LeBron James may be facing national scrutiny about his decision to pass rather than shoot in the closing seconds of Game 1, but he won't hear that kind of criticism from the Pistons.

James dished to Donyell Marshall, whose three-point try missed the mark, and the Pistons hung on for a 79-76 victory in the Eastern Conference finals opener Monday.

"I'm just glad they missed it," Pistons point guard Chauncey Billups said Tuesday.

But the Pistons also backed James and said the Cavaliers star made the right play to pass instead of attempt a lay-up.

"I thought it was a great play," Billups said. "It was horrible defense by us, but it was a great play. It had been an ugly game, and you've got one of your best three-point shooters wide open. He just had six or seven (threes) in the last game. So I thought it was an excellent play."