CHICAGO _ Detroit Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy finally relented and started Ish Smith at point guard, benching Reggie Jackson.
But the sinking ship that is the Pistons' playoff chances is taking on too much water.
The Chicago Bulls _ missing the suspended center Robin Lopez and injured Dwyane Wade _ used a 15-2 run to start the second half on their way to a 117-95 victory over the Pistons at the United Center on Wednesday night.
The Bulls shot 59 percent and lived in the paint to the tune of 58 points in sending the Pistons to their fifth loss in six games.
The Pistons (34-38) are 1{ games behind the Miami Heat for the Eastern Conference's eighth and final playoff spot, but when you throw in Tuesday night's last-second loss at the Brooklyn Nets, you can't blame fans for starting to ponder the NBA draft lottery in May.
Smith was hindered by foul trouble and finished with nine points and seven assists in 26 minutes. Jackson came off the bench and finished with six points and four assists.
But it didn't matter who was point guard with the Pistons' defense.
The Pistons could not stop the likes of Nikola Mirotic (28 points) and Paul Zipser (15 points).
And Joffrey Lauvergne, who replaced Lopez in the starting lineup, outplayed Andre Drummond. Lauvergne finished with 17 points and seven rebounds while Drummond had eight points and 17 rebounds. Jimmy Butler was 6 for 6 from the field and 4 for 4 from the line to finish with 16 points.
The Bulls (34-38), who tied the Pistons for ninth in the East, were 11 for 23 from three-point range. They are the worst three-point shooting team in the league.
Tobias Harris and Marcus Morris led the Pistons with 14 points each.
Van Gundy was non-committal when asked if he had reached the point of benching Jackson after the Nets loss.
He was again non-committal in Wednesday's pregame media availability.
But the lineup sheet revealed the news.
Lineups with Smith have outperformed Jackson's most of the season since Jackson returned to the lineup after missing the first 21 games with left knee tendinitis.
The swap didn't make much difference in the beginning.
The lifeless Pistons were quickly down 19-13 when Smith picked up his second foul.
Jackson came in and played the next nine minutes.
It was an uneven stretch. Jackson was 1 for 6 from the field with three assists.
But the Pistons trailed by 12 when he left at the 6:41 mark.
The Pistons trailed by as much as 13 points in the second quarter, but Stanley Johnson's eight points kept things close.
Smith's driving layup with 1:02 remaining in the first half cut the deficit to two, but Lauvergne and Mirotic layups gave the Bulls a 59-53 lead at halftime.
