News Pistons Team Notes

[Detroit Pistons]

Refs say foul should have been called on Tim Hardaway Jr.’s last-second shot

Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Pistons were down one with the potential for Hardaway to shoot three free throws

The Detroit Pistons were down 1 in the final seconds, and the ball rolled to a waiting Tim Hardaway Jr. for a final shot. A shot, the referees said after the game, that should have resulted in three free throws. Instead, no whistle was called and the Pistons lost the game to the New York Knicks 94-93.

Instead of the series being tied 2-2, the Pistons now face a 3-1 deficit and an elimination game in New York.

When Hardaway went into his shooting motion, Josh Hart leaped toward Hardaway to contest. Hart made contact to Hardaway’s shoulder, and THJ flung the ball toward the rim as the shot was not even close.

After the game, the refs said that they missed the call.

“During live play, it was judged that Josh Hart made a legal defensive play. After the postgame review, we observed that Hart makes body contact that is more than marginal to Hardaway Jr. and a could should have been called,” said crew chief David Guthrie after the game.

It is a tough pill for the Pistons to swallow, and if the Pistons don’t surrender a fourth-quarter double-digit lead, the game doesn’t come down to a missed called. But they did and it did.

After the game, JB Bickerstaff was direct on what he saw.

“There was contact on Tim Hardaway’s jump shot. I don’t know any way around it. There was contact on his jump shot. He left his feet,” Bickerstaff said after the game.

Tim Hardaway agreed when asked what happened on the final possession.

“You all saw it. It was blatant,” he said.

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...-new-york-knicks-final-play-foul-tim-hardaway

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Pistons vs. Knicks final score: Pistons lose a heartbreaker as Brunson and KAT lead comeback

Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Detroit goes to New York facing elimination

The Detroit Pistons did everything they could to tie the series at 2-2 except for execute when it mattered most. The star duo of Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns had no such issue. In the fourth quarter the pair outscored the entire Pistons team 23-22, en route to Detroit falling 94-93 and facing an elimination game on the road.

Towns hit the game-winning shot, a 27-foot bomb from deep to give the Knicks the one-point lead. The Pistons had the ball with 11 seconds remaining, but Cade Cunningham missed a 14-foot baseline jumper and the rebound careened into the waiting arms of Tim Hardaway Jr. in the corner. He hoisted in the final moment and appeared to receive contact on the shot from a leaping Josh Hart, but the refs didn’t call a foul and the Pistons lost the game.

The Pistons struggled early in the game as the Knicks were doing everything the Pistons wanted to do but better (better being a relative term in a hard-fought slugfest that didn’t feature much offense). The Knicks were getting to loose balls, they were winning every 50-50 chance, and they were executing at a high level. They were playing with the focus and desperation early the Pistons needed.

Detroit was able to ramp up the defense in the second quarter and used its first run of the game to cut a 14-point deficit to seven at the half. The run was powered by Tobias Harris, who was again limited by foul trouble, but made a couple key stretches count.

The Pistons then dominated the third quarter, continuing its stifling defense and starting to execute its offense when it had a chance to move in transition. Jalen Brunson attempted a last second shot at the buzzer but fell to the ground and didn’t get a call, appearing to hurt his foot.

All the momentum had swung Detroit’s way. Cade Cunningham found his groove, and Malik Beasley started hitting shots. Towns had a cold stretch on both ends as he was more focused on avoiding his fifth foul than in executing. But when Brusnon came back in, looking no worse for wear, the game completely flipped.

Brunson scored 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting. He was able to surgically slice through Detroit’s defense for a number of layups at the rim, and when he wasn’t hitting the layups, he was hitting tough fallaways off the glass.

Towns hit two big threes, including the one that put the Knicks ahead for good. The Knicks can sit comfortably knowing their two biggest players earned their combined $75 million salary tonight. Their big players hit the biggest shots when it counted.

The Pistons will look to regroup and keep this series going as long as possible. They deserve credit for the fight they are giving to New York, but everyone must be honest with themselves about the number of self-inflicted wounds Detroit is amassing in each of their losses.

You can’t win many games with 17 turnovers. Comebacks are great, but it is even better if you do not find yourself trailing by as many as 16 points in the second quarter. The Pistons are struggling to find time for its best defender, Ausar Thompson, because his offense is so unreliable. He is also making plenty of young-player mistakes.

