The Detroit Pistons take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday, February 25, in a high-stakes matchup that pits the No. 1 team in the Eastern Conference against the top team in the Western Conference. It doesn’t get much bigger than this, friends.
Amid the game, the Detroit Pistons got good news that should help them pull off a victory. That’s positive, because the Pistons are coming off a loss to the Spurs on Monday, February 23.
After the loss to the Spurs, coach J.B. Bickerstaff explained why he benched reigning Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month Ausar Thompson for the last 20 minutes of the game. “Just I thought Ron was playing well, gave Ron extra minutes,” Bickerstaff said of the move.
He was right. In that game, Ron Holland had 16 points and 11 rebounds off 39 percent shooting from the field. “He was huge,” Pistons guard Cade Cunningham said. “He got us into the game, couple and-ones, taking the ball, upping the pace for us and everything. He’s always been our spark plug, somebody who we rely on to bring a lot of energy into the game.”
But, what about the Pistons vs. OKC game? Here’s what’s going right for the Pistons already.
Thunder vs. Pistons Comes With Early Complications, But That Helps Detroit
Heading into the game on Wednesday, the OKC Thunder are already without key players, according to ESPN research. Notably, they’ll be without NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has been forced to miss eight games in a row due to an abdominal strain, and will miss his ninth against the Pistons.
According to the team’s official injury report, Gilgeous-Alexander is just one of multiple starters out for the game, others being the team’s No. 2 scorer Jalen Williams. The Thunder are coming off a 116-107 win in Toronto, though, so they’re still strong. In that game, Cason Wallace and Isaiah Joe were the top scorers, and they’ll both be active on Wednesday.
Detroit, of course, is hoping to come back after 114-103 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Monday. The Detroit Pistons have also won five of their last six games. The game is being aired live on ESPN and the FanDuel Sports Network Detroit.
Detroit Pistons Finally Fell to the Spurs, But All Is Not Lost
Sure, the Pistons ended their winning streak on Monday against the Spurs, but all is not lost. In a feature for Piston Powered out on Tuesday, February 24, Aaron Kellerstrass discusses the positives in the loss.
He says it was a good wake-up call for the team, and that makes sense. Kellerstrass notes that he was “getting a little concerned that the Pistons were having too much smoke blown up their collective rear ends over the last week or so when most pundits started putting them atop their power rankings.”
He also noted that the Pistons were having an off night, so they likely know they can beat the Spurs in the future. “A lot of credit has to go to the Spurs defense, which was smothering Cade Cunningham all night, but the Pistons didn’t play their best game and have to feel as though they can beat the Spurs if they do,” he said.
Check out this writer’s Pistons-inspired song, “The Detroit Bad Boys Are Back,” for some Pistons fun and nostalgia.
Thunder vs Pistons: Detroit Gets Good News Amid Critical Game