Detroit Pistons: Critical stretch right after the All-Star break

The Detroit Pistons have 24 games left to secure a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Can they sprint into the playoffs?

The Eastern Conference playoff race remains tight with 24 games left to play in the regular season. If the playoffs started today, the Miami Heat would edge out the Detroit Pistons for the last spot by 1.5 games.

For the Pistons, 24 games might not seem like a lot to hang their hopes on. However, injuries to key players in the East and the return of players from injury could make the next few weeks an exciting time NBA fans.

Coming off a productive All-Star Weekend for Andre Drummond, Blake Griffin wanted to start the next half of the season with a win against the Boston Celtics. Unfortunately, Kyrie Irving and Boston remained in the No. 2 spot in the East after both the Toronto Raptors and Celtics won Friday night.

The Pistons have already proven this season they can face adversity and regroup. Truthfully, sometimes it has taken the team longer to adjust than fans would like, but they have still fought back from the brink several times this season, including two losing streaks of at least seven games — one in December and one January which ended with the trade that sent Griffin to Detroit.

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Detroit needs to get back to basics. The Pistons had success earlier this season playing team ball. Getting into the playoffs will require a return to that philosophy while incorporating Griffin.

They also need to lay the foundation for a potential playoff run. If you want to run with the big dogs, you have to beat them. So the first thing  Stan Van Gundy’s squad needs to do is find a way to win big games.

The Detroit Pistons face a rough stretch coming out of the All-Star break. A week from now, after facing the Celtics, Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks, Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit will either be in the thick of it or already focused on next year.

Unfortunately, the scrappy squad already dropped its first game back, losing to Boston 110-98 on Friday.

Five of Detroit’s next six games are against playoff-bound teams. The Pistons need to win at least four of them to lay a strong foundation for a potential playoff run — not an easy task.

The Pistons face the Hornets and Raptors on the road. Then it’s back home to Detroit to face the Bucks. Finally, the Pistons begin March with a three-game road trip facing off against the Orlando Magic, Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers.

If Drummond and the Pistons can flip the switch on again and come out of this next stretch with wins against the Raptors, Bucks, Heat and Cavs, it could give them the momentum they need to challenge for the eighth spot in the East.

The parity in the East is a double-edged sword. Since the standings are so tight it makes a legitimate playoff run possible, but at the same time, it puts almost every game into a must-win scenario for teams scrambling for the final playoff spots.

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The Pistons travel to Charlotte to take on the Hornets Sunday before heading north to play the Raptors on Monday night.