The Detroit Pistons continued their dominance over the Toronto Raptors, winning 103-87 behind a solid team effort.
Don’t look now, but the Pistons are starting to play more consistently in the new year, going 5-3 so far with some impressive wins along the way.
Of course, they were blown out in the losses, but that’s how it goes for a young team trying to learning how to win.
It’s been a joy to watch, as I am one who feels that wins are more important than the slight difference in lottery odds that they could potentially represent.
And let’s not get too ahead of ourselves. The Pistons are still four games back from the spot that would change their odds at all, and then only a measly four percent. I’d gladly trade some wins for a four percent change in lottery odds, so let’s keep those W’s coming.
It was a fun win and watching this young group start to gel is giving me increased hope for the future.
Here are three takeaways from the win over Toronto.
Dwane Casey and the Detroit Pistons own the Toronto Raptors
Though he would try to claim that the Raptors are just another team and that he doesn’t hold any grudges, you know Dwane Casey secretly gets more joy out of beating the team that fired him after he won Coach of the Year.
The Pistons are now 8-3 against the Raptors under Casey, including five in a row, pretty impressive considering how bad the Pistons have been against just about everyone else.
It was also nice to see Cade Cunningham win the matchup between fellow Rookie of the Year candidate Scottie Barnes, who has been amazing this season and deserves all of the credit he is getting.
You can’t go wrong with either guy, but since I am Homer #1, I prefer Cade of course. The two have been battling since high school and the Raptors/Pistons rivalry should be a great one moving forward.