The Pistons picked up a comfortable double-digit victory over the Hornets on Saturday night
With the Charlotte Hornets in the Motor City on Saturday night, the Pistons were eager to erase any lingering effects from a dramatic overtime loss in Dallas two nights prior.
Playing at home, Detroit leaned on a recipe that has served the Pistons well time and time again this season– a staunch defense that creates turnovers, therein sparking the team’s transition offense. Oftentimes, those fast breaks result in points in the paint for the Pistons, and Detroit aggressively peppered that strategy en route to a 26-point win over the Hornets.
From a defensive perspective, the Pistons racked up 16 steals and blocked 10 Hornet shots to create a smothering effect that frustrated Charlotte all game long. In particular, Pistons forward Ausar Thompson has four blocks and three steals during his relentless pursuit of disrupting Charlotte guard LaMelo Ball’s playmaking ability. Thompson proved to be a pest, and he generated numerous quick buckets on the fast break.
“They got weapons all over the floor that can shoot the three,” Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said after the game. “They’ve got guys that can beat you off the bounce, play in transition. So, 14 in the 4th, 18 in the second shows what we’re capable of, and that triggers everything for us, especially on nights where shots aren't falling for us. We’ve got to get those stops to get out in transition and get those easy ones.”
The cog that makes Detroit’s defense-to-offense quickfire exchange work seamlessly is Cade Cunningham. As Detroit’s All-Star point guard, Cunningham subtly links the team from one phase of the game to the next like connective tissue.
“He can settle the game down in so many different ways– offensively getting to his spot, creating for others,” Bickerstaff said of Cunningham. “I thought he did a great job on the defensive boards, which also helps us get out in transition when the ball is in his hand to initiate. Then he can just find his spots, and defensively I thought he was good at keeping people in front of him and getting deflections and steals like he does.”
In the comfortable double-digit victory, Cunningham posted 22 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for a casual triple-double. Just like the music throughout Little Caesars Arena signifies after Cunningham makes a slick play, Cade performed like a smooth operator against the Hornets, though his outside shot could still use a bit of refinement after a 1-for-5 effort from long-range.
But Cunningham’s occasional struggles from the perimeter seem to matter less when the Pistons are in a rhythm like Detroit was on Saturday night. The Pistons played a brand of complimentary basketball that was effective enough to topple the Hornets, but Charlotte is a squad that is near the Eastern Conference cellar so hopefully Cade can sort his outside shot before the postseason begins.
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