Detroit Pistons Offense Throttled: How The Toronto Raptors Created A Playoff Blueprint

On Sunday afternoon, the Detroit Pistons faced a stingy, defensively-sound Toronto Raptors squad that outplayed the Pistons at their own game. Detroit entered the contest without Isaiah Stewart to help anchor the paint, and the Raptors used their mismatches in the post to control the glass on both ends, which set up numerous second-chance looks for Toronto to capitalize on. 

But from an offensive standpoint, the Pistons were similarly stifled against the Raptors in the 119-108 loss with a blueprint that Detroit might go up against during the postseason. 

With Cade Cunningham initiating the offense for the Pistons, opposing teams have sent double teams in the All-Star’s direction with increased frequency post-All-Star Break, and it’s forced Cade to make two-on-one or two-on-three decisions that stray from the mismatch-oriented Detroit half-court principles. 

Against the Raptors, however, Cunningham had the ball in his hands for most of the game with 37 minutes logged, and Toronto was comfortable in focusing their attention on the two-man game from Cunningham and Jalen Duren, the same pick and roll combo that has terrorized the East all season long. A difficult challenge, to be sure. 

Cunningham finished with 33 points (12-for-24 FGs), nine assists and three rebounds on the night, while Duren posted a 20-point performance on 11 field goal attempts in the 11-point loss. Tobias Harris barely eclipsed Duren’s volume with 21 points on 12 shots of his own, but nobody else on Detroit’s roster put up more than eight shots on the night. 

So, the Raptors locked in on both Cunningham and Duren while allowing other Pistons players to beat them, and that strategy was crystal clear with Ausar Thompson. During the third quarter, Thompson had an open look from three in transition, decided to drive, then passed the ball off. Thompson relocated to the perimeter then went through the same routine with a drive then pass before accepting the ball for a mid-range jumper that hit the front rim, ending the chaotic, clunky Detroit possession. 

After the game, Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff spoke about what he saw from Thompson in his return to the lineup. 

“It’s hard, and then being on a minutes restriction and all that stuff is kind of hard trying to figure out how to get his rhythm and what part of and where he can attack– all those things," Bickerstaff said after the game. "Getting back to playing with the group, but again, I thought his effort was great. His ability to defend obviously was there, to be disruptive was there, but he’s just working his way back and he’ll be fine.”

Thompson’s struggles from the perimeter have largely contributed to his short leash during crunch time in the fourth quarter this season. As a shooter, Thompson connects on just 27.3% of his long-range shots, and teams have learned that they can sag off AT on the outside as a result of his downtown inefficiency. 

During Thompson’s recent five-game stint out of the lineup with a sprained ankle, the Pistons opted to start Marcus Sasser in the backcourt opposite Cunningham, and the Houston product helped provide both the floor spacing and perimeter threat that Thompson is still missing. However, AT is one of the NBA’s premier wing defenders, so the value that Thompson brings apart from his shooting contributions should not be understated either. 

Bickerstaff will have some difficult decisions to make when it comes time to dole out minutes during end-of-game scenarios in the postseason, but Detroit has one more month to sort out their plan in case other teams adopt the same defensive strategy that served the Raptors so well over the weekend. 

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