Pistons Coach Rick Carlisle would prefer not to look too far into the future, but there is no denying the importance of the upcoming stretch of games, starting tonight at Washington.
  "In any type of tiebreaker situation, head-to-head is the No. 1 criteria to determine who wins the series," Jon Barry said. "We are one up on them now. If we can get one at their place, then we are in a position where all we have to do is win the next home game and we have the series.
  "And it looks like it's going to come down to the wire with this thing. There's like 10 teams who are right there, so every time you play against a team you are running with, it's big."
  The Wizards (21-20), Pistons (21-20), Philadelphia (22-21) and Orlando (23-22) are in a virtual tie for fifth place in the East. The Pistons play Orlando on Friday and Philadelphia next Tuesday.
  "Every game we play against an Eastern Conference team is very crucial," Cliff Robinson said. "They are more meaningful because you are talking about moving up a whole game rather than a half-game."
  But Carlisle, wisely, points out there are 41 games left.
  "Rather than talk about playoff implications when you are just halfway through a season, it's more important for us to continue to build our game around solid defense and unselfish offense," he said. "This is an opportunity to build on what we have done the last couple of games. I prefer to keep it that simple right now."