Pistons Fans Will Like This Prediction for the Cavaliers Series
The Detroit Pistons and Cleveland Cavaliers are advancing to the second round of the NBA playoffs, and they’ll meet each other in the conference semifinals.
Now that the Game 7s wrapped up, it’s time to advance in the NBA playoffs. Ahead of the conference semifinals, it’s time to make some predictions on what will happen.
In a Monday, May 4 feature for USA Today, Lorenzo Reyes offers up his projections for what will happen in the second round.
“It took three Game 7s and three series that ended in six,” he states in the piece, “but the first round of the NBA playoffs have wrapped up, which means the conference semifinals are already upon us.”
He has the Pistons taking the series against the Cavaliers in six games.
“Detroit, frankly, didn't play its best series and had a few limitations exposed in its seven-game series against the Orlando Magic,” he states in the piece.
“For one, the Pistons struggle when their outside shots don't drop. For another, it became clear that All-Star point guard Cade Cunningham needs more help; as the playoffs continue, he alone cannot carry Detroit. And, finally, the Pistons will need more from their other All-Star, center Jalen Duren, who struggled to impact games early in the series.”
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With that said, he thinks the Pistons will pull it off. “Cleveland will need him to be stellar, especially if Mitchell is to upend the narrative that he can't go deep in the postseason,” he says.
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My take: Game 7s are always exciting, but it would sure be nice for Pistons fans to see the team advance in six games. Both the Pistons and Cavs had to get to Game 7s to secure their spot in the second round of the playoffs, and that shows that both teams have weaknesses. For Cleveland, they had a hard time with turnovers during their series, and Donovan Mitchell wasn’t quite on point, so that could push the Pistons over the edge.
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This story was originally published May 4, 2026 at 9:16 AM.