Detroit Pistons disappoint in loss to Kings
84. Final. 92. 64. 101
Even with the tension in the Kings locker room between coach George Karl, general manager Vlade Divac, and the players, the Kings came out firing. Divac even reportedly asked the roster if Karl should be fired. Despite Karl’s system and lineup choices in question before game time, Sacramento shocked the Pistons, and ended up leading by 12 at the half. The Kings kept the Pistons at bay, using the stellar play of Rajon Rondo, DeMarcus Cousins, and Rudy Gay to hand the Pistons their third loss of the season.
PG. Pistons. REGGIE JACKSON. C-. Jackson struggled to distribute the ball inside with the presence of Kings center DeMarcus Cousins guarding the paint. He was sloppy with his ball handling and turned the ball over, causing the team to fall behind at first. He only mustered three assists, proof that he had trouble getting the ball to his teammates and that his teammates had trouble putting the ball in the basket.
C-. Caldwell-Pope couldn’t find an offensive rhythm as he tried to force too many off-balance shots in the paint. He made a three in the fourth quarter to bring the deficit to single digits, but missed other shots down the stretch that would’ve brought the Pistons closer to a win. He racked up the most minutes on the floor (40), and his lack of rest could’ve been the reason for his inability to knock down clutch shots.. SG. Pistons. KENTAVIOUS CALDWELL-POPE
C+. The rookie built upon his best game of his young career in Oakland into Sacramento. When he got the ball, he wasn’t afraid to take charge and attack the basket. He ended the first half with a layup at the buzzer, having the wherewithal to get the shot off before the half ended. His second half was a stark contrast, as he ended the night with eight points on 3-for-11 shooting.. SF. Pistons. STANLEY JOHNSON
B. Morris had a tough first half along with most of the starting lineup, shooting poorly. He picked it up a bit in the second half and played satisfactory defense along with drawing fouls when he had the ball. He finished with 16 points and nine rebounds — a near double-double.. SF. Pistons. MARCUS MORRIS
B. Drummond wasn’t able to keep up his torrid pace, but still picked up his eighth straight double-double. He started off slow, but still earned his usual bunch of rebounds and points. He didn’t meet his previous averages from this season because of Cousins and Cauley-Stein playing tough defense on him.. C. Pistons. ANDRE DRUMMOND
C. Pistons. ARON BAYNES. B-. Baynes wasn’t much more than a stand-in for Drummond when he entered the game. He wasn’t horrible, wasn’t great, but held his own when he was needed.
B+. Tolliver was one of the lone bright spots in the first half, keeping the Pistons within striking distance in the first half, starting 3-for-3 with two 3’s. He didn’t score at all in the second half as the scoring was more focused to go through the players in the starting lineup in attempt for a comeback.. PF. Pistons. ANTHONY TOLLIVER
ERSAN ILYASOVA. B+. The starting power forward played just 17 minutes, and his play during that time didn’t have much of a factor on the game as a whole. He tallied eight points and two rebounds while shooting a clean 50-percent from the field.. PF. Pistons
C. Blake kept the offense under control when he came in for Reggie, but still is searching for his stroke. His shooting ability has left less to be desired by Pistons fans.. PG. Pistons. STEVE BLAKE
Pistons. STAN VAN GUNDY. C. Van Gundy couldn’t find a solution to slow down Cousins or Rudy Gay, both of which torched the Pistons. Most of the game’s blame cannot be blamed on the head coach, though, as the Pistons were doomed by poor passing and shooting. Detroit’s play all boiled down to mediocre execution.. Head Coach
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