Detroit Pistons’ Struggles Stretch to Four Game Losing Streak

Reggie Jackson took 14 shots to score 14 points, with three of them coming from free throws. He was able to grab five rebounds and four assists, but it wasn’t enough. He only coughed the ball up twice and committed only two fouls. After such a good shooting performance last time out this one was disappointing. In his defense, the offense appeared stagnant at times tonight, which forced Jackson to take some undesirable shots.<p class=. PG. Detroit Pistons. REGGIE JACKSON. C+

The shooting slump continues, and it’s as frustrating as it’s always been. Bradley shot just 38 percent from the field. What makes that worse is that he shot 60 percent from deep. That means Bradley shot 25 percent from two. This is most likely due to his affinity for pulling up for midrange jumpers that are being contested. If he wants to get out of this slump he needs to start limiting his shots to his world class cuts and open threes. Simplify the game to help get his feet back underneath him. That’s just my advice though. However Bradley gets out of this slump, it needs to come fast, because the Pistons are faltering during his struggle. It’s not all on his shoulders, but his help would go a long way in getting back into winning form. Other than that, he went seven for eight from the foul line, grabbed a steal, a rebound, and two assists.<p class=. SG. Detroit Pistons. AVERY BRADLEY. C

SF. Detroit Pistons. STANLEY JOHNSON. C+. If I knew how to spell out a really long sigh I would. This was a throwback to the season opener for Stanley Johnson, and it was about as pretty. He missed all eight of his shots, four of them coming from behind the arc. This kind of stuff is concerning. He is the last option on offense, but anyone who has two games like this 23 games into the season is scary. I’m a Johnson believer, I was firmly against his trade rumors last year. But man, we need more help from him on the offensive end. Johnson has to hit SOME of the open shots to keep the defense honest. Other from that, he’s got to get the handle down for when he drives. He picks up the dribble every time he’s about to drive into traffic and get’s himself stuck, and then swarmed. He’s got a decent midrange game, so he may need to look for that instead of just stopping in his tracks. But other than that, Johnson has to make quicker passes out of situations like those. He gets doubled and it either causes a turnover or wastes three to five seconds off the shot clock. Until he develops the dexterity with the ball to move with it in traffic, he should look to drop it off to a teammate, or find his shot. Other than his shooting struggles, he had a decent game with seven rebounds, five assists, and a steal. Despite his shot not falling, he had a plus four plus minus rating.

Tobias Harris actually had a decent game. He shot eight for fourteen from the field, and four for nine from behind the arc. He scored 21 points off of them, with only one free throw to help him get there. Harris had five rebounds, three steals, and two turnovers. The only gripe I’ve really got for Harris is his inability to draw fouls. Yes, he does get hosed pretty often. But if he would just attack the basket and create contact with his body he would get more calls. Far to often he’ll fall away, he hits the shots, but it gives the refs an out. He’s still playing like an all star though, and he was one of the few silver linings of this game.. PF. Detroit Pistons. TOBIAS HARRIS. B+

A. I hope everyone who wanted to trade Drummond last year has realized that that was a mistake. If you haven’t, you either haven’t watched the games or you are incredibly stubborn. Drummond was the Pistons’ star yet again. He scored 27 points on 75 percent shooting. To add onto that, he had 20 rebounds, six assists, and only one turnover. He has made an incredible jump from last year to this year, and has reinserted himself into super-stardom. Despite all this, he isn’t immune to the Pistons’ shooting slump. He shot 37 percent (38 if you wanna round it up and be generous) from the foul line. It was three of eight, so the 37 sounds a lot worse than it is, considering it was one make off of 50 percent. Nonetheless, Drummond has cemented himself as a franchise player again, and I am incredibly happy to be able to say it. He had more than a quarter of the team’s points.. C. Detroit Pistons. ANDRE DRUMMOND

In 16 minutes, Ish Smith’s only stat logged was four points. He got those four on two of five shooting, or 40 percent. He had no assists, no rebounds, no steals, nothing. There isn’t too much to say here.. PG. Detroit Pistons. ISH SMITH. C-

C+. Kennard, along with everyone else, had a poor shooting night. He started off hot, hitting his first two shots, but ended the game two for seven, one for three from deep. Kennard hit one of his two free throws. He was able to make two pretty assists, though. Kennard has proven that, given time, he will be an offensive force in this league. He’s incredibly smart on the offensive end, is out-performing his defensive expectations, but is still prone to rookie mistakes. However, experience will sort that out.. SG. Detroit Pistons. LUKE KENNARD

C-. Yes, another player with a terrible shooting night. Anthony Tolliver went one for eight from the field, one for five from beyond the arc. He had two rebounds, an assist, and a turnover. Let’s hope his veteran savvy can help him out of this night’s shooting slump.. PF. Detroit Pistons. ANTHONY TOLLIVER

C. Detroit Pistons. ERIC MORELAND. C+. The only bucket he got outside of one made free throw was off a lob. It was a smooth finish. He was able to grab five rebounds, four of them were on the offensive end. Moreland needs to learn to go right back up with them though. He has a bad habit (like Drummond) of holding the ball for a second or two. This allows the defense to get into position for the block or steal, depending on what Moreland chooses. You can tell he’s from the G-League, but his raw athleticism and hustle has earned him a spot on a team without a true backup center, even when healthy.