INDIANAPOLIS — The Detroit Pistons‘ win over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday and loss to the Indiana Pacers on Saturday were nearly mirror images of each other. Detroit trailed by 15 points in the first quarter against the Magic, but rallied back in front of its home crowd to pull off a gutsy victory. On the road in Indiana, however, the Pistons led by 14 in the first quarter, then allowed the Pacers to take over in the final three quarters.
The games were sandwiched around Friday’s road blowout by the New York Knicks, leaving the Pistons at 1-2 — it’s a tough pill for a team that had enough firepower to defeat the Pacers and should be 2-1. But each game has had the same swing factor — the second unit.
The Pistons’ reserves sparked them to a win Wednesday but struggled to maintain momentum during both losses. The Pistons have several areas to address, but finding a better balance between the first and second units could help remedy some of their early woes.
JOE D:Former Pistons Bad Boy now playing by the rules in role with NBA
FRIDAY NIGHT:Jaden Ivey exceeding expectations just 2 games into his Detroit Pistons career
“We’re trying to find that balance, the grouping of the second unit saved us in the first game,” head coach Dwane Casey said after Saturday’s 124-115 loss. “They’re the one that got us back. The last couple of games, for whatever reason, they’ve been in the minus area as far as production. It’s just getting that rhythm and the groupings together and finding rotations that fit.”
Casey, like any coach this early into the season, is figuring out how to maximize his roster. One night’s solution can be the next night’s quandary, so there’s often a trial-and-error process to figure out which units jell.
On Friday, Casey opened the second quarter with a Cory Joseph-Killian Hayes-Kevin Knox-Hamidou Diallo-Jalen Duren lineup. It’s a lineup that appeared to have just one proven shooter (Joseph) and spacing issues. Indeed, the Knicks ran away with the game while Detroit’s second unit was on the floor. New York’s bench tallied 64 points that night, and the Pistons’ mustered just 22.
But the second unit helped lead an early comeback two nights earlier. Detroit’s starters stumbled out of the gate, and the Pistons trailed 21-6 by the time Casey made his first substitutions. He closed the first quarter with the same Joseph-Hayes-Knox-Diallo-Duren lineup, and then replaced Knox with Bojan Bogdanovic early in the second. The Pistons missed their first 10 3-pointers, but Joseph made his first two attempts, and they led at halftime as Casey gradually subbed his starters back in over the course of the quarter.
Casey shifted gears on Saturday, leaving a starter in with the bench players more often after watching Detroit’s offense grind to a halt against the Knicks. Saddiq Bey played the entire first quarter, but Casey gave the second unit about 3:30 of run at the start of the second before a quick 9-0 Pacers run forced him to sub Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey back in.
Despite the substitution, Detroit never regained momentum and Indiana took control for good in the third. The bench was outscored for the second night in a row, 60-29.
As the Pistons’ health improves, they should see their second unit gain some scoring punch. Marvin Bagley III, who is recovering from an MCL sprain, is one of the most gifted offensive players on the roster and could function as a sixth man. Alec Burks appears to be well away from returning from a left navicular fracture, but his outside shooting will give the bench a lift.
Isaiah Livers, however, did return Saturday after missing the first two games with a sore hip, and the Pistons were happy to have him. His shooting and defense will fix some of the spacing issues that hurt the bench on Friday. He finished with eight points in 16 minutes and hit two 3-pointers.
“He’s just gotta get his sea legs back, and back in a rhythm, and make sure he gets his game conditioning back because like I said before the game, we need his IQ and his 3 point shooting,” Casey said.
Casey will continue to tweak Detroit’s lineups until he finds the right combinations. The opener proved that this team can rally, but finding consistency between the two units will be an all-hands-on-deck effort.