Detroit Pistons: 3 takeaways from blowout loss to the Celtics

In a Wednesday night matchup in Boston, the Detroit Pistons fell to the Celtics after coming off a home win against OKC.  The Pistons once again struggled on defense, allowing Boston to score 128 points during the blowout loss, while the Pistons scored 112.  The Pistons remain winless on the road, now sitting at 0-6 on the season.

Ice-cold shooting from the Detroit Pistons

The Pistons got off to a very slow start against the Celtics in the 1st quarter, shooting only 7/30 from the field for 23 percent, compared to Boston’s 45 percent shooting off 9/20 from the field.  Fortunately for the Pistons, the game was still within reach as it was only 29-21 at the end of the quarter.

Saddiq Bey struggled from the field, but was able to get to the line, knocking down 9/10 free throws.  He finished the game with 18 points.  The Pistons were also ice-cold from the 3 point line tonight, remaining one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in the league, finishing just 7-33 from downtown, tying a season low.

Isaiah Stewart got into some early foul trouble, while the Pistons just couldn’t buy a bucket in the quarter.  The one player who struggled the most during the loss was the team’s best player, Cade Cunningham.

Cunningham finished the game shooting just 1/11 from the field, good for only four points, while grabbing just three rebounds and two assists.  You aren’t going to win many games in the NBA when your franchise player struggles like Cunningham did throughout the night.  Cunningham looked off and just didn’t have it going.  C

Cunningham took the blame and will look to rebound and have a strong performance Friday night against the Knicks in Madison Square Garden.

Jaden Ivey and other positives

One of the positive things throughout the night was the strong play from rookie Jaden Ivey.  Ivey finished with a team high 19 points and also added 10 rebounds along with six assists.  On a night where his backcourt teammate struggled, it was a great sign for Pistons fans  going forward to see Ivey have such a strong performance and lead the team.

There were some more positives for the Pistons in this loss.  The Pistons committed only 10 turnovers during the game, which is a season low for the team. The Pistons bench once again struggled as they await the return of guard Alec Burks and Marvin Bagley III to add some much needed shooting and instant offense off the bench.

Rookie Jalen Duren finished with another strong performance in his 2nd game back, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds.  Duren continues to show promise to potentially become the Detroit Pistons’ starting center moving forward.

Killian Hayes shines off bench; No answer for Celtics’ duo

Pistons guard Killian Hayes had his strongest performance of the season, finishing the game shooting 7/12 from the field with 16 points in 22 minutes.  Hayes looked confident while he was on the court tonight, a good sign moving forward for the Pistons as Hayes has struggled all season.

Cade Cunningham isn’t going to have many off games as he did tonight, and if Hayes continues to provide that type of production off the bench, the Detroit Pistons will be able to remain in games and Hayes should be able to lead the second unit going forward as the season continues.

The Pistons defense simply had no answer for Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown, as the all-star duo combined for a total of 61 points, Tatum with 31 and Brown finishing with 30.  If the Pistons hope to pick up some wins in the near future, they are going to have to clean things up defensively and get stronger bench play in the upcoming games.

It points to one of the Pistons’ biggest roster weaknesses, which is their lack of defensive stoppers on the wing.