Hawks exposed the fatal flaws that could end the Pistons in the playoffs

The Detroit Pistons stormed all the way back from 21 points down to force overtime against the Hawks, showing the resilience they have displayed all season, but they were ultimately undone by their own poor shooting and an off night from the bench. 

There are no moral victories in the NBA, as JB Bickerstaff pointed out after the game, but it would have been easy for the Pistons to phone this one in after they got down big in the first half with their best player out with a collapsed lung. 

But the Pistons don't phone it in, and were a Duren bunny away from winning this one in extra time. Given that this could be the Pistons’ first-round opponent in the playoffs, it’s good to know that they can potentially beat them without Cade Cunningham and will likely beat them handily if he is available. 

The Hawks did expose how the Pistons could come up short even if Cunningham is back in time for the playoffs. 

The Pistons can’t be miserable from 3-point range 

3-point shooting has been an issue all season, one the Pistons have been able to overcome with paint domination and defense. 

Detroit dominated the paint again last night, racking up a +26 advantage, but it wasn’t enough to overcome their poor 3-point shooting, as the Pistons hit just 9-of-33 for 27 percent. 

The Hawks hit 18 from long range, so were able to undo the Pistons’ paint dominance by doubling them up from 3-point land.

The Pistons don’t have to be perfect from 3-point range or even make a ton of them, but they can’t be below 30 percent as a team and expect to have much of a chance against a quality opponent. 

Detroit will win the paint battle against most teams, but can’t give it all away (and then some) at the 3-point line or it won’t matter. Duncan Robinson and Tobias Harris did their jobs last night, but everyone else was broke, including the bench, which let the Pistons down.

The Pistons need something from their bench 

The Pistons’ bench has been good of late, which is one of the reasons they were able to rattle off a few wins without Cunningham, but last night showed what will happen if they don’t show up. 

The Pistons need at least one bench scorer to get to double digits, and any 3-point shots they get from the bench are practically gravy at this point. The spud was dry last night, and there was no gravy to be found, as the bench went just 1-of-12 from long range. 

Paul Reed and Caris LeVert went a combined 5-of-14 from the floor, so the bench wasn’t hitting shots from inside of the arc either. 

Even with Cade back, the Pistons must at least be respectable from 3-point range and can’t lose the battle of the benches. The Hawks’ bench wasn’t good last night either and still outscored the Pistons’ backups, which can’t happen in the playoffs.