Grades: Detroit Pistons impress in win over Boston Celtics
By Ryan Love
The Detroit Pistons (10-10) defeated the Boston Celtics (10-8) 121-114 at TD Garden in Boston Wednesday night. This marks the second straight road win for the Pistons.
The Detroit Pistons (10-10) outlasted the Boston Celtics (10-8) 121-114 in Boston Wednesday night. The starting lineup for the Pistons combined for 105 of those 121 points on 55 percent shooting from the floor.
Despite Reggie Jackson remaining absent from the Pistons lineup for the time being, scoring was at a premium. The Pistons spread the ball around effectively and the numbers show it. Ish Smith was the only starter for the Pistons to not score 20 points, coming just short with 19. Stan Van Gundy’s squad combined for a season-high 28 assists and they out rebounded the Celtics by 19.
The offense combined with some clutch defense on Isaiah Thomas down the stretch in the fourth quarter brought the Pistons something very rare in the NBA: a win on the second night of a back-to-back after winning the night before.
Here are the Pistons player grades (SPOILER: the starters were pretty good):
A-. Smith has been extremely efficient on both ends of the court his last few games, and was no different against the Celtics. He shot 75 percent on his way to 19 points, and added eight assists and eight rebounds to that. Smith was confident and precise in his decision-making all night which led to a lot of open shots for the rest of the team. Despite the team’s poor defense overall, Smith played good defense down the stretch on Isaiah Thomas (27 points), who did not score in the fourth quarter.. PG. Detroit Pistons. ISH SMITH
B+. After being ejected from the game early in Charlotte last night, Drummond came out strong against the Celtics. He remained active on the glass throughout most of the night, finishing with 20 points, 17 rebounds, two assists and two steals. Celtics coach Brad Stevens flirted with the “Hack-a-Dre” method early on to force Drummond to the free throw line, but Drummond hit 4-of-7 which is all you can ask for.. C. Detroit Pistons. ANDRE DRUMMOND
SG. Detroit Pistons. KENTAVIOUS CALDWELL-POPE. A-. KCP had a team-high 25 points to go along with five rebounds and four assists. He played Celtics guard <a rel=
B-. Morris got hot in the second quarter as his jumpshot was falling consistently the way we had grown used to early in the season. He finished with 20 points on an efficient 61 percent shooting, but, like almost everyone else, chose to play subpar defense for most of the night.. SF. Detroit Pistons. MARCUS MORRIS
B+. Another game, another solid outing from <a rel=. PF. Detroit Pistons. TOBIAS HARRIS
Detroit Pistons. JON LEUER. B. Leuer has been been the most pleasant surprise off a mostly unimpressive Pistons bench this season. Wednesday night in Boston saw much of the same out of him. Leuer scored 12 points on only four shots from the floor and added seven rebounds and two assists in 22 minutes off of the bench.. PF
C. Detroit Pistons. AARON BAYNES. C. Baynes played a mere 12 minutes as Drummond was a force to be reckoned with around the basket for most of the night. Baynes scored just four points which all came from made free throws.
B+. Van Gundy expressed his displeasure with his team’s defense in his postgame interview, but seemed pleased with how they have played the last two nights. It’s a significant feat for any team to win games on back-to-back nights on the road; not to mention both wins were over playoff-caliber teams in Charlotte and Boston. Van Gundy moving to <a rel=. Head Coach. Detroit Pistons. STAN VAN GUNDY
Honorable mentions: Beno Udrih and Darrun Hilliard both saw 12 minutes each Wednesday night, but neither scored on a night that the Pistons starters dominated much of the game. Hilliard’s playing time will be interesting to watch going forward with Reggie Bullock out and Stanley Johnson in Van Gundy’s doghouse.
The Pistons will look to go for three straight wins on the road this Friday in Atlanta when they take on the Hawks (10-9).