Detroit — With the start to the season that the Pistons have had, with just three wins in 13 games, coach Dwane Casey will take any shreds of evidence of moving in the right direction.
Wins have been hard to come by, but the Pistons showed resilience in getting a 97-89 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night at Little Caesars Arena.
Resiliency has turned into one of the keystones to the Pistons’ success this season, as Casey has pushed to get better play during longer stretches for his young team, on the heels of one of their worst losses of the season, against the Sacramento Kings on Monday.
“Three things we put on board after the debacle against Sacramento: one was ‘consistency.’ Who are we going to be? Are we going to be (like the wins over) Toronto and Houston, or are we going to be like (the loss against) Sacramento?” Casey said.
“Another was ‘compete.’ Starting out, (The Pacers) were one of the top scoring teams in the first quarter. I thought we competed, and we were resilient.
“The other word was ‘resilient’ that we used. We bounced back when something goes bad, which we had tonight, and we continued to compete, and that’s what you have to do in this league to be successful.”
The Pistons put everything together in the fourth quarter and emerged with the win.
Here are some other observations from the Pistons’ victory:
Cunningham getting comfortable
He didn’t have a standout shooting game, but Cunningham, who was 6-of-18 from the field and 1-of-8 on 3-pointers, found a good footing with his ball-handling and facilitating. He finished with six assists and just one turnover, and down the stretch, he was able to score on a fadeaway with 6:18 left, to feed Cory Joseph on a 3-pointer and he scored on a drive to push the Pistons ahead, 87-82.
It was the kind of shot-making and playmaking that they’ve been missing this season, and it was a step forward for him in his maturation process.
“He’s learning what to do in those situations, and he still has a lot to learn because he had some plays tonight down the stretch that you wouldn’t advise and we weren’t trying to look at,” Casey said.
“He’s learning and it’s a great experience for him. With him being our primary ballhandler right now, seeing blitzes and shocks as far as committing two to the ball and reading those situations — all those are learning experiences, and we can go through it and practice and talk about, and show video, but until you go against a 7-footer like (Myles) Turner and (Domantas) Sabonis, guys into you like that on blitzes, it’s a different story.
“He’s coming through and it’s great work for him and he’s just going to continue to get better and better and better and learn as he goes along, and that’s what he’s doing.”
Joseph provides early spark
Cory Joseph started the game with a spark, with 10 points in his first eight minutes, and he was a spark plug for the Pistons’ offense. He finished 18 points on an efficient 7-of-11 shooting, and his 3-pointer was a big part of helping the Pistons pull away in the fourth quarter.
Joseph has had some off games, including just two points in six minutes in Monday’s loss, but he bounced back nicely against the Pacers.
“Everyone who we assigned him to, he competed and that was great for Cory,” Casey said. “It was great for him to see the ball and he had a big three when the game was in the balance. That veteran leadership is what we need from him, that consistency.”
More: Cunningham clutch late as Pistons close out Pacers, 97-89
Shooting woes continue
The Pistons’ shooting woes continued, but for the first time this season, they were able to pull out a win with a poor shooting performance. They shot 43% from the field and 28% from beyond the arc, which usually aren’t good enough numbers to win, but with their fourth-quarter surge, it was something to build on.
They may have just dodged another loss, but with the way things have been going, they’ll take it.
“The thing is we’ve got to be consistent. We can’t shoot 28% and beat a lot of teams in this league,” Casey said. “It’s an arms race, at the 3-point line and we’ve got to continue to work on it and continue to get players in on-time, on-target passes, and not turn them down and have confidence in them.
“We have some good career shooters, and for whatever reason, we’re not there yet. We will get there, because they’re too good as shooters not to be.”
Diallo adds athleticism
Hamidou Diallo, who had been out of the rotation for a bit, got a good chunk of playing time Wednesday, while Josh Jackson didn’t play. He finished with just two points in 14 minutes, but he was noticeable on the defensive end.
The Pistons needed some athleticism on the wings, and Diallo brought that, along with being in the right places and causing havoc on the defensive end.
“He came in and gave us energy. He came in, defended and rebounded and ran the floor,” Casey said. “I thought he was excellent with his minutes that he had.”