Saddiq Bey joins the Detroit Pistons’ 50-point club vs. Magic

Saddiq Bey had a special game for the Detroit Pistons last night, dropping 51 points and 10 rebounds against the Orlando Magic in a battle for lottery position.

Bey was the number one option with Cade Cunningham and Jerami Grant on the bench and he made the most of it, scoring from all three levels and making it look easy.

He had an efficient 51 points on 27 shots, making 10-of-14 from long range and tying the Pistons’ record for most 3-point makes in a game.

He joined the Detroit Pistons’ 50-point club, which is a relatively small group when you consider the success this team has had over the years and some of the all-time greats that have worn the Pistons’ uniform.

Bey’s 51 points is tied for 5th all-time for the Detroit Pistons, and he put himself with some of the greatest players the Pistons have ever had.

Saddiq Bey’s 50-point game for the Detroit Pistons

Here are the Pistons top scoring performances:

Jerry Stackhouse: 57 points on 4/3/2001

Kelly Tripucka: 56 points on 1/29/1983

Dave Bing: 54 points on 2/21/1971

George Yardley: 52 points on 2/4/1958

Saddiq Bey: 51 points on 3/17/2022

Rip Hamilton: 51 points on 12/27/2006

George Yardley: 51 points on 1/15/1958

Blake Griffin: 50 points on 10/23/2018

First off, George Yardley had a hell of a season in 1958! His 27.8 points per game led the NBA and he went over 40 points eight times that season, not including the two times he went over 50 points.

He scored 48 twice and 49 one other time that season, so Yardley was close to making this list four times, which is very impressive. He’s the best Piston most fans don’t know, made the All-Star team 7-of-8 seasons in the league and retired to start an engineering company.

I didn’t put Yardley on my most underrated Pistons of all time list, but he should probably be there.

The other thing that stands out is that most of these games were done without many (or any) 3-point shots, as Tripucka, Hamilton, Stackhouse and Yardley did most of their damage from the mid-range or post.

Bey got his from all over the floor, and it might have been the most impressive performance on the list when you consider the Pistons were shorthanded and Bey was getting double and triple teamed all night.

Bey is proving himself to be one of the best young players in the game and put himself among some of the best Detroit Pistons of all time.