The Detroit Pistons dropped Game 5 to the Cleveland Cavaliers, falling behind in the series and putting themselves in a pretty brutal position. However, JB Bickerstaff finally made the change a lot of people wanted to see – he played Paul Reed more minutes. He even closed the game with Reed. But it still wasn’t enough to save the Pistons from their obvious lack of offense.
Outside of Cade Cunningham and Tobias Harris – the team’s two most consistent scorers for the entirety of the postseason – Detroit hasn’t had much consistent offense. Daniss Jenkins stepped up as a starter in Game 5, but still, they weren’t able to get the job done, even with 113 points.
It’s a problem Detroit needs to address this summer.
JB Bickerstaff played Paul Reed more, but Pistons' offensive support system still fell short
Obviously, Game 5 wasn’t completely on the offense. The Cavs’ bench guys – Max Strus, in particular – stepped up in a big way, leading their team to a much-needed victory on the road.
Evan Mobley stepped up in the scoring column, too. James Harden scored 30 points. The Cavs just had too much of a scoring punch for the Pistons to deal with on Wednesday night.
And once again, though the Pistons did manage to score 113 points, it was still a pretty lopsided affair. Only four players scored in double digits, and Reed barely squeaked across that line with 10.
Jenkins had 19, and Harris had 13. But Cunningham was far and away the team’s best scorer, churning out a monster 39-point night while shooting 13-of-27 from the field and 6-of-10 from deep range.
Still, it wasn’t enough to best the Cavaliers, who had a much more well-rounded scoring approach, all while having one of their top guys score 30 points.
Reed played 17 minutes. It was his playoff high in minutes so far this year. Isaiah Stewart only played 11 minutes, and Jalen Duren only played 25 minutes. And, as noted, Reed closed the game for the Pistons.
But despite that. Despite Bickerstaff making the change that a lot of people have begged for. The Pistons still fell victim to their relative lack of an offensive support system behind Cunningham.
They weren’t able to get the job done despite the fact that Cunningham exploded for 39 points. Even Bickerstaff’s adjustment with the center rotation wasn’t enough to get Detroit over the hump.
The Pistons have some serious work to do in Game 6 if they want to keep their season alive.
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