Rapid Reaction: Detroit Pistons vs Orlando Magic

The Detroit Pistons have officially opened their preseason against the Orlando Magic at Little Caesars Arena. The Pistons debuted their highly anticipated roster but unfortunately there are still kinks to work out.

Players of the game

For Orlando – Aaron Gordon was ultimately the difference maker in today’s win over Detroit. Posting 25 points and 8 rebounds on 58 percent shooting from the field, he was a force that the Pistons couldn’t contain. His athleticism was on full display as he diced up the defense inside, as well as along the perimeter where he went 3 for 7.

For Detroit – Christian Wood, and that may go without say. Coming into this game the Pistons management and fans alike knew that there was no player with more to prove than Christian, and he didn’t disappoint. He scored 19 points (a team high for Detroit) and grabbed 8 rebounds, while also shooting 6 for 7 from the free throw line. His high motor on both ends of the floor kept the Pistons within reach of the lead while he was on the floor.

Key Moment

With the Magic leading 84-76 with 10:53 left in the fourth quarter, Markelle Fultz intercepted a pass from Tim Frazier and bullied his way to the basket for a dunk. This basket ended the Pistons 8-0 run dating back to the end of the third. The Pistons had fought their way back after being down by 18 points, but this seemed to effectively kill any momentum Detroit thought to have had and the game was never again within reach.

Nick’s Notes

As is customary, I provide a post game recap for every single Pistons game. Tonight’s can be seen here:

In totality – not only tonight but the preseason as a whole is going to be about the role players for Detroit. Dwane Casey will have to play lineup roulette for a few weeks like he did last season in order to figure out which combinations are most effective.

Tonight was the pinnacle of the “give Christian Wood a roster spot” argument. He was able to display everything that those who believed in him knew that he could. He knocked down his only three point attempt on the night, and was always in the right place at the right time on both ends of the floor.

The starting unit rolled out and looked relatively sharp. Floor spacing wasn’t an issue, shots just weren’t falling. It happens. Things got a little rocky when the second unit came in and the floor spacing was an occasional issue. The offense was heavily congested at times which resulted in low percentage shot attempts.

There were a lot of errant passes and miscommunications, which is admittedly to be expected when not only is it the first preseason game of the year, but also when you have a revamped roster. New personnel can bring new issues along, however that doesn’t neccesarily seem to be the case with this group.

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It feels as if they just need some more game experience to become a more cohesive unit. Close outs on shots were solid for Detroit, unfortunately they just left too many shooters open.

The Magic crushed the Pistons in total field goal percentage, and just nine minutes into the third quarter, Detroit was shooting just 18 percent from the field. There was an inconsistent mix of not enough ball movement and too much ball movement to a point where players were passing up open looks.

At the end of the day, the result of this game shouldn’t worry fans. It’s one game that has virtually no meaning in longevity – against a playoff contending team. The wheels will keep moving in Detroit, and they’ll roll back into LCA against Dallas on Wednesday.