The Detroit Pistons will have home court advantage against any opponent they face in the Eastern Conference once the NBA Playoffs kick off
For the first time in nearly two decades, the Detroit Pistons will finish the regular season with the top record in the Eastern Conference after defeating the Philadelphia 76ers on the road by a 116-93 margin on Saturday night.
Now at 57 wins on the season, the Pistons clinched the one seed with four games left before entering the playoffs, so Detroit will have the added flexibility of resting some key components entering the postseason if they so choose. What a luxury to have for a squad that was projected to hover around the mid-40s in terms of wins entering the 2025-26 campaign.
During tonight’s road journey in Philly, Daniss Jenkins continued to deliver in Cade Cunningham's absence with another crucial double-double. Once again, Jenkins ran the point and directed Detroit’s offense to 71 points in the first half against the 76ers, and the Pistons used that mid-way cushion to deliver a comfortable 23-point win on the weekend.
Jenkins posted 16 points and a staggering 14 assists on the night, and his ability to keep the Pistons’ squad humming without missing a beat without Cunningham has Detroit full of confidence entering the playoffs. In fact, the Pistons improved to 8-2 since their MVP candidate went down with a collapsed lung, and a lot of that credit should be bestowed upon Jenkins.
From a defensive standpoint, the Pistons were aggressive against the 76ers and held Philadelphia to under 100 points for the first time in nine games. Ausar Thompson recorded three steals and one block to keep his stock numbers well above the league average, and former 76er Tobias Harris chipped in with four steals himself.
In his return to the city of brotherly love, Harris received a steady dose of the boo birds all night long when he touched the basketball, but the 15-year vet turned his rocky reception into motivation for a 19-point effort. Harris went 7-for-13 from the field and a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe as the Pistons secured their position as the top squad in the East.
As for Jalen Duren, the first-time All-Star had a quieter performance with 16 points and seven rebounds, though Detroit was in the driver’s seat for the majority of the game. Since Cunningham’s been out of the lineup, Duren has averaged over 23 points and 11 rebounds each night, so his production against Philly was a bit below his recent standards but still enough to help the Pistons record the win.
Now with home court advantage through the first three rounds of the NBA Playoffs, the Pistons have the opportunity to decide whether they’d like to stay in rhythm and keep their rotation relatively consistent over the next four games or if they’d prefer to rest some key players to make sure they don’t suffer any additional injury blows with Cunningham and Isaiah Stewart already sidelined.
Next up, the Pistons have an away game with the Orlando Magic slated for Monday, April 6 at 7 pm.
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