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Detroit Pistons: A Great Opportunity Lies Ahead

By Sham Mohile

Oct 17, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tobias Harris (34) and guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (5) celebrates during the third quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 17, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tobias Harris (34) and guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (5) celebrates during the third quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Detroit Pistons have a golden opportunity to turn their season around on their upcoming Western Conference road trip, but it certainly won’t be easy.

The Detroit Pistons have had a “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde-esque” season with impressive wins against a then-surging 14-2 Clippers and the Oklahoma City Thunder, as well as head-scratching losses against the lowly Brooklyn Nets and the Philadelphia 76ers.

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They started the season in the top 5 in overall team defense, but hit major adversity in the form of chemistry issues upon the return of point guard, Reggie Jackson, losing 8 of their last 10 games while giving up an average of 105.3 points per game to end 2016.

Following the Pistons’ impressive 125-124 win in a thriller against the Portland Trail Blazers to start a grueling Western Conference road trip, the Pistons have the ability to capitalize on the rest of this month with the opportunity to mark signature wins against high-quality opponents.

The Pistons play the Sacramento Kings (15-22) tonight, have back-to-back games against the Golden State Warriors (32-6) and the Utah Jazz (23-16), and close out their road trip with a Sunday night game against the Los Angeles Lakers (15-26).

At first glance the Pistons should be able to defeat both the Kings and the Lakers, but the Lakers might prove to be a more difficult opponent than expected. The Lakers are currently 6th in the league in overall pace and could prove to be a more difficult opponent than expected for a team that will have played in the increased altitude in Utah only 2 days prior.

The Pistons have had trouble winning against teams that shoot the ball well from deep this year, going 4-10 this season (which includes a win against the Lebron James-less Cleveland Cavaliers) against teams who rank in the top 10 in three point shooting (Golden State – 4th, Utah – 8th).

Playing the second of a back-to-back in the increased elevation against a team in Utah that only allows opponents to shoot 43.1 percent from the field is a daunting task, but the Pistons lead the league in rebounding and can have many second chance opportunities if they rebound well during this game.

If the Pistons can carry over the momentum from the Portland win and get hot during this stretch, winning three or more of the four games on the trip, the schedule lightens up once they get back home. The next 10 games feature only 3 teams with winning records, and includes the Atlanta Hawks without Kyle Korver.

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If the Pistons can cash in on this golden opportunity, the rest of their season can have a positive outlook. If not, the trade deadline is only a little over a month away.

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