Detroit Pistons Travel to Brooklyn to Battle the Nets for No.6 Seed

The Detroit Pistons travel to Brooklyn to go head up against the Nets Monday night for the sixth seed in the eastern conference as teams gear up for the 2019 NBA Playoffs.

The Detroit Pistons are only half a game ahead of the Brooklyn Nets and sit in the power position for teams battling over seeds six through eight. The bottom of the league’s eastern conference is a minefield, though.

Against the Chicago Bulls, the Detroit Pistons looked like an elite contender. Take into mind the competition. The Bulls are feisty, but they aren’t the Nets. Don’t expect 23-point romping at the end of the game. Monday night means more than that.

The Detroit Pistons barrel into the matchup with the Brooklyn Nets on the back of a five-game win streak that includes an OT win against the Toronto Raptors, 112-107. No, Kawhi Leonard did not hit the floor. But, Kyle Lowry’s 35-point flurry could not route the Pistons that Sunday.

Brooklyn hit a rough patch over a three-game skid that led directly into a three-game streak before Monday’s battle. With All-Star D’Angelo Russell at the top, the Nets have forged a brand of toughness that makes them hard to beat on any night. It’s been a slow burn for Brooklyn without Caris LeVert for most of the season and in the absence of Spencer Dinwiddie – who played 54 games for the team this year. There was no freefall. Russell’s team-leading 20.4 points per game has kept the Nets’ offense above water and players like DeMarre Carroll and All Star 3-point shot contest winner Joe Harris fill in the blanks.

Bruce Brown is out for the Detroit Pistons, which takes some of the air out of their defense. Probably couldn’t tell in Sunday’s contest against the Chicago Bulls, but he matters. Brown is not going to wow any box score faithfuls, but his ability to disrupt aces the eye-test.
Reggie Jackson and likely Wayne Ellington will be responsible for Russell’s offensive surge or sputter. That all depends on how tightly wound the guards are defensively. While keeping a watchful eye on players like Russell and Allen Crabbe – who’s due for a double-digit scoring night – Reggie has to keep his hot hand smoking.

Detroit’s starting point had a 21-point outing against Chicago on Sunday as he shot 50 percent from the field, five-of-eight from three-point range. The Detroit Pistons need him just as much as they need their star big men to continue reaffirming their position as the east’s number six seed in the 2019 NBA Playoffs.

Langston Galloway matched Jackson’s 21 points with a set of his own and was perfect from deep. He was key in the Detroit Pistons’ 54.3 clip from the three-point line, but the Brooklyn Nets are fifth in the league at three-point defense, only allowing 34.1 percent of their opponents’ three-ball attempts to hit the bottom of the net. These are mutually exclusive identities of the game and things to watch out for as the teams step on the floor.

It’s not out of the realm of reason to expect the Detroit Pistons to extend their lead as the sixth seed in the east ahead of the Brooklyn Nets with a win Monday night. They could just as easily fall behind.

‘Tis the game of basketball, especially in the east.