Detroit’s home game against Cleveland on Monday night will provide an early measuring stick for the Pistons.
The Pistons are striving to reach the level of the Cavaliers, who had the Eastern Conference’s top record last season and reside in the same division, the Central.
For the first time in many years, the Pistons are expected to be a playoff team after last season’s surprising journey to the postseason.
“We have a standard that we live to and we don’t depend on outside conversations to hold ourselves to a standard,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “We believe in our guys immensely. They have a ton of talent. We have to play Pistons basketball and hold ourselves to that standard. If we do that, we’re confident that the results will be what we want them to be and not based on what outside pressures are.”
Detroit will be seeking its third straight victory. The Pistons captured a win in Houston on Friday, then defeated the retooled Boston Celtics in Detroit’s home opener on Sunday.
The Pistons got off to a sluggish start, trailing by 17 in the first half, but rallied to take a two-point halftime lead. The Pistons extended it to double digits, then held off Boston’s late charge to claim a 119-113 victory.
Cade Cunningham, as usual, led the team in scoring with 25 points and in assists with eight.
The efforts of Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson were just as essential. Duren, who was ejected from Detroit’s previous game for throwing a flagrant elbow, supplied 24 points and 18 rebounds. Thompson contributed 21 points and 12 rebounds.
“We aim to win the possession game, and that’s both sides of the ball. That means you have a defensive rebound; that means you have an offensive rebound,” Bickerstaff said. “I thought both of those guys did a tremendous job on both ends. That’s what this game comes down to.”
Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs with 24 points but forward Evan Mobley had the bigger all-around performance. Mobley contributed 23 points, eight rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks. He went 12-for-12 from the foul line.
“We talk about taking that step, right? It’s not going to be perfect. It’s not going to be something that just comes in and ‘boom,’ it happens,” Mitchell said of Mobley. “He went to the free-throw line (12) times. … That’s the progression, coming to get the ball late.”
Sam Merrill continued his strong early-season play with 17 points. He’s averaging 20.5 points in three games this season as a starter, filling in for injured All-Star guard Darius Garland, after being a reserve since entering the league in December 2020.
De’Andre Hunter scored 16 points after missing the first two games with a knee contusion.
“Offensively, we’re a more physical team (with Hunter),” coach Kenny Atkinson said.
Offseason addition Lonzo Ball led the bench with 11 points, six rebounds and five assists in 23 minutes.
The Pistons snapped a 12-game losing streak to Cleveland in March.