Jalen Duren is a markedly improved defender than his first two years, but he’s also still a bad defender, and he struggles to contest effectively or seal off the paint. This team was sorely missing Isaiah Stewart tonight. Cunningham simply can’t have seven turnovers in a game in which he expects to lead his team to victory.

These close losses could be called learning experiences, but I know that the Pistons want something more than to simply learn how to win. They want to win this series. They put themselves in a position to take it. But they let it slip away at the end. Again.

We can talk about fouls and no-calls all we want, but the Pistons had a double-digit fourth-quarter lead and let the game slip away.

These playoffs are showing us exactly what kind of team and future this Pistons have, much of it great. But there are flaws, and the Pistons are running out of time to eliminate their errors and keep this magical season going.

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...istons-lose-a-heartbreaker-as-brunson-and-kat

 

[Detroit Pistons]

The Pindown: Last Legs

Discussing the final call, Ausar Thompson & Game 5

The final call in Game four spoiled an otherwise fantastic game. In fact, all four of these games have been fantastic — win or loss. These Pistons have stepped up to the plate and, while the results aren’t fully there, they’re learning important lessons. Wes and Blake jump in for a special short episode to break down the two games in Detroit and look forward to game five. What has gotten lost because of that final call? How great has Cade been? What should the Pistons do about KAT, or Ausar, or Duren.

We’ve got you covered for all this and more in this week’s episode.

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Follow Wes Davenport on Twitter @TheRealWesD3

Follow Blake Silverman on Twitter @BlakeSilverman

Follow Sean Corp on Twitter @sean_corp

The Pindown: A Detroit Pistons Podcast is your home for fan-driven Pistons content. Hosted by Wes Davenport, from Motor City Hoops and producer of the Pistons Pulse Podcast, and Blake Silverman, DBB’s resident draft expert covering both the Pistons and the Motor City Cruise. The guys bring a reasoned analysis to a uniquely interactive show. And if you want to hear your voice on the podcast, call (313) 355-2717 and leave your question as a voicemail. The guys will play your message and answer your question on that week’s episode! All we ask is that you keep your questions to under 45 seconds.

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025/4/28/24419935/the-pindown-last-legs

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Pistons vs. Knicks preview: Detroit looks to keep season alive

Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Detroit faces elimination in New York

The Detroit Pistons find themselves down 3-1 to the New York Knicks and facing potential elimination at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday. It’s been a series of tough beats for the Pistons, who have been on the wrong side of one-possession games twice in this series. Once, they couldn’t effectively get a shot in-bounds for a miracle attempt. In the other, they got two shots to go ahead, but the second had no chance because of a no-call the NBA later admitted was a mistake. For the series, the Knicks are only +8. In other words, this is not the shellacking that the Thunder put on the Grizzlies or the Cavaliers put on the Heat.

Game Vitals​

When: 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
Watch: TNT, TruTV, MAX
Odds: Pistons +5.5

Analysis​

If nothing else, the Detroit Pistons are collecting a lot of valuable information and learning a lot of lessons in the first playoff series for this young team. Cade Cunningham has largely been brilliant, but not without flaws. The good news is they seem like the kind of flaws that are correctable. He needs to tighten his handle and decision-making in close spaces. He needs to become a more reliable three-point shooter. He needs to finish better at the rim and learn the art of drawing contact in a way where the refs don’t swallow their whistles.

However, even without those tools yet secured into his bag, Cunningham has often been the best player on the court in this series. He is playing a level of defense you want to see in a player you’re tying your franchise’s fortunes to. I’m not sure the last time you could say a one-way player led a team to a championship, and you never know with these young, budding stars how seriously they will take their defensive responsibilities. Like everything else, though, Cade takes it seriously. He was a monster on defense in Game 4. He also has grown by leaps and bounds in his ability to navigate defenses and get to the rim. The field goal percentage will rise considerably once he better understands how to finish and how to draw contact. He’s also doing what he’s always done — dictating the pace of the game, getting his teammates involved, and using his size and his craft to make those around him better. It hasn’t translated to wins in this series, but it is leaving me more confident than ever that those wins will becoming, likely as soon as next season.

