Essentials
- Teams: Brooklyn Nets (16-20) at Detroit Pistons (12-24)
- Date: January 10
- Time: 7:30 p.m.
- Television: FSD+
Get in the Game
Rome has fallen…sort of. After winning seven straight games – including back-to-back road victories against the San Antonio Spurs and Dallas Mavericks – since waiving Josh Smith, the Detroit Pistons lost at home to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night.
There’s no shame in that, considering that Atlanta possesses the best record in the Eastern Conference. Still, this means Detroit won’t win 59 games this year (an undefeated record the rest of the way would have gotten the team there), which must be a crushing blow for head coach Stan Van Gundy.
Well, good news is on the horizon. The Pistons have an opportunity to start a new streak tonight against the Brooklyn Nets. That’s hardly a given, though.
Brooklyn has won the first two meetings, which gives them a bit of an edge heading into the contest. The Nets clearly have the required recipe to take down the Pistons. And yet, odds makers favor the home team tonight.
What gives?
Brooklyn is struggling. It’s lost four straight games, and two of those were at home against the juggernaut Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers. What’s more, the Nets have struggled to score during this stretch. The most they’ve put on the scoreboard in these last four contests is 88 points (twice), and one of those games went to overtime.
It’s quite likely this trend will continue with Deron Williams sidelined at least for a week due to a fractured rib. He’s scheduled to be reevaluated in roughly a week, but Brooklyn’s offense will struggle while he’s out.
Williams is the best hope Brooklyn has of putting points on the board. He has trouble scoring – suspect shooting and poor finisher – even in one-on-one matchups, which means his contributions are limited. Still, Brooklyn’s offense is heavily dependent of his playmaking abilities.
Indeed, Williams does a good job of hitting players in stride for open looks, and he reads the floor very well. The Nets’ floor general understands for the most part where defensive rotations are coming from, and that allows him to strike at the point where the defense is at its weakest.
His absence means Brooklyn loses that playmaking and becomes stagnant. Joe Johnson and Jarrett Jack can orchestrate some of the offense, but they are limited in terms of their anticipation skills. Furthermore, they are scorers more so than passers, which means it’s far more likely they play isolation basketball.
As a result, Detroit should put the clamps on Brooklyn provided that the Palace hosts bring their best defensive effort tonight.
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