It was the atmosphere of the great evenings this night at the Little Caesars Arena facing Philadelphia. The “Trust the Process” didn’t descend from the stands in a tight end to the game as the Michigan public has seen little this season, but it was like.
Starting from scratch two years ago, Dwane Casey’s troops have had a string of interesting matches over this second half of the season, with 16 wins since the start of 2022, with a more than encouraging new performance once morest a big team in the Eastern Conference, in a tense match until the end (102-94).
“It was a 48-minute effort, which we’ve been pushing for all year. We can see the progression of the players, in the decisions they make, and if we had put our shots at 3-pointers, it might even have been less tight than it was. It will come. But in the execution, our defense, limiting them to 8 points in the first half of the fourth quarter, we were solid., rejoiced Dwane Casey.
Cade Cunningham, the “game-changer”
The coach is currently reaping the fruits of his long-term work, with the regular outbreak of players who end up having this long-awaited “click” that will turn Detroit around. We can notably cite Killian Hayes, who has shown more regularity in recent weeks, but also Saddiq Bey, whose progress has been continuous throughout the season, or even the two Isaiah, Stewart and Livers.
But the 2021/22 season was also conditioned by the impact of Cade Cunningham, the first Draft pick who arrived on tiptoe due to injury.
He too took every opportunity to show what he was capable of, and his game of the night is to be classified among his best performances of the season, with 27 points (12/20 shooting), 6 rebounds, 4 steals and actions decisive.
“He’s a young player who is growing up, who knows how to score, how to move the ball… When he’s double-teamed, he makes the right choice by passing the ball. He is also good at attacking the circle, taking the shots that offensive situations give him. He is in progress. Between the start of the season and now, it has become someone different”added Dwane Casey, adding that his rookie had played despite back pain. “He’s moving forward. Every game he shows something new. We saw him attack Embiid taking his shots on one foot… It’s not very orthodox for a player of his size”.
Full of confidence for next season
Dwane Casey also recognized the contribution of his bench which allowed the Pistons to hold on over time. As is often the case in recent weeks, he particularly praised the work of Kelly Olynyk who is proving to be a more than valuable veteran in this young team.
“The whole second unit is to be commended, but Kelly Olynyk did a great job on Embiid low post, which is not easy for anyone, and organizing the defense from the outside, when Philly tried to prevent Cade or Killian to have the ball in hand. He moved the ball well, finding the right cuts.
Detroit has thus taken another step forward in its development process, notably leaving the Magic alone in last place in the Eastern Conference.
Without the pressure of the result but with the sole objective of continuing to grow this team, the Pistons will continue to take advantage of this season to build a solid foundation for the future.
“It’s important for us to see that it works, that the things we do in defense and attack make sense. When we see that, we believe in it, and it will help us for next season.”, pointed out Saddiq Beywho for his part exceeded the bar of 200 3-point baskets scored this season. “I like our character, and the way we don’t panic or get too carried away when we are leading at the end of a match. It’s good to see the way we progress as a team and how we manage to defend in the final.
After OKC and Indiana, Detroit will still have the opportunity to play referees once morest the “big guys” at the end of the season once morest Dallas, Milwaukee, and once more Philly for the last game of its regular season.
| Tirs | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | MJ | Min | Tirs | 3pts | LF | Off | Def | Until | Pd | Bp | Int | Ct | Fte | Pts |
| Jerami Grant | 47 | 31.9 | 42.6 | 35.8 | 83.8 | 0.6 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 2.3 | 19.2 |
| Cade Cunningham | 61 | 32.8 | 41.9 | 32.0 | 83.9 | 0.9 | 4.7 | 5.6 | 5.6 | 3.6 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 3.1 | 17.6 |
| Saddiq Bey | 77 | 33.7 | 39.7 | 34.6 | 82.2 | 1.4 | 4.2 | 5.6 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 1.6 | 16.3 |
| Marvin Bagley Iii | 18 | 27.2 | 55.5 | 22.9 | 59.3 | 2.1 | 4.7 | 6.8 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 2.4 | 14.6 |
| Hamidou Diallo | 58 | 21.9 | 49.6 | 24.7 | 65.0 | 1.2 | 3.6 | 4.8 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 2.5 | 11.0 |
| Trey Lyles | 51 | 19.4 | 45.6 | 30.1 | 78.4 | 1.2 | 3.6 | 4.8 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 1.8 | 10.4 |
| Frank Jackson | 48 | 21.7 | 40.3 | 31.0 | 80.7 | 0.3 | 1.2 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 1.7 | 10.3 |
| Kelly Olynyk | 38 | 19.0 | 44.9 | 33.6 | 75.6 | 1.4 | 3.1 | 4.5 | 2.8 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 2.6 | 9.0 |
| Isaiah Stewart Ii | 66 | 26.1 | 51.2 | 22.2 | 70.1 | 3.2 | 5.5 | 8.7 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 3.0 | 8.3 |
| Cory Joseph | 65 | 24.6 | 44.5 | 41.4 | 88.5 | 0.4 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 2.3 | 8.0 |
| Josh Jackson | 39 | 18.1 | 41.0 | 26.5 | 71.4 | 0.4 | 2.7 | 3.2 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.8 | 7.1 |
| Killian Hayes | 61 | 24.9 | 37.8 | 26.4 | 76.5 | 0.6 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 1.7 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 2.8 | 6.4 |
| Derrick Walton, Jr. | 3 | 36.1 | 23.1 | 23.1 | 100.0 | 0.7 | 2.7 | 3.3 | 7.0 | 3.7 | 2.3 | 1.3 | 2.7 | 6.3 |
| Braxton Key | 4 | 18.0 | 35.7 | 37.5 | 50.0 | 1.2 | 3.0 | 4.2 | 0.2 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 6.0 |
| Cassius Stanley | 9 | 17.2 | 41.3 | 23.5 | 100.0 | 0.6 | 1.6 | 2.1 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 1.9 | 5.8 |
| Justin Robinson | 5 | 18.2 | 32.1 | 38.1 | 33.3 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 1.6 | 5.6 |
| Luka Garza | 31 | 11.6 | 45.0 | 33.3 | 65.5 | 1.6 | 1.3 | 2.9 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 1.7 | 5.4 |
| they know lee | 34 | 15.3 | 38.7 | 25.0 | 79.2 | 0.4 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 2.4 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 5.1 |
| Isaiah Livers | 14 | 16.9 | 42.4 | 39.1 | 80.0 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 2.1 | 5.1 |
| Rodney Mcgruder | 48 | 14.2 | 41.8 | 38.6 | 70.0 | 0.6 | 1.4 | 2.0 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 4.8 |
| Micah Potter | 3 | 10.3 | 45.5 | 0.0 | 100.0 | 1.3 | 1.7 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 4.0 |
| Cheick Diallo | 3 | 10.2 | 37.5 | 0.0 | 83.3 | 1.3 | 2.7 | 4.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 3.7 |
| Jamorko Pickett | 10 | 9.4 | 30.8 | 27.8 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.9 | 2.1 |
| David Sirvydis | 3 | 8.9 | 10.0 | 14.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 1.0 |
| Trayvon Palmer | 1 | 16.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
| Jaysean Paige | 1 | 6.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
