What can I say? Life is just sweeter when the Detroit Pistons are winning.
They notched their 6th-straight win last night in a thriller against Atlanta, outscoring the Hawks to show they can get wins in a number of ways.
The Pistons are rolling, and with 31 wins, just tied the combined number of victories they had in the last two seasons. Shout out to Trajan Langdon and JB Bickerstaff (who won another crucial challenge last night), who turned this thing around much faster than anyone would have expected.
Unfortunately for the Pistons, all but one of the top teams in the East are rolling as well, as the Cavs have won seven straight, the Celtics five, the Pacers three and the Bucks have won four in a row. Only the Knicks have lost two straight and have watched their cushion over the Pacers shrink to just four games.
The rest of the Eastern Conference has started the tank, highlighted by the Bulls (6), 76ers (7) and Wizards (6), who are all in the midst of losing streaks. It’s running hot or cold in the East.
With Orlando winning last night, the Pistons were unable to pad their lead, so are still three games ahead of the Magic as they start to pull away from the rest of the pack.
Cade Cunningham put up the big numbers last night, but after Atlanta sold out to stop him in the second half, everyone else stepped up, highlighted by some clutch daggers.
Malik Beasley, Tim Hardaway Jr, Tobias Harris and Dennis Schroder all hit big shots, answering every time the Hawks closed the gap or went on a run of their own. Ausar Thompson had a quiet 14 points on 7-of-8 shooting even though he was in foul trouble all night.
Cunningham will get the highlights but it was truly a team effort, which is what the Pistons have been doing for most of the season. This team is rolling and will be right back at it tonight at home against the Clippers, with both teams on the tail end of a back-to-back.
Pistons injuries vs. Clippers: Will Kawhi Leonard play tonight?
Ben Simmons played last night but has been ruled out for tonight’s game due to injury management, which is a pretty accurate summary of his career.
Kawhi Leonard and Norman Powell were both out in last night’s loss to Indiana and are listed as day-to-day, so we’ll have to check back at game time to see if they are available.
The Clippers have lost two straight, so will be desperate to get a win tonight in a battle of two 6th seeds.
The Pistons will still be missing Jaden Ivey, likely for the season and have also added Simone Fontecchio to the injury list after he suffered a hand injury in last night’s game.
Fontecchio is about to lose his spot in the rotation anyway, but you hate to see it happen this way. He is also listed as day-to-day and will be a game time decision.
How to watch Pistons vs. Clippers
Tonight’s game will tip off at 7:00 PM ET in Little Caesar’s Arena, which will hopefully be packed and rocking with the Pistons playing their best basketball in a decade.
You can watch on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit or listen on 97.1 FM The Ticket and there are also a number of streaming options available.