After dropping a close game in Chicago on Saturday, the Detroit Pistons return home to play the Charlotte Hornets on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
The Detroit Pistons (22-19) on Sunday learned that they did indeed get screwed out of a late-game foul on Reggie Bullock in the closing seconds of the game against the Chicago Bulls.
On Monday, the Pistons return home where they have a record of 13-5 in front of the fans at Little Caesars Arena.
The Pistons also defend at a high level at home. They sport the 4th best defensive rating (101.0) at home and hold their opponents to only 98.9 points per game.
Mixing in the emotions from a disappointing loss in Chicago with the general success at home and the conditions are ripe for a blowout against the 16-25 Charlotte Hornets.
The Pistons will be without Jon Leuer (ankle), who has been out since Halloween and may miss the rest of the season per Rod Beard of the Detroit News.
#Pistons SVG said Jon Leuer took a second ankle injection to try to fix his issues. He's trying to avoid season-ending surgery but it's not looking good.
— Rod Beard (@detnewsRodBeard) January 15, 2018
The Pistons will also be without Stanley Johnson (hip flexor), who went 0 for 13 against the Hornets in their opening game, but was a menace defensively swiping four steals. He will miss his second straight game and his sixth in seven games.
The Hornets will be without Cody Zeller (torn meniscus), who has been out since the beginning of December.
In order to win, the Pistons will need to figure out how to corral Kemba Walker.
Walker has been absolutely spectacular in the pick-and-roll with Dwight Howard and other Hornets bigs. He ranks in the 89th percentile for scoring as the primary ball handler in the pick-and-roll.
Fun Fact: Kemba Walker’s career-high for points is 52 against the Utah Jazz last season. That was on January 18th, 2016 or better known as Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
The game will be broadcast on Fox Sports Detroit with an early tip-off time of 12:30 PM EST.