The Detroit Pistons know exactly what they need to do to beat the New York Knicks because they did it for three quarters of game one.
The Pistons fell apart in the 4th with a ton of turnovers, but they hung with or were beating the Knicks for most of the game, so it’s not like they got blown off the court.
Before the series we talked a lot about the impact Jalen Duren could have one way or another and in game one some of the worst fears came true.
Duren looked like early-season Duren, the guy who wasn’t doing anything defensively and was not active enough on the offensive end to make up for it. We saw Duren develop throughout the season, but he’s done most of his damage against bad teams. He didn’t assert himself as much against the good ones, which will have to change for the Pistons to have a chance.
The obvious answer is more Isaiah Stewart, as he played well and was a huge part of the Pistons’ 3rd quarter surge that left them with an eight-point lead heading into the 4th.
Unfortunately, that adjustment may not be possible depending on Stewart’s knee, which forced him to the locker room in game one.
Isaiah Stewart injury status: Is Stewart going to play tonight?
We knew Stewart was going to be huge in this series, as he is the Pistons’ best defensive big man and the Knicks have a tough one in Karl-Anthony Towns.
KAT forced JB Bickerstaff to use Duren on Josh Hart, leaving Tobias Harris to defend KAT, which worked at times, but Towns was also able to shoot over Harris whenever he wanted.
Currently, Isaiah Stewart is listed as questionable for tonight’s game but given the way he was laboring in game one, I’d be shocked if he plays tonight, especially since game three isn’t until Thursday, which would give Stewart a few extra days of rest.
Stewart was clearly hurting just trying to run, and he couldn’t jump at all, as we saw on a Cameron Payne drive that Stew normally would have swatted away but was unable to contest because of that knee.
This couldn’t have come at a worse time, especially considering coach Bickerstaff used Stewart just 20 minutes per game this season, precisely to keep him healthy for this moment.
Centers who can switch all over are more valuable in the playoffs when teams often go small to try and get more offense on the floor, so it’s not hyperbole to say that Stewart is one of the most important Pistons in this series.
If he is out, they will have to do what they’ve done all season, which is respond, and that starts from getting more from Jalen Duren, especially on the offensive end.