Pistons visit Suns on second night of back-to-back
After winning their first road game since Jan. 10, the Detroit Pistons (31-39) are heading right back to work. They’ll visit the Phoenix Suns (19-52) on Tuesday night. Detroit won the first meeting 131-107 at Little Caesars Arena back on Nov. 29.
It took until the 70th game of the season, but the Detroit Pistons finally earned their 10th road victory on Monday night.
Now they’ll face another team bound for the lottery; the Phoenix Suns. Tip-off from Talking Stick Resort Arena is slated for 10 p.m. on Fox Sports Detroit.
The Suns currently own the worst record in the NBA at 19-52. They’re also dead last in offensive and defensive rating, scoring just 103.8 points per 100 possessions and allowing 113.2 points per 100 possessions. Oh, and Phoenix has also dropped the last eight games.
But the lone star on this Suns’ team (see what I did there) must not be taken lightly.
Devin Booker is a scoring stud. A Michigan native, the 21-year-old is averaging 24.9 points, 4.7 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game. He’s also shooting 43 percent from the floor and 38 percent from beyond the arc.
Simply reading his statistics won’t do him any justice. Take a look for yourself.
Despite being in his third season, teams still forget to check Booker in transition. After a quick outlet pass from Dragan Bender, Booker pushes the ball across half court. With a defender backpedaling, he pulls up and knocks down an uncontested 3-point shot.
But don’t expect him to settle for every jump shot or 3-pointer. If nobody elects to prevent his penetration, Booker will gladly attack the basket. Take a look this drive against the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier this month.
With no help defense whatsoever, he’s free to dribble the ball inside the paint and draw a shooting foul.
Even in a blowout loss, Booker got the better of the Pistons’ defense back in November at Little Caesars Arena. He finished with 22 points on 7-for-8 shooting, and made all six of his free throw attempts.
Turnovers still plague the former Kentucky Wildcat (he averages 3.6 a night), but his scoring will usually cancel those out.
Unlike the Suns, the Pistons are still (barely) playing for something at this point. They are six games behind the Milwaukee Bucks for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. It’s obvious, but every game is a “must-win” for the Pistons now. A victory on Tuesday would keep their fading playoff hopes alive.
As for a loss?
Well, that only brings them one step closer to the inevitable.