FAST BREAKDOWN
Three quick observations from Saturday night’s 121-111 overtime loss to the Brooklyn Nets at Little Caesars Arena
WE’RE NO. 1 – With Bruce Brown returning and Reggie Jackson sitting – it was predetermined that Jackson, who just came back this week after a 13-week injury absence, would not play in back to backs this soon – the Pistons used their 22nd different starting lineup this season. That broke a tie with Golden State for the most starting lineups used this season. Brown started at guard with Derrick Rose; Andre Drummond, back after missing two games with facial injuries, returned up front with Sekou Doumbouya and Svi Mykhailiuk. Tony Snell missed his second consecutive game due to illness, while Blake Griffin and Luke Kennard remained out. For all of the lineup juggling, for the second time in 24 hours it came down to the final few minutes at Little Caesars Arena. And then it went to overtime – for the third time in the last six home games – and that didn’t go well at all for the Pistons. The Nets scored on their first five possessions to take a 117-108 lead with two minutes to go, putting the game away. Kyrie Irving scored 12 points in the first 2:26 of the third quarter to all but wipe out a 10-point Pistons halftime lead. He finished with 45 points. The Pistons led by three points with three minutes to play, then fell behind by four on a 7-0 Brooklyn run. That began a bizarre streak of three straight baskets – the first two by the Pistons to tie – scored via goaltending calls. A Pistons turnover and a stop gave them a last chance to win or force overtime and Rose’s contested layup with 1.9 seconds left forced the third overtime in the last six home games. The Pistons came into the game with 165 player games missed due to injury, third behind Golden State and Washington. The loss dropped them 3 ½ games behind Brooklyn in the chase for the East’s final playoff spot.
FAST START – A few days off of his feet looked like it recharged Andre Drummond’s batteries. Drummond recorded a double-double in the first quarter, when he put up 11 points and 10 rebounds on his way to 20 points and 21 boards. Third-year Nets center Jarrett Allen is having a nice season (11.3 points, 9.7 rebounds) on his way to a solid career, but Drummond at this point can overpower Allen on occasions where he gets the ball with his feet in the paint. In the only other meeting with the Nets this season, Drummond put up 25 points and 20 rebounds. The only other veteran in the Pistons starting lineup, Derrick Rose, also had a strong outing. Rose scored 27 points to lead the Pistons, extending his streak of games with 20 or more points to 12, prolonging the longest streak of his career. He had a streak of 10 such games with Chicago in 2011-12.
BONE’S TURN – On Friday night, it was Louis King who got his first meaningful minutes in a game that wasn’t already decided. On Saturday night, Jordan Bone – like King, playing on a two-way contract – got some first-half minutes, the second time that’s happened for him. Bone essentially took the role Tim Frazier played in Friday’s loss. Frazier came on late in the first quarter when Dwane Casey had both Reggie Jackson and Derrick Rose out of the game and in less than four minutes Memphis went on a 14-0 run. King gave the Pistons a little scoring punch, hitting a runner and scoring inside after a nice pump fake, finishing with four points in 12 minutes. Bone played just three minutes, missing two shots, one a 3-pointer and the other a mid-range baseline jumper. The best thing about Bone and King? They’ll be second-year players next season. Bruce Brown and Svi Mykhailiuk, second-year players drafted five spots apart in the 2018 second round, both had impressive outings. Mykhailiuk finished with 19 points, five rebounds and three assists, while Brown had 17 points, five rebounds and five assists.