The Detroit Pistons lost their first game of the season in a hard fought battle against the Chicago Bulls.
It was a frustrating loss, as the Pistons were winning for most of the game before ultimately failing to execute down the stretch.
This is going to be an issue all season, as the Pistons are a young team that is still learning how to win close games.
This task was made more difficult by the absence of Cade Cunningham, as the Pistons definitely could have used his offense, especially in the 4th quarter.
The negatives were obvious, as the Pistons’ shooting was atrocious and ultimately cost them the game. They shot just 21 percent from 3-point range and 40 percent overall, another problem that will probably be around all season.
Killian Hayes failed to make a shot, which brought out the haters on Twitter, who seem to forget that the entire season isn’t decided by one game. The starting backcourt scored just seven points overall, which should be remedied by a healthy Cade Cunningham.
If you are already down or giving up, please stop. It is a long season and there were plenty of positives to take from this game even in defeat.
The Detroit Pistons can hang with a playoff team
I don’t like to give out participation trophies, but it was nice to see the Pistons go toe-to-toe with a legit playoff contender and not back down.
The truth is that the Detroit Pistons would have won this game if Cade Cunningham had played, so even though it still counts as an “L” the young team should gain some confidence from this loss.
They made some bad plays late in the 3rd quarter and down the stretch in the 4th but otherwise it was a tough defensive battle and the Pistons showed they can hang.
I didn’t walk away from this game thinking the Bulls were a vastly superior team, just that they made some shots down the stretch and rode LaVine’s hot hand. He made some tough shots and you have to tip your cap to him, but overall the Pistons were right there and if a couple of their shots fall they win the game.
If the Detroit Pistons play defense like that consistently, they will win a lot of those.