Pistons news: Ending streaks, Ivey without Cade and Burks' audition

Sure, it was against the lowly Washington Wizards, but it was great to see the Detroit Pistons get a win.

It was nice to get one against the Wizards, who are arguably the only team in the league worse than the Pistons, though someone forgot to tell Kyle Kuzma, who was talking greasy during Detroit's losing streak even though his team is also horrible.

Love ya, Kuz, but if you're on the Wizards, who are now "that team," maybe consider sitting out on the trash talk.

Though up until last night, the Wizards had mostly owned the Pistons. In fact, that was the first time Detroit has won in Washington since 2014. To give you an idea of how long that was, Josh Smith was still on the Pistons. Barack Obama was president.

So the Pistons not only ended their 7-game losing streak but their streak of losses in Washington, which was even more embarrassing considering the Wizards haven't exactly been great over the last nine years.

The Detroit Pistons got a big performance from Jalen Duren, and Isaiah Stewart was great in the 4th quarter after a tough start to the game. Ausar Thompson finally got some run and was part of the group that surged in the late 3rd quarter to give the Pistons a lead they never relinquished.

But this came down to Jaden Ivey and Alec Burks.

Jaden Ivey without Cade Cunninghan

Jaden Ivey has somewhat surged since Cade Cunningham went out with injury, averaging 20.8 points, 6.3 assists and 5.5 rebounds, but he's done it on poor shooting (especially from long range) and committed a lot of turnovers.

Ivey is getting better at harnassing his speed, and has reduced that little stutter step he often does when trying to beat someone off the dribble, instead making his first move towards the hoop. Once he gets a step, it's over, and he's been much better about using hesitation once the drive starts, as well as drawing fouls around the hoop.

I had a few psychos emailing me today (please stop) saying Ivey was better than Cade. Can we slow down here? Ivey is better with Cade, gets better shots, shoots a better percentage and turns the ball over less. He's showing he's capable as the primary ball handler and that's great, as he can play that role at times with Cade and while Cunningham is on the bench. I'll never understand the need to prop one young player up at the expense of another. They are better together.

Alec Burks auditioning for a trade or a new contract with the Detroit Pistons

Alec Burks was lights out and has been for some time. Over his last 11 games, Burks has averaged 18.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists on red-hot shooting splits, adding another 34 points tonight, tying a career-high he set against the Pistons back when he was with the Knicks.

With the trade deadline looming, Burks couldn't have picked a better time to get hot, as other teams have to be watching him and wondering what he would look like coming off their bench.

The New Orleans Pelicans, among others, have called about Burks' services and he'd be the ideal bench shooter for a good team.

Could that team be the Pistons? Detroit needs veterans who can shoot, so if they aren't getting an offer they like, the Pistons could roll the dice, keep Burks and try to re-sign him in the offseason.

That seems unlikely given that he can leave anyway, but Burks would be a nice fit on this team when it's ready to win, but will that be anytime soon?