It is so nice to be in a position where a missed box out resulting in a game-winning basket for the Hornets in early-November actually matters, but that is the reality for the current Detroit Pistons. With that win, the Pistons would currently be .500 and looking to get above .500 for the first time in what seems like 10 years (they actually started off last season 2-1 which seems like a fever dream).
Monday’s loss to the Chicago Bulls hurts as despite Chicago shooting the lights out and the Pistons’ defense being poor, they were still in a position to win the game in the 4th quarter. Outside of a poor showing against the Knicks, that has pretty much been the case all year for this team.
Now, they hit the road against the Charlotte Hornets and are favored in the game, which is a reality that is still weird to grasp. There were certain matchups last year where the Pistons were slightly favored at home, but it was pretty much never the case on the road.
Game Vitals
Where: Spectrum Center in Charlotte, NC
When: Thursday, November 21 at 7 pm EST
Watch: Fan Duel Sports Network Detroit
Odds: Pistons (-1.5)
Analysis
As I mentioned above, the Pistons fell to the Hornets in their last matchup because Malik Beasley failed to boxout Brandon Miller on a missed three by Grant Williams. The Pistons had control of the game for pretty much the whole game before LaMelo Ball got hot in the 4th and gave the Hornets the lead. A steal and basket by Ron Holland miraculously put the Pistons back up before the aforementioned disaster occurred.
At that time, it seemed like a typical Pistons loss from last year where a team is able to turn it on a for a few minutes and easily put them away, but since that game, the Pistons have proven to be a bit more legit than it seemed, going 4-3 in the seven games since.
The key will obviously be slowing down LaMelo Ball, but during the last matchup, I wouldn’t necessarily say the Pistons defended him poorly. Ball just went nuclear and was pulling up from 30 feet, which is one of those things you have to just tip your cap at and move on.
Even if Ball gets hot like he did in the last matchup, the true key to winning this game will be slowing down Miles Bridges and Brandon Miller. Bridges had 27 points in the last matchup and Miller had 19, although he only shot 3-of-11 from beyond the arc. Miller has the ability to get hot from beyond the arc just like Ball, so it will be important to keep him from getting into rhythm.
The Hornets were without starting center Nick Richards in the last matchup and will once again be without him, which does help since they are already without Marc Williams, leaving them thin in the frontcourt. But, they were thin in the frontcourt last game and still managed to grab the game-winning rebound and putback.
The Pistons are coming off a couple of days of rest for the first time this season. It will be interesting to see how they respond. They were dealing with a few injuries like Jaden Ivey’s ankle, Tim Hardaway returning from his head laceration, and Simone Fontecchio’s toe, so hopefully the extra days of rest gets those guys into better shape. All three played in Monday’s game against the Bulls, but Hardaway in particular was clearly out of rhythm from the injury.
Monday’s loss to the Bulls was a bit of a scheduling loss since they Pistons were on the 2nd night of a back-to-back and had played a stretch of five games in seven nights. Their defensive effort was the worst it had been all year, but it does make sense given those circumstances. With the Pistons offense still struggling a bit, it will be important to get back on track defensively if they want to win this game.
I would expect another close game like the last matchup because these two teams are similar and will be occupying the same territory in the standings. I think that territory will be around the Play-In games, so these early-season matchups could prove important for those purposes later on in the season.
Lineups
Charlotte Hornets (5-9): LaMelo Ball, Josh Green, Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges, Grant Williams
Detroit Pistons (7-9): Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Tim Hardaway Jr, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren
Question of the Day
With how well he played while Tim Hardaway Jr was out, should the Pistons consider putting Malik Beasley in the starting lineup while Hardaway works his way back from injury?