Heck, that win could even come tonight. The Pistons are not a team that is going to lie down just because the odds are not in their favor. They are going to scrap and fight, and work as hard as they have all season. It’s how they got here, and it’s the identity coach JB Bickerstaff has cultivated and demands.

It certainly hasn’t been a perfect series, especially with Isaiah Stewart (listed as questionable for tonight) out injured. Karl-Anthony Towns has proven to be a terrible matchup for Jalen Duren, who struggles to guard Towns in space, and Tobias Harris, who struggles to keep him away from the rim. All credit to Towns for stepping up big-time in this series. There have also been issues with Ausar Thompson, who Detroit desperately wants on the floor. In the playoffs though, it has been hard for Detroit to have a functional offense with Thompsons’ limitations on the floor. Ausar isn’t attempting crazy shots, but he is trying to be that secondary playmaker he was in the regular season, and it’s been a disaster for the second-year player. Thompson has been rifling ill-advised passes, getting his pocket picked, and doesn’t have a sense of what to do with the ball. It’s a shame because his defense has been stellar when he hasn’t been limited by foul trouble.

It’s also been nice to see Tobias Harris acquit himself well in the playoffs after being scapegoated for years on disappointing Sixers teams. He has been steady, efficient, and an emotional leader on the floor. Ron Holland is also riding ALL his emotions, sometimes for ill and often times for good. It’s a great taste test for him as Detroit understands how to further develop the young wing. Dennis Schröder has been a bucket all series, and it is looking like the team might want to secure his services beyond this year.

The Pistons will hope to extend this series simply by playing the kind of defense they played for 40 minutes of Game 3 and Game 4 without allowing the huge runs that have put them behind and in the losers’ column for those games. That will require not just the energy but the focus to execute the defensive game plan in an attempt to limit both Towns and Jalen Brunson. It will also require even sharper focus on the offensive end so that they are limiting New York’s transition opportunities. The win is there for the taking. Let’s hope Detroit seizes it and we get at least one more game at Little Caesars Arena.

Projected Lineups​

Detroit Pistons (1-3)​

Cade Cunningham, Tim Hardaway Jr., Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren

New York Knicks (3-1)​

Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, Karl-Anthony Towns

Question of the Day​

Which star is most likely to get moved this offseason — Nikola Jokic, Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bam Adebayo

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...ks-preview-detroit-looks-to-keep-season-alive

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Pistons at Knicks final score: Pistons beat Knicks, force Game 6 in Detroit

Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Through five games, the point differential is only Knicks +5 - this is a much closer series for a Detroit team with momentum.

This series between the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks has been nothing less than a barn burner. The three previous games were decided by a total of nine points, and Tuesday night in Madison Square Garden was no exception.

The game came down to the final possession, and this time, the Pistons were on the winning side, downing the Knicks 106-103. Detroit’s win makes the series 3-2 in New York’s favor and forces a Game 6 back in Detroit on Thursday. It was another physical, defensive game with a gritty Detroit win written all over it.

Cade Cunningham led the way with 24 points on 17 shots while shooting 11-for-12 from the free-throw line — all coming in the second half. He looked calmer tonight than he did in Game 4 - though, he’s still not finishing all that well at the rim. He had eight rebounds and eight assists, and he did a better job of responding to the double team off the pick-and-roll.

Cade with the fade away and-one pic.twitter.com/Z8ogZCqt0c

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) April 30, 2025​

That pick-and-roll help comes from Jalen Duren, who had a unique nine points, 14 rebounds, six assists, and two blocks. He was active the entire game and continues to show a skill set of playmaking out of the short roll. Duren found Ausar Thompson in the dunker spot for an easy two multiple times tonight.

Speaking of Thompson, both Ausar and Tobias Harris excelled in their forward roles tonight. Ausar had 22 points on only 10 attempts - he made eight field goals and shot 6-for-12 from the line. He hounded Brunson all game and contributed to Brunson shooting 25% from the field.

Ausar is dunking EVERYTHING

dunks (and counting) so far pic.twitter.com/WqsSIlYXQ8

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) April 30, 2025​

Harris added 17 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two steals, and four blocks. He did a lot of everything tonight, and I really commend him for his effort against Towns in the post. KAT looks to post up Tobias multiple times a game, but he’s always battling with him, and I much prefer Towns try a post shot than shoot a three.

