The Detroit Pistons are in the toughest part of their schedule, but it’s being made easier by poor injury luck for the other teams. Last game it was OKC, who was missing six of their top guys, and tonight it is the Cleveland Cavaliers who will be shorthanded.
The Pistons (knocking furiously on wood) have had relatively good injury luck this season outside of Jaden Ivey, whose early injury setback cost him a chance to be part of what the Pistons are doing.
That hasn’t been the case for their opponents of late, and won’t be tonight, as the Cavaliers have a slew of players either out or listed as questionable for their matchup in Detroit.
Donovan Mitchell and Max Strus have already been ruled out, and James Harden, Dean Wade, Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis are all listed as questionable tonight with various injuries.
This might make the Pistons’ task easier, but it also denies them a chance to prove themselves against one of their biggest threats in the Eastern Conference.
The Pistons will have to wait to see the new-look Cavaliers
I was looking forward to this game as a way to evaluate the Pistons against the team that may end up being their biggest competition.
The Cavs have been rolling since acquiring James Harden, Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis and briefly even overtook the Knicks for the third see in the East, though they have since fallen back to fourth.
If that seeding holds, it would set up a potential second-round matchup with the Cavaliers, and it would have been nice to get a game against their new additions to see how the Pistons stack up.
It also allows the Cavaliers and Thunder to play the “we didn’t have all of our guys” nonsense. I couldn’t possibly care less about whether the national media considers the Pistons contenders, but it would be great for the team’s confidence to stomp the full-strength Cavaliers.
It won’t make any difference in the playoffs, but the Cavs are the only good team in the East that the Pistons haven’t beaten twice this season and now they’ll be denied a chance with both teams at full strength.
The Pistons still have to show up, and if they don’t, they’ll lose to the Cavaliers shorthanded, which would be even worse. I hope that coach Bickerstaff can at least use this opportunity to tinker with his rotation a bit and try to inject some shooting into the second unit.
Some people would call this injury “luck” for the Pistons, but it does change the dynamic of the game, puts additional pressure on the home team and denies them a chance to measure themselves against one of their biggest competitors in the East.