It took seven games for both teams to advance past the first round, but the fourth-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers now meet the top-seeded Detroit Pistons in the 2026 Eastern Conference Semifinals.
I keep hearing people say Cleveland is a tough matchup for Detroit, and I STRONGLY disagree.
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In fact, the Cavs are taking money in the market to beat the Pistons in the second round. Regardless, I love Detroit to win the series (-121) and like the Pistons to beat the Cavaliers by at least two games (+189) at Kalshi.
For what it’s worth, these teams split the regular-season series 2-2, and Cleveland was 3-1 against the spread.
That said, things are different in the playoffs, where styles make fights and coaches and players adjust mid-series.
Sure, Cavs All-Stars James Harden and Donovan Mitchell are fantastic scorers, but both are cones on defense.
Cade Cunningham is the best player in this series. He can run the offense, defend and control the game. Meanwhile, Detroit wing Ausar Thompson is one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA.
Even if Harden plays Cade to a draw, which he won’t, Thompson will lock Mitchell up.
Mitchell is a tough shot-maker, but he also settles for step-backs and contested jumpers. That ain’t going to work against Thompson.
Detroit has the defensive personnel to make Cleveland’s offense uncomfortable, and that matters a lot more in a playoff series than it does during the regular season.
High-level basketball games are decided by the battle for possessions, and Detroit should dominate that area.
The Pistons averaged +4.3 field goal attempts per game during the regular season because they ranked third in offensive rebounding rate and led the NBA in defensive turnover rate.
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That’s a massive edge in a playoff series.
More shots. More second chances. More pressure on a Cleveland team that doesn’t have the physicality to consistently answer.
I’m basing this on muscle memory, but the Pistons will bully the Cavs in the paint.
You’d think Cleveland would be a better defensive rebounding team with its two All-Star bigs, PF Evan Mobley and C Jarrett Allen.
However, a few years ago in the playoffs, the New York Knicks bullied the Cavaliers, and I see this series playing out similarly.
New York grabbed 29 more offensive rebounds in its 4-1 first-round series win over Cleveland in the 2023 NBA Playoffs.
Granted, the Knicks’ roster was a bit different back then. But this Pistons team has a higher offensive rebounding rate than that Knicks squad.
This should also be a bounce-back series for Detroit center Jalen Duren, who struggled against the Orlando Magic in the first round.
Duren averaged 21.7 points and 12.3 rebounds in three games against the Cavs during the regular season, and Mobley and Allen played in all of those games.
Duren and Pistons backup big Isaiah Stewart will own the Cavaliers on the glass and give Detroit extra possessions throughout this series.
That’s the kind of stuff that swings playoff games.
Finally, I downgraded Cleveland after its first-round series win over the Toronto Raptors.
Toronto had a nice season, but the Raptors were missing two starters for most of the series and were the 11th betting choice to win the East entering the season.
Meanwhile, the Magic were the third betting choice to come out of the East, behind the Cavs and Knicks.
In other words, I can understand Orlando going the distance with Detroit.
But I can’t overlook the Cavaliers narrowly beating the Raptors and failing to win a single game in Toronto.
Detroit is the better, tougher, more physical team. The Pistons should win this series, and I like them to do it with room to spare.
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