Detroit has a chance to tie this series up yet again as they now trail the Knicks 3-2. Coach JB Bickerstaff spoke about taking it one game at a time, and they’ll have their eyes on Game 6 Thursday night as they look to force a Game 7. What an absolute fantastic time to be a Pistons fan.

Man, oh, man - can you imagine how loud it’s going to be in Little Caesars Arena? It’s so great to have playoff basketball back in Detroit again.

Deja Vu pic.twitter.com/ydiUXtpQ0f

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) April 30, 2025​

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...-final-score-pistons-beat-knicks-force-game-6

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Pistons vs. Knicks preview: Detroit hopes to bring a win home

Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Little Caesars Arena will be rocking

Jalen Brunson is not a perfect player, but he’s never been afraid of the big moment. Brunson, the New York Knicks star guard, is hobbled with an ankle injury and coming off his worst showing of the postseason. The Detroit Pistons can’t take that for granted. They better be ready for the best of Brunson.

We’ve already seen the best of Ausar Thompson, whose suffocating defense and efficient offense propelled the Pistons to victory in a must-win game 5. Cade Cunningham had an off night until deep in the second half, when a seemingly tired Knicks team couldn’t keep him off the free-throw line. Game 5 also saw a great game from Jalen Duren and another quality, passionate performance from Tobias Harris. The pieces are almost all clicking into place. Here is hoping it is enough to force a decisive Game 7 in New York.

Game Vitals​

When: 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Watch: TNT, TruTV, MAX, FanDuel Sports Network Detroit
Odds: Pistons -1.5

Analysis​

Avoid foul trouble. Force Jalen Brunson to guard for 48 minutes. Limit turnovers.

End.

I guess, I can be a little more verbose than that. Those truly are the three ingredients for a successful Game 6, to my mind. The Pistons excelled by designing some offensive sets that simultaneously took the ball out of Ausar Thompson’s hands and made him infinitely more dangerous as a roaming threat near the basket. Equally as important, though, was Ausar figuring out a way to play top-level aggressive defense without getting into early foul trouble. The Knicks, I am sure, have studied film on how to mitigate some of those easy looks Ausar was feasing on, but his defensive play is up to him, his team (and the refs).

Brunson rolled his ankle late in the game on Tuesday and was forced to sit for the decisive minutes when the Pistons were able to pull away just enough. Detroit needs to maximize the strain on Brunson by forcing him to guard dangerous players at all times. The Pistons aren’t exactly awash in lethality with its perimeter shooters having extended cold spells. However, the Pistons can at least force Brunson into constant movement if they are more willing to use Tim Hardaway Jr., Malik Beasley, and Dennis Schroder as screeners when sharing the floor with Cade Cunningham. Force Brunson to fight through screens, switch onto Cade (who can cook Brunson), or retreat under the screen and sprint to recover.

I have no illusions about Brunson having an equally off night offensively as he did in Game 5, but the Pistons can make him work for his points, and that can pay off as the minutes and the miles pile up on that ankle. It could lead to less efficient offense and a huge defensive mismatch.

The Pistons have 23 more turnovers than the Knicks this series. They have 13 more than the next worst team, which was the completely checked out and overmatched Memphis Grizzlies (granted, they only suffered through a four-game sweep). Leading the playoffs is Cade Cunningham with 29. It would be great to not lead the NBA in those stats. Cunningham, Thompson and Jalen Duren are the guys most likely to unleash a bewildering turnover (or four), and if they can tamp that down, it will put the Pistons in a terrific position to get the W.

I suppose a little more digital ink should be spilled on Cunningham. He’s been so great in these playoffs, it is easy to take his contributions for granted. I’m guilty of focusing more on his flaws (turnovers) than his gifts, but that is only because I know the best version of Cade can play at such a higher level than where he finds himself now.

Where he finds himself now, to be clear, is averaging 25.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 8.8 assists per game. He’s also averaging 7.2 trips to the free-throw line. Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns have played some great basketball, and they have both hit more than a handful of clutch shots in this series. We’re still waiting for that true breakout Cade game. It’d be great to see it happen in Detroit.

But also, let’s not forget how absolutely sick this pass was to Ausar to effectively seal game 5 for the Pistons.

Projected Lineups​

Detroit Pistons (3-2)​

Cade Cunningham, Tim Hardaway Jr., Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren

New York Knicks (3-2)​

Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, Karl-Anthony Towns

Question of the Game​

Any technicals called tonight and who gets them?

