The Detroit Pistons and Dallas Mavericks had their first preseason match up since 2010. The Pistons erased a 14 point deficit in a come from behind victory.
Players of the game
For Dallas – Luka Doncic. The combination of him and Kristaps Porzingis proved to be lethal in their first official game together. Kristaps made his return after missing the entirety of last season due to a torn ACL, and it was his first game back since February 6th, 2018. However, Luka was ultimately the force that Detroit couldn’t contain. He posted 21 points and 8 rebounds on 38 percent shooting, adding more aggressive elements to his offensive game which gave the Pistons defense headaches.
For Detroit – Luke Kennard. Luke shared the spotlight with Derrick Rose, but it was ultimately Luke that stepped up for Detroit’s second unit and sealed the game. He scored 19 points on just 8 shots, shooting 75 percent from the field and 83 percent from three. His effectiveness as a scorer is looking like something Detroit will rely on in closing situations.
Key moment
The Pistons did something to close out the third quarter that fans were curious to see if they’d do – roll out a lineup consisting of Reggie Jackson, Derrick Rose, Luke Kennard, Blake Griffin, and Andre Drummond. It proved to be the correct decision, as Detroit was able to erase a 14 point deficit and tied the game up courtesy of a Luke Kennard three to end the quarter.
The Pistons proceeded to go on a 16-2 run, and scored the opening 9 points of the fourth quarter.
Nick’s Notes
This was a coming out party for the Pistons second unit. They produced on a level that fans had anticipated – and then some. Derrick and Luke combined for 37 points in the win, alongside productive minutes from Thon Maker and Markieff Morris.
Luke has clearly added some moves to his offensive arsenal, and was able to carve the Mavericks defense up, which included a drive to the basket followed by a reverse layup finish.
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The usual starters played a considerable amount of minutes for a preseason game, but for what it’s worth everyone looked relatively okay. Andre was the exception – he looked borderline terrific. He was protecting the rim with aggression and was bullying his way to the basket for tough finishes.
One of the lesser talked about things so far is the lack of minutes Christian Wood played (only 9) after a stellar performance against Orlando where he scored 19 points. This has lead to some concern regarding the ambiguity of his future in Detroit. Notably however, his presumed competition – Joe Johnson played zero minutes. That may be something to read into.
On a final note, the Pistons looked like a playoff team in the second half where they scored over 70 points. The Dallas Mavericks have a remarkably underrated offense and the Pistons were able to overcome that down the stretch, and come out on top.