Pistons at Nets
The only mystery left in the Brooklyn Nets’ playoff itinerary is the identity of their first-round opponent. Locked into the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference, Brooklyn will conclude the regular season on Wednesday when it hosts the Detroit Pistons. The Nets’ seeding was determined in Sunday’s loss to the Toronto Raptors, allowing them to rest four starters and use Monday’s win over the Washington Wizards as a way to gauge Gerald Wallace’s health after he missed two games with a heel injury.
Brooklyn will face either the Atlanta Hawks or the Chicago Bulls in the opening round. The two teams are tied for the fifth seed and Chicago owns the tiebreaker edge. The Bulls close out their schedule with a home game against Washington. Atlanta lost to Toronto on Tuesday and finishes the regular season against the New York Knicks. Detroit has won four straight, but is 11-29 on the road this season and has dropped all three meetings against the Nets.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, Fox Sports Detroit, YES (Brooklyn)
ABOUT THE PISTONS (29-52): Even as Detroit attempts to post its longest winning streak since 2009, owner Tom Gores has remained noncommittal on the status of coach Lawrence Frank and president Joe Dumars as the Pistons finish their fourth consecutive non-playoff season. Regardless of the leadership structure entering next season, Detroit knows it has Greg Monroe for the foreseeable future. The third-year center erupted for 27 points, 16 rebounds and four assists in Monday’s win over the Philadelphia 76ers, becoming only the third Piston to achieve those totals and shoot over 70 percent in the same game.
ABOUT THE NETS (48-33): While getting rest for starters Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, Reggie Evans and Joe Johnson was the primary goal in Monday’s 106-101 win, coach P.J. Carlesimo also saw it as an opportunity to get some players like Wallace and Kris Humphries on track. Although Wallace scored two points in 22 minutes, Humphries tallied a season-high 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds in 34 minutes - the most playing time he has received since Dec. 4. "We're not going to be successful in the playoffs unless we get the Kris Humphries that we know," Carlesimo said following the game.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Nets’ 48 victories are their most since winning 49 in 2005-06.
2. Carlesimo is 34-19 as interim coach, the best start for a coach in franchise history.
3. Brooklyn will try to sweep Detroit for the first time in its 36-year history.
PREDICTION: Pistons 102, Nets 92