Piston reserve bigs stand out in win against Hawks

The Detroit Pistons blew out the Atlanta Hawks 109-87 at Little Caesars Arena on Friday, and their backup bigs Eric Moreland and Henry Ellenson came up big.

The shorthanded Detroit Pistons blew out the visiting Atlanta Hawks on Friday by a 109-87 margin. With Reggie Jackson and Andre Drummond out of the lineup, Jon Leuer was moved into the starting lineup with Henry Ellenson and Eric Moreland both moving up the pecking order in the rotation.

The two young reserve bigs made the most of their opportunities. Ellenson played 17 minutes after playing 20 minutes on Wednesday against the Charlotte Hornets. He scored 16 points on 6-of-9 from the floor, hitting two of his four three-pointers. He added three rebounds and two assists.

Through two games Ellenson is shooting 60 percent from the floor and 50 percent from three-point range. He’s making his case for an expanded role not just in the preseason but once the regular season starts on October 18th as well.

As for Moreland, he was the backup center on Friday, effectively forcing Boban Marjanovic out of the rotation. He capitalized on the opportunity, grabbing 13 rebounds in 21 minutes. He scored just two points on one field goal attempt, but his defense was locked in and his effort level was high for the entirety of his time on the floor.

He got caught out of position a couple times, but that might simply be a result of continuing to get accustomed to his teammates and scheme.

With no Andre Drummond, Stan Van Gundy voiced concern about the Pistons’ ability to rebound. Those worries were unfounded as they outrebounded the Hawks 57-37 and collected 14 offensive boards.

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Expect Ellenson to get bump in minutes on Monday when the Pistons face the Indiana Pacers, and don’t be surprised if Moreland squeezes Marjanovic further at backup center.