Without Chauncey Billups there will be more pressure on Rip Hamilton

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Chauncey Billups plays or does not play. He plays well or does not play well. Why, some even think he should not play.

What?

Not play? What are you talking about?

The Pistons can beat the Magic in a best-of-seven series without a fully effective Billups, but they’ll have no chance against Boston or Cleveland in the next round unless he performs at close to 100%.

And if Billups comes back too soon, allowing a nagging injury to derail the Pistons before they reach their championship destination, it will worsen the sting of the last two seasons, when playoff runs were halted in the conference finals.

Opportunities wasted are opportunities lost.

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Now your intrepid author does not pretend to know everything, but it seems to me that too many fans are taking the Orlando Magic and Dwight Howard a little too lightly. Victory over the Magic without Chauncey Billups is anything but insured, in fact, it may mean certain doom. Sorry Rodney Stuckey, but Chauncey is special to this team.

Will Chauncey even play at 5pm today?

All the work has paid off, to a degree. Billups said his strained muscle felt “a little better” Friday, and he planned to test it a bit on the court with some light shooting. The team won’t make a decision about his playing status until close to game time today.

The trainer Arnie Kander had this to say.

But Kander said the fact Billups felt better — especially at the 10:30 a.m. practice — was a big step toward getting back on the court.

“Any time you feel better in the first 24 or 36 hours, that’s your worst time,” Kander said. “That’s where all the chemical reactions occur for muscle strains. And early morning. As you know, all of our bodies don’t feel great first thing in the morning.”

But Kander wasn’t shocked that Billups didn’t share his optimism. “If he was chirpy or happy, I’d wonder how he is that way,” Kander said. “He’s frustrated, he’s irritated. But at the same time, he’ll be OK.”

If Chauncey Billups does not play, then the Magic will be working more against Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince offensive sets. They will be ready for that.

If Billups is missing today an awful lot will be told about this series and the Pistons.

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

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