The Detroit Pistons got their first win of the season against the Philadelphia 76ers and hope it is something they can build on.
They are back home tonight against the New York Knicks, a team that the Pistons have struggled mightily against in recent years.
In fact, the Knicks own the longest current winning streak against the Pistons at 15 games, which is terrible considering New York hasn’t been good for very long.
Detroit only beat a Philly team missing two of its best players, but they hopefully figured some things out, namely that Isaiah Stewart gives them a better chance to win.
Stew and Duren will have a chance to go off tonight, as the Knicks, like the 76ers, will be shorthanded in the front court.
Pistons vs. Knicks: Injury report
Nothing has changed for the Pistons on the injury front, as they will still be missing Ausar Thompson and Bobi Klintman for the foreseeable future.
I realize Thompson’s healthy is a private matter, but could they give us some kind of update? Even if it was just “we don’t know anything more and are waiting for the league,” it would be better than this silence, which fans are suspicious of given Detroit’s reputation for being less than forthright about injuries.
The Knicks will be missing Mitchell Robinson, Precious Achiuwa and Karl Anthony-Towns is listed as questionable after spraining an ankle.
This is a potential opportunity for the Pistons’ bigs to dominate the boards and be a force in the paint defensively. We need to see another defensive effort from Stewart like the one we saw against Philly, and Duren has to own the boards when he’s in there.
Duren in particular would be happy to miss KAT, as he’s had a hard time defending in space and KAT spends most of his time on the perimeter.
How to watch Pistons vs. Knicks
You can watch the 7:00 PM ET tip off on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit if you have cable or listen on the radio on 97.1 FM The Ticket.
Streaming options include NBA League Pass if you live out of market and FUBOtv if you’d like to stream the FSNDT coverage with a free trial.
Will the Pistons shake up the starting five?
The big question after the first win of the season is whether coach JB Bickerstaff will make changes in his starting five.
However you measure it, Isaiah Stewart has been better than Jalen Duren, so I expect we’ll at least see a more equitable distribution of minutes even if Duren does remain in the starting lineup.