The Detroit Pistons were a bit of a throwback this season.
They didn’t follow the modern trend of launching a ton of 3-point shots, but instead beat teams with defense, fast breaks and points in the paint.
The Pistons mostly played things straight-up defensively, rarely deploying small-ball lineups that didn’t have a real center or using two bigs when they were undersized.
Coach JB Bickerstaff allowed Jalen Duren to play through his defensive shortcomings, even when the other team had a stretch five, a player type Duren has struggled with this season.
Guys like Myles Turner, Brook Lopez and Karl-Anthony Towns were able to pull Duren away from the hoop where he is less comfortable defensively, and all had big games against the Pistons.
This is one of the challenging issues JB Bickerstaff is going to have to figure out for the Pistons to pull off the upset against the Knicks.
Detroit Pistons playoffs: Who is going to guard Karl Anthony-Towns?
KAT torched the Pistons for 24 points, 11 rebounds and five assists per game in three meetings this season, shooting nearly 44 percent from 3-point range on over five attempts per game.
The Knicks targeted Duren in the pick-and-roll with Jalen Brunson, who averaged 28.3 points and 7.8 assists per game in four matchups against the Pistons.
Stopping these two will be the Pistons’ primary task, as they have represented 44 percent of the points the Knicks have scored against Detroit this season.
Coach Bickerstaff hasn’t shown any indication that he’s going to change things up, but he may be forced to make playoff adjustments if the Knicks’ duo is taking advantage of this particular matchup.
The Pistons can help their cause on the other end by attacking the rim and forcing the Knicks to use Mitchell Robinson at center instead of KAT. This would allow Duren to mark Robinson and Tobias Harris to take on the KAT assignment. Tobias is obviously giving up some size but is better equipped to chase KAT around the 3-point line and switch in the PnR.
If the Pistons can’t force those matchups, we could see more Isaiah Stewart, as he’s a better defensive matchup against KAT, but costs the Pistons on the boards and on the offensive end, where he’s not as effective as Duren.
Could we see the Pistons go with two bigs to try and force Robinson into more action? Could the Pistons just use Ausar Thompson on Brunson, switch everything and hope he can be disruptive?
My guess is that coach Bickerstaff will play things straight up and see how it goes, as Duren does offer some advantages on the offensive end that help offset any defensive shortcomings.
He also has to make the Knicks pay if they want to keep their trio of wings on the floor with KAT at center by attacking the rim, attacking the offensive glass and making Towns work as a rim protector and rebounder.
This is going to be an interesting chess match between two hardnosed coaches and the series could come down to which team can get the matchups they want and exploit them.