Bulls Pistons Series Predictions

The number one seed Detroit Pistons try to go up 2-0 in this Eastern Conference semifinals series against the fifth-seeded Chicago Bulls tonight at The Palace of Auburn Hills. After the way game one went, I can assure you that Chicago can’t wait to go back home Thursday.

Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton both scored 20 points as Detroit embarrassed the Bulls 95-69 in game one. Wallace and Prince racked up 13 a piece to show once again the balance that could be a problem for Chicago in this series.

Many expected Detroit’s 4-0 round one sweep over Orlando, but no one expected a 26-point slaughter over the Bulls to kick off the second round. The Pistons did it with defense limiting Ben Gordon to seven points on just 2-of-9 shooting. Gordon averaged 25.5 points per game in the Bulls first round series with Miami. Deng did score 18 and Hinrich added 15, but that’s just not going to get it done especially in a game where the Bulls committed 22 turnovers.

We should be in for a good one tonight. Detroit has won four straight game number two’s in the postseason and Chicago has won four of its last five. It’s no longer the Bad Boys versus Jordan and Pippen, but despite there being a new era of players, this rivalry will always have bad blood. The 21st Century Bad Boys appear to be a cinch to take this series on paper. The Pistons have reached the postseason six years in a row and were very hungry coming into this year’s playoffs having lost in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2006. Now with Miami out of the picture, the path is seemingly clear for Detroit. Detroit is the number one seed for the third time in four years and owns home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. The Pistons are hoping that this home court will get them back to the East finals for the four straight year.

The Bulls' attempt to surpass Detroit was its signing of former Pistons star Ben Wallace. He was a major defensive force in the Bulls’ surprising 4-0 sweep over the reigning NBA champs. Wallace is a four time All-Star who helped lead the Pistons to a title in 2004 and now he has helped the Bulls get into the second round for the first time since 1998. Will Wallace be a big enough force to help Chicago come back in game two and lead the Bulls past his former team in the Eastern Conference semis? My best guess is that Detroit will ultimately be too much for the Bulls in this series, but it's apparent that Chicago continues to bridge the gap between itself and the Pistons in the Central Division.

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Updated May 7th, 2007