2012 NBA Playoffs: Tuesday's First-Round Open Thread

Don't get angry. Certainly don't punch your hand through a glass case and force yourself to miss your team's next game for sure and possibly the rest of your first-round contest. Besides, just because the Detroit Pistons didn't make the playoffs (again) doesn't mean there isn't a bunch of terrific basketball on tap.

Definite H/T to Kriz for posting this in yesterday's playoff thread.

Read Detroit Bad Boy's official Eastern Conference and Western Conference playoff previews and laugh about how wrong we'll probably get it.

So what do tonight's games have in store for us?

Boston Celtics vs. Atlanta Hawks -- NBA TV (7:30 p.m.)

Hawks lead 1-0

The Celtics got dropped in the first game of the series and will be without starting point guard Rajon Rondo, who has been suspended for the game after bumping an official he was jawing at. He will be greatly missed but backup point Avery Bradley is pretty good in his own right.

Philadelphia 76ers vs. Chicago Bulls -- TNT (8 p.m.)

Bulls lead 1-0

Game 1 doesn't really matter. This is a brand new series now that MVP Derrick Rose is out for the season with a torn ACL. If I'm Chicago I want to thoroughly demolish the Sixers so I can prove to the league the the Bulls are still supremely talented even without their floor general. If I'm the Sixers I think that even though we were easily dispatched in Game 1 everything has changed and we can pull a major upset.

Denver Nuggets vs. Los Angeles Lakers -- TNT (9:45 p.m.)

Lakers lead 1-0

Kobe who? While it might not be that extreme, Andrew Bynum and the Lakers proved that they were more than just the Black Mamba. Bynum recorded a triple double (10 points, 13 rebounds, 10 blocks) in Game 1 and Pau Gasol almost joined him 13 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. Denver could never recover from the drubbing they took in the first quarter but they played the Lakers close the remainder of the game. To succeed the Nuggets will have to get better production out of their starting backcourt than 16 points on 6-22 shooting with 5 assists and 3 turnovers.