The Detroit Pistons didn't just beat the Celtics in their regular-season debut, 121-113; they beat them at their own game. They won the rebound battle, 49-39, with Ausar Thompson (11) and Jalen Duren (nine) leading the way. More specifically, they secured more offensive boards, 14-12, generating more possessions, which was supposed to be Boston's advantage.
Last season, the Celtics averaged 12.5 offensive rebounds per game, seventh in the league, four spots behind the Pistons, who averaged 13.1 per contest.
Boston signed the league's best offensive rebounder, Mitchell Robinson over the offseason (he rebounded 21.2% of the Knicks' misses last season). As a result, it led the NBA in the preseason with a 38.2% offensive rebounding rate. Luke Garza averaged a team-high 3.75 per game.
The Celtics' ability to create second-chance opportunities will be a strength this season, but the Pistons had the upper hand on Tuesday, finishing with 24 second-chance points, compared to Boston's 16. Thompson and Duren each finished with three offensive boards, while Robinson, who averaged 4.2 last season in New York, had just one in 18 minutes.
Pistons beat the Celtics on the offensive glass
The story of the win was the 23-0 second-half run, but it was powered by the Pistons' dominance on the glass. Duren's physicality was huge, and he looked like a player with a lot to prove after an offseason saga that led to him signing a fully guaranteed $200 million deal. He did his part to make a chunk of the $40 million he's making this season on night one.
Joe Mazzulla is the kind of coach who obsesses over the details more than most, like turning offensive rebounds into second-chance points. That advantage stands out even more in the playoffs, when each possession carries more weight. But against a team like the Celtics in the regular season, winning those battles around the margins can make all the difference.
Detroit's primary goal shouldn't be to finish at the top of the Eastern Conference again, though if it takes care of business, that will happen as a result. What really matters, though, is if the Pistons can translate their regular-season success to the playoffs, and "little things" that aren't so little, like commanding the glass, will be part of that.
Yes, it's just one game, but that's all we have to go on, and you couldn't have asked for a better start to the season than the Pistons outmanuevering the Celtics.
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