NBA Betting Picks
The 2005-2006 Pistons are on their way to proving there is a
difference between being a good regular season team and a good
postseason team. As they drop both games in Miami and fall
into a 3-1 series deficit, the overwhelming favorites to repeat in
the Eastern Conference could be on their way out and you need to
consider this when making your
NBA betting picks.
Lay -105 juice on Fridays for NBA betting!
Why?
As crazy as this sounds, they might be too team oriented. The same
thing that propelled them to greatness in the regular season could
be the thing that’s holding them back in the playoffs. What are they
missing? If you look at every Championship team, they have that
go-to guy who puts their team on their back in the clutch.
This go-to guy demands so much attention that defensive game plans
are built around stopping this one player, which leaves big holes
for the other players to step up. The Pistons don't have this
guy and remember that when making your
NBA picks.
Why did Cleveland nearly beat Detroit, despite being an inferior
team? Lebron James. There was no secret as to where the ball was
going to be in Cleveland’s offense and now, in the Miami series,
it’s Lebron’s buddy, Dwayne Wade, taking over in key situations.
Even with the great “teams” of the past, there was no discrepancy as
to which player would take the shots to finish off an opponent, or
when they got behind, or in a close game down the stretch.
The 1982-84 Celtics are known as one of the great “teams”. They
started, Parish, Bird, Maxwell, Johnson, and Henderson and brought
McHale off the bench, but there was no question that Larry Bird
would take or create every big shot.
Chauncey Billups appears to be the closest thing the Pistons have to
a clutch player, finishing 5th in the MVP balloting this season.
However, he does not go to the basket well, and defenders can crowd
him knowing that he’s going to settle for jumpers. It’s plain to see
that Lebron and Wade are far superior as go-to type players so early
in their careers and their ability to go to the hole allows them to
get better opportunities as defenders have to respect their ability
to drive. If you look at the Pistons, some might say that Rip
Hamilton should be taking the big shots. The problem is, he can’t
create any shots for himself. He is a catch and shoot player who
depends on his teammates to free him with screens. If you want to
know the truth, it’s Tayshaun Prince who has the makings of being
the go-to guy this Pistons team desperately needs. He usually poses
matchup problems for teams because if you guard him small to take
away his quickness, he can post you and use his size and length, but
if you try to guard him with a bigger player, he’ll blow right by
you.
I believe this Pistons team is going to struggle in the postseason
unless they can foster Prince into this role.
You might be thinking isn’t this the same Pistons team who won the
Championship a couple years ago. Yes it is, however, the Eastern
Conference was as weak as it’s ever been and the Lakers were a soap
opera otherwise they would have dismantled them. Lebron James, and
Dwayne Wade were rookies then, and now they are emerging as the best
players in the NBA, really elevating the level of play in the
Eastern Conference as well as the NBA as a whole.
As more and more teams are improving in the NBA, all I can say is,
the Pistons better find a go-to guy or they’ll be going home earlier
and earlier.
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