Two seasons ago, the Detroit Pistons hit rock bottom. The hiring of Monty Williams was an immediate disaster, the team lost a franchise-record 28 games in a row, and only won 14 total by season’s end.
Tonight’s 129-116 win over the Milwaukee Bucks was Detroit’s 14th of the season, meaning the Pistons equaled their win total from two seasons ago, only 16 games into the season.
Speaking of a tough history these Pistons are trying to move beyond, they have struggled mightily against the Bucks, even by their lowly standards. They entered tonight’s game losing 25 of the past 26 contests between the two franchises.
Tonight was different because this team was different. The Pistons dominated for the majority of the game, leading by as many as 29 points before some hot perimeter shooting from Milwaukee made it closer than it needed to be.
The Pistons shot the lights out — from everywhere but the free-throw line. This might be the rare NBA game where a team shot better from the field (62.8%) than they did from the charity stripe (62.5%). They also made the majority of their three-pointers (53.3%).
Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 29 points, 10 assists, and eight rebounds. But the real story of the night was the return of two MVPs — very important Pistons.
Jaden Ivey played in his first game in nearly a year, scoring 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting in 15 minutes off the bench. Tobias Harris also returned after a nine-game absence and didn’t miss a beat. Harris scored 18 points and had five rebounds and four assists. Jalen Duren added 19, 6, and 5 as he continues a breakout campaign that surely has him topping the list of centers for All-Star consideration in the Eastern Conference.
It should also be mentioned that Duncan Robinson fit in beautifully around all the returning talent, and hit five of his six three-pointers.
The Milwaukee Bucks were led by the pesky and dangerous young Ryan Rollins, who was always engaged on defense and scored 24 points, and in a variety of ways.
Detroit won the game because it did what it does best — it owned the paint. Whether it was Duren power and spin moves, Cunningham knifing his way inside, or smart cuts from a Harris or Ausar Thompson.
It’s been beautiful to see all season, and it’s beautiful to see this win streak keep going. Maybe they can exorcise all their demons and get a win streak this season to match their losing streak from two years ago. Nah, that’s crazy. But I would have told you a 12-game win streak was crazy too. So we’ll just enjoy the ride.
