Pistons stuck in the game on the second night of a back-to-back which was nice, but they once again fell short and failed to break 100 points.
Cade Cunningham:
Two straight games where Cade looks like the #1 pick. The numbers are not all pretty, requiring 18 shot equivalents to get his 17 points, along with 4 rebounds and 2 assists against 6 turnovers. Some of the play was also not pretty, several of those 6 turnovers were very poor plays, but that is what happens when a teenager is running an NBA offense. The best thing from the night was him getting his shot in order. Cunningham went 3-7 from deep and should’ve been 4-8 but he had his heel out of bounds. Also had several excellent and physical drives to the hoop.
With the long-ball falling, we really got to see the whole arsenal, He hit threes of both spot-up and pull-up variety, had strong drives all the way to the hoop for layups, hit a floater. Its also nice to immediately not be worried about a Pistons’ prospects athleticism, Cade may not be a high-flyer or have a lot of “wow” factor, but he clearly has great quickness in tight spaces to get a step on guys, and he’s so aware of how big he is that if he gets that step he uses his body to stay ahead. His overall game is just so advanced for his age, the sky is the limit. HIm adjusting to NBA defenses, finding efficiency and avoiding turnovers, will be a long process, but he is showing all the reasons why we are not worried about him taking his time.
Josh Jackson:
Got the start in place of wounded Killian Hayes. Had a few nice plays but finished with 7 points on 10 shots which isn’t good enough, even if its pretty much what we expect from Jackson. Maybe that’s the best way to put it, Jackson put in what we pretty much expect from him. Couple good plays, but overall not good enough.
Saddiq Bey:
Finally got a couple of threes to fall, although 2-5 doesn’t exactly represent a breakout. Still finished with 12 points and needed 13 shots to get there. He continues to look hesitant, and at times uncomfortable in the offense. I am repeating myself from last night but this is pretty baffling, last season he seemed constantly confident and sure of his game and his place in the offense. It was a big reason he was such a success and why people liked him so much.
Jerami Grant:
Remember how I was all like: “Great to see Grant get out of the ditch” last time out? Yeah he crawled out only to slip on some dog poop and fall face-first back in. 5 points on 12 shot equivalents, he did not hit a field goal tonight. 0-9 from the field. Grant’s poor play was both bizarre and probably the reason that the Pistons lost since it’s comfortably the biggest thing you would expect to get that they didn’t.
The real issue here is the bigger picture. This game is an emphatic sign that Grant had one good game and is not at all out of whatever funk he is in. This is a bad thing.
Isaiah Stewart:
For my money Stew just put in his best game of the season. 8 points on 5 shots, 9 rebounds, and 3 blocks. He must’ve listened to my last podcast, where I pointed out the importance of him hitting jumpers but that it’s totally cool if they are not threes, because he hit two long twos in this game. He needs to bring something to the table offensively and a shot is the best option right now, if he isn’t comfortable from beyond the line then step inside the line, a reliable free-throw line jumper is still valuable from a big man.
Also nearly got in a fight with Blake Griffin. Stewart has been in dust-ups before but I don’t know if he’s ever been that genuinely angry. Excellent outing from Stew.
Kelly Olynyk:
Same deal as normal. Hit some shots, very bad on defense, nearly started a fight of his own. Although I have to admit, when Olynyk gets hit or a hard fouled or anything like that, I can’t help but have my first instinct be that he probably deserved it.
Trey Lyles:
Second straight tough game for Lyles. 5 points on 7 shot equivalents. Not impactful.
Cory Joseph:
Positive impact tonight which was a nice change for the veteran. 12 points on 8 shots, a couple of solid defensive hustle plays, 5 assists without a turnover. The type of night you want from a veteran point guard, the only problem of course is that he’s not been this most nights.
Frank Jackson:
10 points on 10 shots doesn’t do justice to the fact that Frank is really starting to get going. He hit shots and made some impactful plays. Jackson is one of the guys on the team with a wide range of theoretical outcomes, I doubt anyone would be shocked if he became a heavy-rotation player or out of the league after the season, so him looking back up is very nice.
Rodney McGruder:
Played 4 minutes. Really this says more about where Hamidou Diallo is at than anything. I’m not sure if him getting DNPd again, even when an injury opens up playing time, is the result of Casey simply deciding he isn’t good enough or if it is a “send a message” type of thing, either way, it isn’t good.
General:
Cade is fun, Stew looked better, everything else was pretty much bad. This team is terrible and they will be all year I think. Nice to see Casey relaxing his system to allow some ball-screens as well so as dumb as it is that it didn’t happen immediately, still nice to see.
What do you think? Can Jerami get on track? What’s the deal with Diallo?