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...ew-york-knicks-preview-game-time-tv-odds-more

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Pistons season ends as they have no answer for clutch Jalen Brunson

Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Pistons’ 3-point shot abandons them when they need it most

In yet another game that went down to the final seconds, one team had Jalen Brunson and the other didn’t. The team with Jalen Brunson won the game and is advancing to the second round of the playoffs. The Detroit Pistons fell to the New York Knicks 116-113 to end their season. The Knicks used a decisive 11-1 run in the final 2:35 to eliminate the Pistons.

Detroit had a chance to send the game into overtime, and Malik Beasley, who hit six threes in the first half, had a wide open look, but he fumbled the pass out of bounds.

The game was emblematic of the Pistons season. They went down 15 points early, but fought back, as they always do, to take a 60-59 lead into halftime. They then gave up a big run in the third quarter, but fought back again to lead by as many as seven in the fourth.

But then it was time for one of the NBA’s most clutch players to do his thing. Brunson scored 30 in the first half, but was completely shut down in the second half. Until he wasn’t.

He got things going by hitting an off-ballance bank shot falling down that also drew a Tim Hardaway foul. JB Bickerstaff challenged the call and lost. That cut Detroit’s lead to 112-108.

After an empty Detroit possession, Brunson then hit a ridiculous off-ballance layup when it looked multiple times like he was going to fall over or travel. Instead, he made the shot. That just seems to be what Brunson does.

The Pistons were able to retake the lead on two Jalen Duren free throws, but Brunson drew so much defensive attention on his next shot that Mikal Bridges was able to tip-in the miss to tie it up.

Cade Cunningham missed a good look on a driving layup on the next possession and New York called timeout.

With the game tied with 21 seconds remaining, they put the ball in Brunson’s hands, and Detroit tasked Ausar Thompson with keeping the score tied. Brunson shook off Thompson, created a wide-open look for himself, and swished the game-winning shot.

It was a tough way for the Pistons’ season to end, but end it did.

The real story of the game, aside from Brunson’s heroics, was Detroit’s absolute inability to hit from deep save for a hot streak in the first half from Beasley. Non-Beasley Pistons were 3-of-21 from deep. You can’t win a basketball game when you shoot that poorly from the perimeter.

Cunningham, who finished with 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, was 0-of-8 from three. Tim Hardaway Jr. was 1-of-6. Dennis Schroder was 1-of-4.

Jalen Duren was the best player on the court for the Pistons tonight, scoring 21 points, hitting 9-of-10 free throws to go with six rebounds and three assists. He played solid defense when the Pistons needed it, tipped out some rebounds to keep New York off the offensive glass, and took advantage of his offensive opportunities.

It wasn’t enough for Detroit, though. The Pistons put up a hell of a fight, but they couldn’t find the scoring punch when they needed it most.

The Knicks now move on to face the Boston Celtics. The Pistons will now have an offseason to think about all of the things that went well this season, and all the things they need to work on.

For a team that won 14 games a year ago, being near .500 would have been good enough. Instead, they tripled their win total and became the sixth seed. Making the playoff games competitive would have been good enough. Instead, they played nearly every game down to the wire and were a few bounces (and foul calls) away from taking the series outright.

They proved that this team is no fluke. They will be back next year. And they will be even better.

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...cks-final-score-jalen-brunson-cade-cunningham

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Pain is better than despair

Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

The Pistons got ousted from the playoffs in the finals seconds and I couldn’t be happier

I have watched a lot of Detroit Pistons games. As a Pistons fan, I have watched the giving and receiving end of game-winning shots and elimination games. So when Jalen Brunson had the ball in a tie game and shook Ausar Thompson on a crossover to deliver a picture-perfect 3-point shot to eliminate the Pistons from the playoffs, I was shocked by what I felt.

Yes, there was the pain of losing a winnable game. More than pain, though, there was pure joy. I spent the rest of Thursday night smiling.

It was a reaction that even surprised me. But on reflection, it shouldn’t be surprising at all, and it is a takeaway for all Pistons fans right now.

This pain you are feeling, the heartache of watching your Pistons slink off the floor while the opponent celebrated, is much better than the despair we have felt as Pistons fans for the better part of two decades.

Losing a heartbreaking playoff victory is much better than determining which firing, hiring, draft pick, or improbable trade will finally put your favorite franchise on the right track.

The Pistons are on the right track. They showed it. They are one of the best young teams in the NBA. They proved it. It is no fluke that they took the three-seeded Knicks to the limit in five out of six games.

Yes, they were on the losing side of this series, but I’ve never been more confident that they will be right back there next season and significantly better.

David Richard-Imagn Images

The Despair of Two Decades of Futility​

That stands in stark contrast to October 2023, when I wrote one of the articles I most dreaded, which turned out to be one of my best pieces of writing. The headline was, “My belief in the Detroit Pistons rebuild is at an all-time low.”

It was the beginning of the Monty Williams Era, the latest high-profile coach brought in to save the Pistons, hired by Troy Weaver, the executive who was supposed to be one of the best new GMs in the league. It was 3.5 years into the Weaver, and the crux of the issue was:

I look at Detroit’s potential rotations, and all I see are the flaws. Lack of spacing. Lack of defense. Lack of complementary skills. They went through the painful process of rebuilding the right way. They didn’t take shortcuts. However, I am sitting here in 2023 wondering if the Pistons’ rebuild needs a rebuild.

Read the whole piece. There is a healthy dose of my patented Cade skepticism and Ausar Thompson enthusiasm that gave me the cathartic chuckle I was looking for, as noted in the article’s first paragraph.

It was pure despair last year and most of the years before. It has been the most common feeling I have had since I started covering this team 13 years ago at Detroit Bad Boys. That numbing feeling that while you were hoping for the best, none of it mattered, and it wouldn’t work out.

I never believed in Michael Curry, John Keuster, or Maurice Cheeks. I never trusted the team would spend its money wisely or ace the NBA Draft. When you come away thinking that there is no way your team can build a sustained winner and compete for a title, you’re not left with much.

We have come a long way in a year and a half.

Photo by Chris Schwegler/NBAE via Getty Images

Cade is Him​

It is not just that Cade Cunningham became Cade CunningHIM. It’s not just that Ausar continues to show he is already one of the league’s best young defenders. It’s not that Isaiah Stewart blossomed as the reserve center we all knew he was at heart, or that Jalen Duren became an elite pick-and-roll partner and grew markedly as a defender. Or that Jaden Ivey was having a career season with an effective 3-point shot and great chemistry with Cunningham before his season-ending injury.

Their 44 wins this season merely match their total from 2015-16. The Pistons have made the playoffs twice since 2008, including 2018-19. So why am I beaming with enthusiasm now when, in 2019, I was writing, “Welcome to the Bleak Griffin Era”?

Because this team is just getting started.

There are plenty of rough terrain to navigate. The Pistons can’t hitch their entire wagon to Tobias Harris, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Dennis Schröder, each on the wrong side of 30, around its young core. They can’t simply rely on internal development to solve all their issues. They have to take risks at some point, including likely breaking up that young core in a difference-making trade.

Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images

A reason to believe​

But the plain fact is that this 44-win team was led by four players projected to be in their starting lineup who are 23 or younger. They have a budding superstar in Cunningham, whose skills are tremendous. His path to improvement is both obvious and achievable (limit turnovers, improve finishing, efficient 3-point shooting).

They finished the season with the lowest payroll in the NBA, and despite Cade Cunningham’s max contract kicking in next season, they should still have plenty of flexibility to maneuver via trades and free agency.

They are not a team whose ceiling felt like habitual first-round exits. In prior playoff seasons, it always felt like it was just nice to be there. Now, the Pistons look like a team that could be building toward title contention. A team that can do some damage.

So, yes, Thursday’s loss hurt. But you don’t get to experience that level of pain without making the playoffs. You don’t get to the heartbreak unless your team is good enough to make you believe that great things are possible.

I believe in this team. I don’t take that for granted. It doesn’t come easily for me. The Pistons haven’t made it easy to believe. And as much pain as I feel, I couldn’t be happier.

I can’t wait for next season.

