Detroit Pistons Show Growth, Grind, Heart In First Round Loss

The Detroit Pistons entered the NBA Playoffs as an inexperienced team, but showcased how far they’ve come under the Stan Van Gundy era.

The Detroit Pistons were down but certainly not out after they fell into a 3-0 series hole at the hands of their arch-rival, the Cleveland Cavaliers. They put a complete game together in Game 4 with their backs against the wall and had a chance to win it on the last possession. However, the series–and their season–ended with a 100-98 loss on Sunday night.

Detroit may have been swept, but they battled the Cavs with everything they had. In three of the four games, they were competing with the top-seeded team in the East. In Game 1, the Pistons led by two entering the fourth quarter; in Game 3, the Pistons trailed by as few as two with five minutes left in the fourth; and in Game 4, the Pistons had a chance to tie or win it at the buzzer.

The Pistons are a young team, maybe not in terms of age since they don’t crack the top 10 in youngest teams, according to NBA.com, but in playoff experience. For most players on the team, it was their first crack at playoff basketball. Steve Blake entered the postseason leading the team in playoff games, having played in 49.

Despite defeating the Cavs during the regular season series 3-1, the Pistons learned that the NBA Playoffs are a different animal.

The Cavs are a top-10 team offensively and defensively, which helped lead them to the Eastern Conference’s top seed. Detroit learned the hard way that playing a full 48 minutes is much tougher in the playoffs than it is during the regular season. Cleveland outscored the Pistons 199-164 in the second half of the four games combined.

The Cavs were 8.8 points per game better in the second half.

All that aside, the Pistons grew from each experience. They would fight tough in the first half and become anemic offensively in the second half. But in Game 4, the Pistons lost the second half by one point, which was just enough to lose the game.

In Game 4, Tobias Harris, who was averaging 11.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per game in the series, was infinitely better with 23 points on an 8-for-14 shooting night. Marcus Morris scored 24 points on a 9-for-12 shooting night.

After Stan Van Gundy was critical of Andre Drummond‘s free-throw inabilities, he shot 5-for-10 from the free-throw line in Game 4, in a series where he was only shooting 22.7 percent from the line through three games.

The Pistons are learning and showed growth as a team. Stanley Johnson came on strong as a sixth man, and now has the ability to lead the bench next season. Off the bench, Johnson shot 12-for-23 (52.2 percent) from the field and 6-for-10 (60 percent) from three-point range. In four games he averaged 8.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per game in nearly 20 minutes per game.

More from Hoops Habit

Bench production has been the Pistons’ Achilles heel all season long. They ranked last in points per game, averaging 15.3 bench points per game, according to Hoopstats.com. The player that needed to step up the most was backup center Aron Baynes.

Baynes, 29, had played in 22 playoff games leading up to this season. He won a NBA championship as a member of the 2013-14 San Antonio Spurs. He was brought in to add experience to the team as a guy who has been to the playoffs before, but he forgot to show up this postseason.

Baynes averaged 2.5 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11 minutes per game in the series against the Cavs, which is unacceptable. The main reason as to why it’s unacceptable is because he kills the offensive flow of the game when he enters, which is typically late in quarters to avoid Hack-A-Dre.

I’m confused on DET-CLE. On the one hand, “The Big 3 showed up! They’re active defensively!” On the other “Why are these games close?"
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) April 23, 2016

The Pistons grinded the series out and truly made the Cavs work for every shot, and they made some incredible shots. Detroit showed a lot of heart when they could have folded. They played fearless against the more-experienced Cavs, and earned the respect of many among the NBA.

Next: NBA: Top 10 Coaching Candidates

Each starter averaged 14.3 (Reggie Jackson) points per game during the playoff series or better. The starting unit was led by Marcus Morris, who averaged 17.8 points per game. The core starting five is in place for the Pistons, though they have work to do in the offseason to ensure they all return. Johnson also returns next season.

Detroit has its first dose of playoff basketball and impressed many with its grind and fearlessness. Now the Pistons head to the offseason to get better as players and improve the roster with offseason moves.