Some Pistons redeemed, some on the ropes and some we may not see again

The Detroit Pistons finally won a playoff game at home after losing 11 straight going all the way back to 2008. It was a nervous affair, but fans were finally able to unclench in the 3rd quarter, when the Pistons buried the Magic in one of their most impressive defensive stretches of the season. 

A tied game quickly turned into a blowout when the Pistons flat-out refused to allow the Magic to score in the 3rd, going on a 27-3 run at one point. 

It was an ugly game with a tight whistle and a million free throws, but a win is a win. A couple of Pistons redeemed themselves, while a few others are floundering, and two may be playing their way out of the rotation. 

JB Bickerstaff made the adjustments 

Ausar Thompson played closer to 30 minutes tonight and would have played more had he not picked up a third foul in the first half, which is something we wanted to see from JB Bickerstaff. 

Thompson was a +24 tonight and was everywhere deflecting balls, nabbing steals and blocking shots. He added 11 points and eight rebounds and made some nice cuts to the rim. 

I give JB credit for using his best players more tonight and making the halftime adjustments to get Duren more involved and open up the offense. It wasn’t a masterclass in coaching, but he did seem to learn from the first game. 

Tobias Harris was huge 

Harris was the unsung hero of the game and bounced back after a poor shooting performance in game one. I thought his run of shots in the 3rd really opened things up and calmed the team down offensively. 

He added 11 boards to go with 16 points, two steals and two blocks and did a much better job on defense. 

Jalen Duren is still struggling 

Duren played better in the second half, but the first half was like watching him burn money. 

To Orlando’s credit, they haven’t made it easy, and they have a lot of big bodies to throw at him, but Duren was sloppy with the ball and dribbled into traffic a few times. 

He opened things up with his passing out of the short roll, something we should see more of, so hopefully that 3rd quarter woke him up. 

There are three Pistons who are playing their way out of the rotation 

Daniss Jenkins had another tough night, though he’s the only one other than Cade Cunningham who has been able to get to the rim. 

Not much has happened when he gets there, and Jenkins is playing way too much iso ball for my liking. He looks a tad overwhelmed and sped up, which is not shocking, but he only played 11 minutes tonight and next game it might be less. 

Ron Holland may not see much more action after he was unceremoniously yanked from the game after just seven minutes. I didn’t see what he did, but JB Bickerstaff was upset at Holland for something. 

He’s had a rough start to the series and didn’t help his case tonight. 

Both Caris LeVert and Kevin Huerter were non-factors and have been for the whole series, being soundly outplayed by Javonte Green, who keeps stepping up like he has all season. 

One of LeVert and/or Huerter might be headed to the bench permanently if this keeps up. 

It was good to finally get a home win. This isn’t going to be an easy series, but the Pistons showed they can shut the Magic down and may have found some cracks to exploit. 

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow