The Detroit Pistons are already 24 games ahead of schedule compared to last season’s record
After last night’s 122-119 overtime win over the Cleveland Cavaliers at home, the Detroit Pistons reached a significant threshold that puts into perspective how successful the squad’s 2025-26 regular season campaign has been.
Now at 44-14 on the year, the Pistons have already equalled their entire win total from last season’s playoff-qualifying run. But now that the Pistons stand in first place in the Eastern Conference with the NBA’s top winning percentage, the expectations surrounding the Motor City have significantly shifted.
No longer will it be good enough just to reach the postseason, which was a feat the Pistons had not accomplished in the five seasons prior to last year’s first-round battle with the New York Knicks. Now that the Pistons have established themselves as bona fide contenders, Detroit is not in a position to sneak up on anybody, and they’re completely fine with that new reality.
During the post-game press conference after his team’s clutch overtime victory last night, Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff touched on the level Detroit has operated at throughout the regular season.
“I don’t think it revealed anything,” Bickerstaff said. “I think that’s who we’ve been, and our guys continue to show up when their number is called.”
At this point, Bickerstaff expects his team to respond when they’re placed in tough situations, such as Detroit’s first half deficit against the Cavs last night, because the Pistons have proven their ability to weather the storm. Against the Oklahoma City Thunder two games ago, the Pistons found themselves in another similar first half hole before rallying around Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren in what unfolded as an eight-point win against the Western Conference’s top squad.
Together, these victories have helped raise the ceiling of what the Pistons can accomplish from a league-wide perspective, but Cunningham knew what was possible before the season even began, even if the rest of the NBA didn’t.
“At the end of the day, we all want a championship out of this, you know?” Cunningham said at Media Day five months ago. “We have no chance at going and getting a championship without a year like last year, but there’s more steps to be taken after that.”
The first step was to improve on their regular season win total in hopes of earning favorable seeding in the playoffs, which the Pistons have essentially guaranteed 24 games ahead of schedule. Now, the mission for Detroit is to prepare each player in case their number is called during the postseason while securing home court advantage for as long as possible.
With Cunningham at the helm, the Pistons have already put together a memorable season littered with bright spots along the way. If Cunningham can turn those fleeting moments into a banner that hangs in the rafters of Little Caesars Arena for years to come, then he’ll have delivered on his pre-season goal in emphatic fashion.
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