OKLAHOMA CITY – Many happy returns – well, two, at least – are in store for the Pistons when they play the injury-depleted Oklahoma City Thunder tonight: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope returning to the site of his NBA breakout game and Cartier Martin returning to the lineup.
If those good vibes produce any sort of Pistons bounce, they’ll take it. There hasn’t been much separating them from wins this season, despite their 2-6 record. They’ve been ahead within the final eight minutes of seven of their eight games and within two points of the lead late in the eighth.
Stan Van Gundy saw a flicker of progress in the most recent loss, 107-103 at Washington. The offensive execution he blamed for previous losses was much improved, he said, but there were a few other breakdowns that led to the loss.
“We executed well and got pretty good shots down the stretch. That was a positive,” he said after Thursday’s practice in Oklahoma City. “The difference in the game, as we showed them on film, is we gave up two offensive rebounds that were pretty easily preventable and they had a play where Rasual Butler pulled in, made a sink, that ended up in a turnover off Greg’s (Monroe) leg and they got a basket where we didn’t make the exact same play. It comes down to those little things at the end of the game. We’ve got to take care of the things that win basketball games down the stretch and we’re still not there yet.”
Transition defense is Van Gundy’s most sacred tenet and that, he says, has regressed over the past week after starting the season strong. But there’s a correlation between the Pistons’ poor shooting – they’re a league-worst .417 – and transition scoring chances for the opposition. So better shooting is one area for obvious improvement and Martin is someone who can help at that end.
Sidelined since the eve of the season opener with plantar fasciitis in his right foot, Martin went through Thursday’s practice here and hopes to be able to play Friday, provided the injury responds well to the workout.
“I know one of my roles on the team is going out there and being able to help us shoot the ball and spread the floor,” Martin said. “I can see areas where I feel like I can help, so I want to be out there. Hopefully, I can get back soon.”
If Martin declares the foot fit and is available, he could emerge as Van Gundy’s primary option to play shooting guard whenever Caldwell-Pope needs to sit – at least until Jodie Meeks returns from the stress reaction in his lower back, expected to keep him out until mid-December.
It was in last season’s finale here when Caldwell-Pope scored a career-high 30 points – a season-high 20 in the first half alone – with the Thunder needing a win to secure the No. 2 seed in the West. As he sat courtside after Thursday’s practice, he couldn’t help but think about that game. But he doesn’t want to come out and force shots in an attempt to re-create the magic of that night.
“I won’t forget,” he said. “I showed what I could do and just left it all on the court. But you’ve got to be mindful of (rushing). We’ve got a new system, new coach, so it’s going to be different. Still just take the open shots that they give me and just go out there and play.”
Certain to be different is the matchup Caldwell-Pope will encounter. He began the game being guarded by Thabo Sefalosha, no longer with the Thunder. For a big chunk of the game, he found himself going against Kevin Durant, who has yet to play this season while he recovers from foot surgery. Russell Westbrook is also out for the Thunder.
That gives the Pistons their best opportunity to get a win on their current four-game road trip against four 2014 playoff teams. Despite their three-game losing streak, both Cadlwell-Pope and Martin sense no signs of defeatism creeping into the locker room.
“We’re coming together. It’s not tearing us apart,” Caldwell-Pope said. “I know we’ve lost a couple of games, but we’re still one team and we’re building chemistry together, trying to stay together and not pull apart. That’s helping us to keep our head up.”
Martin – who played with two playoff teams last season , Atlanta and Chicago – has tried to use his idle time to study and learn.
“We’ve still got a lot of room for improvement,” he said. “We’re still positive. It says a lot about us, how close these games have been. Now it’s just comes down to a matter of going out and winning a few. We’re still making progess and we’re still learning. We’re going to be a great team and we’re going to fight to be one of the top teams in the East.”