One look at the injury report will tell you what time of the season it is for the Detroit Pistons.
During the first half of a back-to-back, a whopping seven players missed Friday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Little Caesars Arena. Wayne Ellington and Mason Plumlee both sat due to rest, and Jerami Grant missed his fourth game in five outings due to injury management for his sore right knee. Hamidou Diallo, Cory Joseph, Dennis Smith Jr. and Rodney McGruder also all sat out with a mixture of sprains, strains and sore body parts.
The season is winding down, and the Pistons are starting to prioritize entering the offseason with a fully healthy roster. Detroit entered Friday with an embrace of its youth movement and exited with a decisive win.
The Pistons overcame a 15-point deficit in the second quarter to defeat the Thunder, 110-104. Detroit closed the first half with a 25-10 run to tie the game, then took over in the third quarter, 30-23.
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For the first time this season, all three of Detroit’s 2020 first-round picks — Killian Hayes, Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey — started together. They all delivered strong performances, with Stewart the most impressive. He scored 15 points and grabbed 22 rebounds in 32 minutes of action.
Josh Jackson led all scorers with 19 points. Bey and Frank Jackson added 18 points each, and Hayes finished with nine points, seven assists and four rebounds.
Killian Hayes, Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey start together
First, let’s talk about Hayes’ bounce pass in the third quarter, his first bonafide SportsCenter-ready highlight.
Hayes, who picked up his first start since he injured his hip against the Milwaukee Bucks on Jan. 4, has proven himself to be the best passer on the roster since he returned two weeks ago. He sees windows that few players in the league can, and is brave enough to try to sneak passes through even the most fleeting of them.
Two of his baskets — a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer and a floater — were the type that’ll likely be key as he continues to develop. Hayes didn’t quite have a breakout offensive game, missing seven of his 10 shots. But he’s continuing to make small strides each game.
Stewart, on the other hand, had his best statistical game of his career. Per Pistons PR, he became the first Pistons rookie since Leon Douglas in 1977 with at least 22 rebounds. He added a tip-in, a layup and a block in the final three minutes Friday to put the finishing touches on his historic performance.
Stewart’s previous high in rebounds was 13. His nose for the ball has been well-established this season, but he was monstrous against the Thunder. He nearly had a double-double with just offensive rebounds (9) alone.
Bey shot just 2-for-12 from 3-point range, but made six of his eight attempts inside the arc. After struggling on 2s early in the season, Bey is settling in as an all-around scorer. He’s showing more patience during his drives to the rim and better touch near the basket, and it helped him have a good outing despite his struggles from outside.
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Jackson has quietly been one of Detroit’s most consistent scorers, entering Friday shooting 39.7% from 3 since March 15. After missing all five of his shots in a scoreless effort against the Clippers on Wednesday, he bounced back on Friday.
Jackson hit five of his 10 shots overall and three of his six 3-point attempts. Lately, he has been combining his sharpshooting with difficult finishes at the rim.
In his last four outings, he has had a 17-point game and two 16-pointers off of the bench. He’s finishing the season on a strong note after being outside of the rotation during most of the first half.
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa. Read more on the Detroit Pistons and sign up for our Pistons newsletter.