Can the Detroit Pistons continue winning ways in home opener?

The Detroit Pistons have won their last three opening home games. Can they make it four in a row tonight against the Brooklyn Nets?

The Detroit Pistons play host to the Brooklyn Nets tonight at home. These types of games are ones the Pistons are going to have to capitalize on in order to make it back to the postseason.

Playing sub .500 teams on your home floor should be a given. The Pistons have made their home opener a given lately. They have won their last three opening home games.

They defeated the Charlotte Hornets 102-90 in their first home regular season game at Little Caesar’s arena last year.

Former Piston Tobias Harris scored 27 points in that victory. He’s no longer with the team. Avery Bradley and Boban Marjanovic are also gone.

Blake Griffin was brought to Detroit for those players. The Pistons will look to him a lot in his first full season in Detroit.

The Pistons took care of business against the Nets last season. They won three out of their four meetings with Brooklyn.

They can continue that same trend tonight. Let’s break down what they need to do in order to come out with a fourth consecutive win in their home opener.

Tonight’s game plan

Nets third year head coach Kenny Atkinson likes the modern day style of basketball. Brooklyn had the sixth highest pace in the NBA last season. They were second in the league in three-point attempts and three-point shots made.

This is an area of tonight’s game to watch. The Nets are going to want to get up and down the court as much as possible and hoist up a ton of shots from outside.

The Pistons will have to be disciplined on defense and in transition against this young group of guys looking to prove something this season.

Detroit will also have to build off of their offensive performance in their final preseason game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. They scored 129 points and seemingly couldn’t miss at times.

Some of that has to do with their shot selection. The Pistons were finding ways to get open looks and moving the ball enough to find the right mismatches on the floor.

Brooklyn did a good job of keeping Detroit out of rhythm offensively during their meeting in the preseason. The Nets weren’t exactly a good defensive team last season, either.

Overall, the Pistons will just have to play their game. They have the more talented team.

Individual match up to watch

Brooklyn’s most dangerous player is guard D’Angelo Russell. He’s a prolific shooter and has a natural ability to score. The 22-year-old is still figuring out some things about what it takes to be successful in this league.

The Nets will go as he goes tonight. Reggie Jackson will have to limit what he does on the offensive end of the floor. As for Jackson, he has a lot to prove this season.

He’s sat out for a large portion of time due to injuries over the last two seasons. It’s no secret that he has been the missing piece to this team being in the playoffs.

The Pistons were just 12-25 without him as their starting point guard last season.

It was uncertain whether or not we would see Jackson in the preseason. He ended up playing in the final three games.

He really eased his way into things. Jackson didn’t do much in his return to the court and then built up on it. By the end of the preseason, he was driving to the basket and creating his own shots off the dribble.

Can Jackson still be that play-maker he was during the 2015-2016 season?