the West, and then Bulls won only four less, despite being the fifth seed in the conference. Just like the Bulls played the Heat well in the regular season, the Bulls also played the Pistons well, winning three of four regular season meetings.

We don’t see this series going shorter then six games, and for the Bulls sake, they probably want to finish Detroit in six. A Game 7 in the Palace at Auburn Hills would be the ultimate test for these Bulls, where they could prove once and for all where they stand amongst the NBA’s elite. The Bulls took their first step in becoming a dominant team against the Heat, a series win versus the Pistons would put them there for good.

Prediction: Bulls in 7