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...s-detroit-pistons-pain-is-better-than-despair

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Pistons vs. Knicks GameThread: GameTime, TV, Odds, and More

Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

You can’t have a Game 7 without a Game 6

The Detroit Pistons have already staved off elimination once, and they are looking to do it again. This time, they are hosting the New York Knicks, and if they can win tonight and force a Game 7, I am not sure how to adequately describe what the atmosphere within Little Caesars Arena will be like. The Pistons were able to force Game 5 behind stifling defense from Ausar Thompson, excellent big-man passing from Jalen Duren, as Cade Cunningham navigated double teams. There was also the aforementioned Cade, who took over in the fourth quarter by bending New York to his will on screens and drives. Cade has orchestrated things beautifully all series, but it hasn’t always translated to his shots falling. In Game 5, he struggled with his shot, but found a rhythm that finally unlocked an ability to get calls on his drives to the lane. After a first half that saw him shoot just 2-of-8 with zero free throws, Cade was 4-of-9 from the field, 1-of-2 from deep, and 11-of-12 from the charity stripe. More of all that, please. Isaiah Stewart will once again not suit up for the Pistons, while New York’s injury report is clean. That doesn’t mean everyone is perfectly healthy, however. Both Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart got banged up in Game 5, and the Pistons should put pressure on both players until they’ve proven they have the strength and stamina to keep up tonight.

Game Vitals​

When: 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Watch: TNT, TruTV, MAX, FanDuel Sports Network Detroit
Odds: Pistons -1.5

Projected Lineups​

Detroit Pistons (3-2)​

Cade Cunningham, Tim Hardaway Jr., Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren

New York Knicks (3-2)​

Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, Karl-Anthony Towns

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...k-knicks-gamethread-gametime-tv-odds-and-more

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Ausar’s Game 5 was a glimpse at what a championship future looks like

Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Thompson gave an enticing preview of how a Peak Pistons team works on both ends of the floor

There was no player I was more disappointed by through the first four games of the series between the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks than Detroit’s second-year forward Ausar Thompson. We knew things would be tougher in the playoffs for a non-shooting player like Thompson with so much time for the opponent to build a game plan. True to form, offense is difficult, but the biggest issue was Thompson couldn’t seem to get out of his own way. He made a number of unforced errors trying to figure out where he fit into this series.

On Tuesday night, Thompson and his team figured it out. Not only led his team to victory and extend the series, but he also showed everyone what a path to an NBA championship looks like for the Pistons.

Those titles might be years away, and Thompson is certainly several years from becoming the best version of himself, but you can already see how the young, offensively challenged product of Overtime Elite is the second most important player on Detroit’s roster.

On a night when Cade Cunningham, Detroit’s best and most important player, had an off night, Thompson did it all. He matched a career-high with 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting. He also added seven rebounds, two blocks, and hounded Jalen Brunson into his worst performance of the postseason. The Knicks star was limited to 16 points, 4-of-16 shooting and never found a way to put his stamp on the game.

Prior to Tuesday, the Thompson minutes had been a rollercoaster. He played solid defense but fouled a ton and turned the ball over in droves. Because of his offensive limitations, the Pistons and Ausar found success unleashing him as a secondary ball handler to put pressure on the rim and make the right pass. In the playoffs, none of that worked. He struggled mightily in half-court sets and went into Tuesday’s matchup averaging just 10.2 second-half minutes. Ausar, a starter, trailed just little-used Paul Reed, Ron Holland and the now-injured Isaiah Stewart in Detroit’s rotation.

The Pistons switched things up on Tuesday by taking the ball out of Thompson’s hands and putting it into the hands of Jalen Duren. The Pistons often use Duren in screens, but they fed him a steady diet of high-post looks on Tuesday. This allowed Duren to facilitate a dribble hand off or face up to drive and/or dish. The Knicks gave Duren a ton of attention every time he faced up in an attempt to prevent the powerful center from gaining easy access to the rim. Three of Duren’s six assists were to a waiting Thompson, who would go from the corner and sneak behind the defenders into the dunker’s spot for an easy look.

All eight of Thompson’s field goals were assisted on Tuesday. There was minimal dribbling into traffic and zero sophisticated coverage reads with the ball in his hands. Instead, the objective was to find the open space and dunk the basketball. Thompson was happy to oblige.

The Pistons figured out how to use this version of Thompson, and Thompson is quickly learning how to defend superstars without fouling in this version of NBA playoff basketball. And this version of Thompson will not be next year’s version, or the year’s after. He will get better, likely significantly better.

