Detroit Pistons beat Pacers behind Stanley Johnson’s late surge

The Detroit Pistons overcame their stiffest challenge of the summer in the Indiana Pacers behind the late fourth quarter surge of Stanley Johnson.

The Detroit Pistons have continued their outstanding summer league effort with a solid 80-76 win over a feisty Indiana Pacers’ squad. With the win, the 3-0 Pistons now have 21.5 of a possible 24 points, just half a point behind the first place Miami Heat. They also have the second best point differential, outscoring their opponents by 41 points, behind the +61 differential of the Heat.

More from PistonPowered

• Which Detroit Pistons could save Team USA in the Olympics?
• Detroit Pistons could have major roster churn after 2023-24 season
• The best Detroit Pistons to wear each uniform number
• Full Detroit Pistons NBA 2K24 ratings
• Detroit Pistons: Who will sign the remaining NBA free agents?

The Pistons looked like a different team in this one than in the dreadful shooting effort put forth on Monday against the Orlando Magic Blue squad. In that game the Pistons shot just 29.3 percent from the floor, while today against the Pacers they hit 44.3 percent from the floor. They also improved on their dreadful three-point shooting from Monday, hitting 6-of-16 three pointers against the Pacers.

The Pistons had four players hit double digits in scoring, including Jordan Bachynski with 11 points, Lorenzo Brown (Monday’s standout performer) with 13 points, Henry Ellenson with 14 points (and 2-for-4 from three-point range) and Stanley Johnson with a team-leading 16 points.

Johnson got off to a dreadful start, hitting just two of his first 14 shots, but he completely dominated the final two minutes of the close-fought fourth quarter. He hit two three-pointers after starting the game 0-for-5 from long range (and 1-15 for the summer), both of which took leads back from the Pacers and assisted on the final go-ahead basket by Kaleb Tarczewski to make the game a 77-76 lead for the Pistons.

Johnson also iced the game with two free throws to bring the score to its final mark of 80-76, and came up with his fourth steal of the game with about three seconds left. Needless to say, Johnson did not let his poor statistical start get in the way of locking in and locking the Pacers down late.

Johnson hasn’t had a great summer shooting from the floor, hitting just 27.3 percent from the floor, but he’s helped in other ways. He is averaging 7.7 rebounds and 2.7 steals per game, and as seen in the above clip he still has the capacity to get to the rim at will. Johnson has reworked his shot, and summer league is the perfect opportunity for him to get acclimated to it in advance of training camp.

While Johnson hasn’t stood out in all the ways that he may have been expected to, he’s still the most compelling Piston to watch in this summer league tournament. He looks bigger and stronger than he did just two months ago in the playoffs against the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the 20-year old has structured his offseason on improving upon his weaknesses.

Next: Does Lorenzo Brown have a case to make the Detroit Pistons' roster?

With Henry Ellenson likely not being an immediate producer and Michael Gbinije not being assured of a role of any importance, Stanley Johnson remains the Piston to watch.