At some point, it felt like head coach J.B. Bickerstaff would be forced to pull the trigger on a lineup adjustment, and after the disastrous postseason play from Jalen Duren, it always seemed like he'd be the victim.
The expected lineup change for the Detroit Pistons, though, always seemed like it would come ahead of tip-off, not entering the most important quarter of the game.
In Game 5, though, the underwhelming play from Duren forced Bickerstaff's hand, which led him to pull Duren from the lineup in hopes a different direction could help the Pistons swing the momentum back in their favor to secure a 3-2 lead.
However, instead of pivoting to backup big man Isaiah Stewart, who's been the go-to option for the majority of the season, Bickerstaff went in a different direction, putting Detroit's postseason fate on Paul Reed.
Zach Lowe questions Duren & Stewart react to Bickerstaff's decision
On a recent episode of the Zach Lowe Podcast, the NBA mind questioned how Bickerstaff's pivot to Reed will impact the other bigs on the roster ahead of Game 6.
"And now I think Detroit has a lot of questions to answer," Lowe said. "How does Jalen Duren recover from what just happened in Game 5. And Isaiah Stewart, too, when J.B. Bickerstaff is like, the best two-way center on our team right now is Paul Reed, who is not even in the rotation for a lot of the season."
Obviously, the move didn't play out in favor of the Pistons, who now find themselves with their backs against the wall in Game 6.
The biggest fallout of Bickerstaff's decision, though, is just how bad a spot Detroit is in with their lack of options.
Pistons are desperate for frontcourt help
Postseason play typically comes down to which team can make the proper adjustments and rotation decisions, but more often than not, if those rotational moves are made out of desperation, a team is in trouble.
For Detroit to pull Duren and skip over Stewart, who would typically get the nod, it's obvious that the Pistons believe their answers are running thin.
Sure, Bickerstaff's pivot to Reed could have been about the need for offense over defense in the moment, but the reality of the situation is that both Duren and Stewart have proved to be a liability at times for the Pistons.
It's hard to fathom how Detroit's big man rotation has become their weakest link, but the unfortunate truth is, Bickerstaff, being forced to put his trust in a depth big points at an obvious concern ahead of the offseason, even if the Pistons can somehow make it out of this series alive.
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