If the Pistons want to have a championship-caliber season, they need Cade Cunningham to continue learning how to orchestrate the game plan, defend all over the floor, and be the alpha on offense. They also need Thompson, an All-NBA Defense style wing who gets tasked with guarding the opposition’s best player, can switch on anybody, and who makes life hell for the other team, to figure out how to be the connective tissue on both ends of the floor for Detroit.

He will need to improve his free-throw shooting and become at least a marginal threat from deep in the corners (in Fred Vinson we trust). Thompson needs to work on those point-forward skills and, being a student of the game, continue to become one of the league’s elite defenders.

If the Pistons are able to get a Cunningham and Thompson who have both reached their respective ceilings, they already have the two key ingredients to an NBA championship. When you have two pieces that fit so well together, and who can contribute at such high levels on the defensive side of the floor, roster construction becomes much easier.

There are many ingredients to a championship team — a Robin to Cade’s Batman on the offensive end, a rim protector, versatile shooters, versatile defenders. In fact, getting a “Robin” could even cost Detroit Ausar. But I bet the team will do whatever they can to keep him a member of the Pistons, because Ausar could be one of the league’s most impactful wings in the league. And that is how NBA championships are won. On Tuesday, we saw a glimpse of a hopeful future, and it was Ausar Thompson wrecking fools.

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...pistons-ausar-thompson-game-5-new-york-knicks

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Pistons vs. Knicks GameThread: Game Time, TV, Odds, and More

Pistons hoping to keep season going

There is nothing left to say. The Detroit Pistons are going up against the New York Knicks, facing elimination and the end to a special season. They will once again have to do it without key reserve Isaiah Stewart, who is missing his fourth consecutive game with knee inflammation.

The Knicks have outexecuted the Pistons, especially late, but Detroit has been in every game in the series despite finding themselves down 3-1. The New York stars are simply delivering as advertised when they are needed most. Karl-Anthony Towns is hitting difficult shots inside and connecting from the perimeter. Jalen Brunson is effectively slicing through Detroit defenders and finishing like a superstar within 10 feet. The Pistons need a similar star performance from Cade Cunningham and contributions up and down the roster if they want to keep their season going.

Game Vitals​

When: 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
Watch: TNT, TruTV, MAX, Bally Sports Detroit
Odds: Pistons +5.5

Projected Lineups​

Detroit Pistons (1-3)​

Cade Cunningham, Tim Hardaway Jr., Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren

New York Knicks (3-1)​

Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, Karl-Anthony Towns

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025...-knicks-gamethread-game-time-tv-odds-and-more

 

[Detroit Pistons]

Mailbag! I The Pindown

Tune in live Friday at 3 p.m. ET to join in on the conversation.

It’s mailbag time!

Send in your questions now for this week’s episode of The Pindown: A Detroit Pistons Podcast where we’ll discuss some Pistons playoff takeaways. Submit your question to the comments section here or on X/Twitter to @TheRealWesD3 and/or @blakesilverman.

Join us live on Friday at 3 p.m. ET for the show where we’ll talk through the Pistons-Knicks first-round series before it heads to Detroit. What’s your take on Game 1 and Game 2? What adjustments do you think Detroit should make? Who’s your most important Pistons as the series rolls on?

Plus, The Pindown has a phone line where you can leave a message and hear your voice on the show. Call (313) 355-2717 and leave us a voicemail with your question. Please try to keep the message around 45 seconds or less so we can fit everyone into the show.

The podcast will be uploaded to all audio platforms the following morning.

The Pindown: A Detroit Pistons Podcast Vitals:​

When: Wednesday April 23 at 5:30 p.m. ET

Where: Detroit Bad Boys YouTube Channel

How to submit questions:

• Detroit Bad Boys Website: Comment section of the weekly Pindown episode articles.
• Call (313) 355-2717 and leave us a voicemail with your question. Please try to keep the message to 45 seconds or less.
• Twitter: @detroitbadboys, @blakesilverman or @therealwesd3
• YouTube: Chat section of The Pindown live recording — Subscribe here

As always, leave any questions or topics you want to be discussed in the comment section below.

Listen to the show’s recording the following morning wherever you listen to your podcasts.

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify

Last Week’s Show:​

Source: https://www.detroitbadboys.com/2025/5/7/24425915/mailbag-i-the-pindown