Just hours after being named Eastern Conference Player of the Month for February, Pistons point guard struggled mightily all game long in Detroit’s 113-109 road loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night. 

Facing off for the second time in one week, the Cavaliers sought revenge from what they viewed as an unjust overtime loss to the Pistons in the Motor City last week. Given that pretext and the absences of both James Harden and Keon Ellis from that matchup the Cavs came out motivated to send a message to the Eastern Conference’s top squad and accomplished that mission by splitting the season series between the Central Division rivals. 

"Frustrated in the effort level, the attention to detail that we played on that end of the floor," Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of his team's offense. "The times and opportunities where we did do the right thing, we did get stops, then we let people outwork us to get offensive rebounds. We can't afford to not play at maximum effort, and that's been our superpower all year long. Tonight, I felt like there were times where we were outworked. If we're outworked, this isn't going to be the results that we want."

In the first quarter, Cunningham started the game 4-for-8 then cooled off with an uncharacteristic 0-for-8 shooting effort after that point. Cunningham finished the game with just 10 points, though he picked up his 34th double-double of the season by way of his distribution with 14 assists on the night. 

Throughout the game, Cunningham faced a steady mixture of lockdown defense from both Dennis Schroder and Jaylon Tyson on the night as neither player refused to give the All-Pro floor general any space to operate. Schroder and Cunningham, former teammates, were trading verbal barbs throughout the contest as well, so the competitive spirit between the two familiar faces (and the two teams overall) was ample in Cleveland’s highly-motivated four-point victory. 

When Cunningham’s shot refused to drop against the Cavs, the Pistons turned to their role players in order to provide the requisite offensive firepower to climb back into the game. During the first half, both Ron Holland and Javonte Green went 2-for-3 from beyond the arc, and the ever-reliable long-range sniper Duncan Robinson contributed a pair of triples as well. 

In terms of support scoring, Tobias Harris caught fire in the third quarter against Cleveland with 17 of Detroit's 32 points in that frame alone. Harris' patented mid-range jumper clicked, and the 15-year vet helped keep the Pistons in the game longer than they otherwise would have been. 

During the early stages of the game, the Pistons were outmuscled on the glass and gave up a few soft rebounds to the home squad, which would go against conventional wisdom in what was Isaiah Stewart’s return from suspension. The Pistons were eventually able to reorganize at halftime and approached the second half with a renewed sense of urgency on the glass, and Detroit finished with a six-board advantage in that department. 

Similarly, the Pistons have staked part of their reputation on defensive aggression and energy, but those are two areas where Detroit lacked on Tuesday. Like rebounding, the Pistons grew sharper on defense in the second half, but closing out on the perimeter was a consistent issue for Detroit. 

Since participating in the All-Star Game a couple weeks back, Pistons center Jalen Duren has performed as one of the top big men in all of the NBA, which makes sense given his All-Star distinction. JD carried that momentum into Tuesday night’s physical affair with 24 points and 14 rebounds for another huge double-double down low for the Pistons. 

As usual, Duren was tidy about his business, posting a 10-for-14 mark from the field as a beacon of efficiency that worked to counteract Cunningham’s inefficient 4-for-16 night from the floor. 

Now at 45-15 on the year, the Pistons have one day off before facing the San Antonio Spurs on the road. Tip-off for that cross-conference tilt is set for 8 pm. 

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