Last night, we saw the crowning of a new Western Conference champion. Tonight, the other half of that equation could occur as the Celtics gun for their 20th Eastern Conference title in Detroit. Seeing the dissention in the ranks of the Pistons (Richard Hamilton and Lindsey Hunter weren't happy with Rasheed Wallace embracing Kevin Garnett; I think they're making too much of it) plus their injury woes (now both their starting guards are hurt) makes me worry about their chances to win tonight. Here are some keys:

Celtics keys:

1. Make use of your bench a little more: The Celts bench scored just three points in game 5 (on a James Posey 3). Observe how the Lakers were able to come back against the Spurs even though Kobe, Gasol and Odom were on the bench in the 2nd, Doc. You won't win if the starters are too damn tired to run the offense.

2. Continue to pound the glass: I don't expect Kendrick Perkins to repeat his awesome game 5 performance (18 points and 16 boards), but if he, Garnett, and the rest can maintain the rebounding edge, they'll be in good shape.

3. May this Ray Allen stay, and may the real Paul Pierce step up: Allen needs to continue the reemergence he had the prior game, and Pierce needs to score and pass, not just set up the offense. Garnett will probably get his points, but Pierce and Allen need to, too.

Pistons keys:

1. Play possessed: Tonight is not the night for the complacent Pistons to show up. They need fire (controlled fire, Rasheed!), and to play as though their lives depend on it (their legacy certainly does).

2. Keep McDyess out of foul trouble, and get Prince involved more: McDyess fouled out of the last game, and without his steady presence and reliable shot, they struggled. Prince has been a nonfactor this series, and if he doesn't show life, they're in trouble.

3. Stop bickering, guys!: This issue with Rasheed and Garnett shows some real holes in this team. Hamilton and Hunter should have kept this in-house! Anyhow, if they're still angry at each other, they'll lose for sure.

I predict that they won't be angry, and that this series goes 7. Pistons win by 9.

Meanwhile, Doug Collins appears to be returning to the Bulls bench after being replaced 20 years ago by Phil Jackson. Many might question such a move. I decided to take a look at teams who have rehired a coach after a firing/resignation. Here's the rundown of the coaches, their W-L record in the first run, and then the W-L of their second run:

Dallas: Richard Motta (267-297 from 1980-87, 4 winning seasons, 4 playoff berths; 62-102 from 1994-96, 0 winning seasons, 0 playoff berths)

Denver: Dan Issel (96-102 in parts of three years from 1992-94, 1 winning season, 1 playoff berth; 84-106 in parts of three years from 1999-2001, 0 winning seasons, 0 playoff berths)

Golden State: Don Nelson (275-260 in parts of 7 seasons from 1988-95, four winning season, 4 playoffr berths; 90-76 in two seasons from 2006-present, two winning seasons, one playoff berth)-*

L.A. Clippers: Gene Shue (78-86 in two seasons from 1978-80, one winning season, zero playoff berths; 27-93 in parts of two seasons from 1987-89, zero and zero)

L.A. Lakers: Phil Jackson (286-123 in five seasons from 1999-2004, five winning seasons, five playoff berths, three titles; 144-102 in three seasons from 2005-present, three winning seasons, three playoff berths, titles TBD)-*

Miami: Pat Riley (334-264 in 8 seasons from 1995-2003, six winning seasons, six playoff berths; 111-135 in parts of three season from 2005-08, two winning seasons, two playoff berths, one title)-x

New York: Red Holzman (388-231 in parts of 10 seasons from 1967-77, six winning seasons, nine playoff berths, two titles; 147-167 in parts of four seasons from 1978-82, one winning season, one playoff berth, zero titles)

Orlando: Brian Hill (191-104 in parts of four seasons from 1993-97, three winning seasons, three playoff berths; 112-134 in three seasons from 2004-07, zero winning seasons, one playoff berth)

Philadelphia: Alex Hannum (127-112 in three seasons from 1960-63, three winning seasons, three playoff berths; 130-33 in two seasons from 1966-68, two winning seasons, two playoff berths, one title)

Phoenix: Cotton Fitzsimmons (97-67 in two seasons from 1970-72, two winning seasons, zero playoff berths; 244-161 in parts of six seasons from 1988-97, four winning seasons, five playoff berths)-y

Sacramento: Phil Johnson (155-185 in parts of five seasons from 1974-78, one winning season, one playoff berth; 81-120 in parts of three seasons from 1985-87, zero winning seasons, one playoff berth)

Seattle: Lenny Wilkens (121-125 from 1969-72, one winning season, zero playoff berths; 357-277 in parts of 8 seasons from 1977-85, five winning seasons, six playoff berths, one title)

Washington: Gene Shue (291-267 in parts of seven seasons from 1967-73, four winning seasons, five playoff berths; 231-248 in parts of six seasons from 1980-86, two winning seasons, three playoff berths)

Notations: *= still active, x- the records given for Riley's second tenure were the complete team records during the span; his partial season records were hard to obtain, y= Fitzsimmons' second tenure was from 1988-92 and 1996-97; his stints were lumped together for the complete total seen.

So, what can we derive from that? (1) Only Jackson, Nelson, Riley, Wilkens, Hannum and Fizsimmons had much success during their second go-round, and (2) Gene Shue was really popular with teams.

What will Collins do in Chicago (assuming he takes the job)? He's known as a good short-term winner, but not the coach of a title contender. I see him much like Rick Carlisle in Detroit; he'll make the Bulls a good team, then turn it over to a legit championship-caliber coach, and return to TNT.  That's all I can say. What do you think?