The Associated Press

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Detroit and New Jersey are out of secrets, and soon one team will be out of time to make a championship run.

A year after both reached the Eastern Conference final - where the Nets swept the Pistons - one will fall short of that after tonight's Game 7 at The Palace.

"Everybody knows what's at stake," Detroit's Ben Wallace said Wednesday. "It's not going to come down to Xs and Os. It's going to come down to who wants it more."

Richard Jefferson bristled at the notion that the Nets might be headed in the wrong direction if they lose.

"You don't build three years of success, put up three division championships, two Eastern Conference championships and say one Game 7 is going to determine it," he said. "I'm 23. Kenyon is what? 25? We have a young group of guys.

"It's not the last running of the Bulls. It's not like (Michael) Jordan is 34 and Phil (Jackson) is ready to retire. This is a completely different group."

But the loser will have to answer questions a lot earlier than it wanted to.

Will the Nets bring back coach Lawrence Frank, the little known assistant who was promoted in midseason after Byron Scott was fired? What about restricted free agent Kenyon Martin?

Was firing Rick Carlisle after last season, and hiring Larry Brown the way to go for the Pistons? Will they re-sign free agent Rasheed Wallace?

"When this season started, you figured you had to beat New Jersey," Brown said. "It doesn't matter if you beat them in the first round, or the third round or second round, you had to beat them."

Richard Hamilton is glad the Pistons had a better regular-season record than New Jersey because they get to host Game 7, and home teams have won more than 80 percent of such games in NBA history.

"It's going to be crazy. I can't wait," Hamilton said. "You get the jitters just thinking about it."

Since Jason Kidd was traded to New Jersey three years ago, the Nets have advanced to the NBA finals twice - without experiencing a Game 7.

Two years ago when the first round lasted five games, they needed a Game 5 to put away Indiana in two overtimes.

"They haven't played a Game 7, but a closeout Game 6 is the same thing, and they've had a lot of those," Brown said. "They've won a lot of big games."

Brown is 4-3 in Game 7s with four teams in his 32 years of coaching, and the 33-year-old Frank will coach in his first Thursday.

Kidd said the key to a Game 7 is to have each player focus on his job.

"Don't try to do R.J.'s job. Don't go out there and try to do K-Mart's job," Kidd said, referring to Jefferson and Martin. "Just do your job and everyone else will follow."

LOS ANGELES: Former UCLA forward Trevor Ariza has signed with an agent in preparation for entering the NBA draft.

Ariza, 18, left the Bruins after just one season. He made the Pac-10's all-freshman team and averaged 11.6 points and 6.5 rebounds.

The 6-foot-7 Ariza was released from his scholarship by UCLA. He is no longer eligible to transfer since he has an agent.