The Detroit Pistons are looking to snap their NBA-record 11-game playoff losing streak at home later tonight against the Orlando Magic
Heading into the playoffs, the Detroit Pistons were mired by their fair share of injury woes during the final two weeks of the regular season. During that period, fifth-year point guard Cade Cunningham was working his way back from a collapsed lung that sidelined the All-Star for multiple weeks, and Isaiah Stewart continued to recover from a left calf strain that sidelined him for a similar amount of time.
Now that the Pistons had some time to rest up before their first round series with the Orlando Magic began, Cunningham has mentioned that he feels much better, and it’s clear that he’s no longer playing with a minutes restriction.
After practice yesterday, Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff commented on how Cunningham looked throughout his 39-point effort against the Magic during game one in which he and Tobias Harris were the only Detroit starters to hit double figures.
“It was great to see Deuce play the way that he played, especially down the stretch,” Bickerstaff said. “I think that run was one of the best that we’ve seen since he’s been back from his injury, so that was great for us.”
Now that Cunningham is back in the swing of things, the Pistons have the luxury of taking a healthy squad into game two as they hope to rebound from a tough 112-101 loss on Sunday.
On the other side of the first round matchup, Magic guard Desmond Bane was held out of shoot-around prior to game one in Detroit, but the sharp-shooter played without restriction during Orlando’s victory. Bane is not listed on the Magic injury report heading into game two, so the Orlando core of Bane, Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner should all factor heavily into the outcome of tonight’s playoff tilt.
Orlando’s injury report is not totally clean, however, as seventh-year forward Jonathan Isaac is currently battling a left knee sprain. Isaac is listed as doubtful to suit up for game two, and Magic coach Jamahl Mosley recently said that the Florida State product hasn’t progressed past non-contact drills, so he’s still a ways away from being available in the playoffs.
UPDATE prior to tip-off: Jonathan Isaac is now out for tonight's playoff contest.
During the first installment of the Pistons and Magic series on Sunday, Detroit opted to run with an 11-man rotation in their 11-point loss. During the regular season, Bickerstaff regularly rotated 12 or more players into the game with the squad’s depth as a defining strength for the Pistons all year long, but minutes are naturally more difficult to come by in the postseason. Still, Paul Reed was the odd man out in game one when starting center Jalen Duren put up just eight points on four shot attempts all game long, so perhaps B-Ball Paul will have an opportunity to influence game two with the Pistons operating on all cylinders from a health perspective.
The Pistons are slated to host tonight’s playoff matchup at 7 pm at Little Caesars Arena.
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