Detroit Pistons Notebook: Motor City Cruise Dominate In Season Opener, Onyenso Injury

While the Detroit Pistons are off to a fast start in the regular season, their G-League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise, pulled off a dominant 142-122 victory last night to kick off the 2026-27 campaign. 

After making the postseason last year and advancing further than any previous Cruise squad, the team underwent a coaching change during the summer when Steve Scalzi was appointed to lead the squad. Scalzi, who had been an assistant with the Pistons in the past, took the job after coaching Detroit during the Summer League, so he’s already utilized a lot of those same players for a dominant win to open his head coaching career. 

Ahead of Tuesday night’s contest, the Pistons sent Chaz Lanier down to the G-League so that he could benefit from some live-game reps at that level, and the Cruise threw him into the starting lineup right away. Lanier posted 19 points with five triples to his credit, which was only good enough for fifth-best on the Motor City squad in the high-scoring affair. 

During the offseason, Lanier worked meticulously on refining his shooting mechanics, and the Tennessee product showcased a quicker, more repeatable release during the Summer League under Scalzi’s tutelage. Lanier leaned into that shoot-first role last night, which bodes well for his development as a role player who can contribute at the NBA level. 

From a scoring standpoint, Brice William held the team-lead with 28 points on 7-for-11 shooting from long-range. Williams, much like Lanier, found his three-point rhythm during the Summer League and has clearly carried that momentum into the G-League season opener as well. 

Moving down low, big man Isaac Jones played an important role with 14 points and nine boards, though he might have been overshadowed by John Ukomadu’s dominant 25-point, 11-rebound effort. Ukomadu, who won the G-League Slam Dunk Contest last season, is a fan favorite given his hometown roots, so his double-double was quite influential in the Cruise’s 20-point victory. 

Although there were several positive aspects to last night’s double-digit win, the only downside was the revelation of rookie Ugonna Onyenso’s foot injury. When the Cruise released their pre-game injury report, Onyenso was listed as out due to left plantar fasciitis, so the shot-swatting ace out of Virginia will apparently need some time to recover from that issue. 

Outside of Onyenso’s injury, the Cruise had a widely successful regular season debut against the Cleveland Charge, one that saw the victors shoot 47.8% from beyond the arc on Tuesday night. 

As for the Pistons, they will be back in action against the Washington Wizards tomorrow night on the road with a 7 pm tip-off.