In the modern NBA, teams have evolved to favor high-volume three-point shooting and copious free throw attempts, but the Detroit Pistons are bucking those trends en route to a 14-2 record that ranks No. 1 in the Eastern Conference.

With point guard Cade Cunningham, a home-grown superstar, leading the charge in Motown, the Pistons have fused an up-tempo transition offense with the NBA’s top rim protection on defense. Detroit has continued to overpower opponents with this recipe, and the result is a 12-game winning streak after the Pistons dismantled the Bucks on the road last night, 129-116.

For most of that winning streak, the Pistons have relied on a steady balance of Cade Cunningham’s playmaking to set up Jalen Duren with lob opportunities and other high-percentage looks in the paint. Duren is averaging a career-high 20.6 points per game, so Cunningham’s connection with JD, particularly in the pick and roll, is flourishing rapidly. 

But during that same double-digit winning streak, the Pistons have fought off immense injury woes with varied lineup combinations in order to keep chugging along. Under normal circumstances, Jaden Ivey would have likely started the season as Detroit’s shooting guard, but Duncan Robinson has filled his role from game No. 1. In a 12-point victory over the Chicago Bulls on Nov. 12, the Pistons were missing four other starters– Cunningham, Duren, Tobias Harris and Ausar Thompson– in addition to two key rotation players, and still managed to escape The Injury Report Game with a win. 

The Storybook Emergence Of Daniss Jenkins

Although such severe injury problems have tested the Pistons’ depth through 16 games, the available minutes have allowed second-year point guard Daniss Jenkins to storm onto the scene in commanding fashion. In five starts over the past two weeks, Jenkins averaged over 20 points and seven assists per game, and he’s done so in a variety of roles. Jenkins started multiple games as an injury substitute for Cunningham, and he’s also started at the two in an off-ball role next to Cade in the back court recently, excelling in both capacities. 

Pistons Exercise Demons: Detroit Wins 12th Straight, Snapping 13-Game Losing Streak To Bucks Pistons guard Cade Cunningham casually logged a near-triple-double in Detroit’s big win over the Bucks

What started as a cameo for Jenkins, a player who’s still on a two-way contract, may wind up as one of the NBA’s great Cinderella stories. In college, Jenkins ran the gamut of collegiate basketball with stints at three separate Division I schools before turning pro. However, Jenkins was not selected in the 2024 NBA Draft, so he signed with Detroit and began his career with the G-League’s Motor City Cruise. 

While in the NBA’s developmental league, Jenkins honed his skill set and worked on growing as a floor general at the professional level. Jenkins soon locked into the pace of play, and he averaged 12.9 points and a shade under five assists per game, which secured his position on the G-League’s All-Rookie squad. 

During the offseason, Jenkins impressed during Summer League and the preseason, and he pounced on an opportunity with the Pistons once Marcus Sasser was deemed unavailable to play due to a hip impingement. So, Jenkins has turned a narrow opening into what may very well be a regular opportunity to contribute on the Eastern Conference’s top squad as a true testament to hard work and favorable timing. 

But from a stylistic standpoint, the Pistons are more than heartwarming stories and overcome long, injury-riddled odds. Detroit has taken down Eastern Conference foes through tough defense, grit and a propensity to take games into physical waters. With Isaiah Stewart and Jalen Duren anchoring the squad in the paint, the Pistons average the second-most blocks in the NBA, and the two big men actively patrol the glass on both ends of the floor.

"They've just got a nastiness to them," Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said after Detroit's NBA Cup win over the 76ers last week. "That's the fun part about our group is they like it when it gets thick. They like it when it gets messy and it gets ugly. That's where they thrive. We like to take people there. We like to push people's buttons and see how they respond. Our guys have proven, which is a step for us this year, that we can control our emotions and control the chaos when we get to it. That's been beneficial for us in these wins.”

Overall, the Pistons rank second in the league for loose ball recoveries as well, so even wing players like Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland II are mixing it up on 50-50 plays to squeeze out victories in the margins. These are the types of plays that separate good teams from great teams, and the Pistons are ticking all the right boxes.

READ MORE: Detroit Pistons Should Resist Urge To Trade For Anthony Davis Or Lauri Markkanen

With Ivey returning to the lineup for the Pistons on Saturday night, Detroit has one more element of its young, high-octane squad available once again. At 24 years old, Cunningham is the elder statesman out of Duren, Ivey, Thompson and himself, so the bulk of the Pistons’ core is still yet to hit their prime. Pistons President of Basketball Operations Trajan Langdon has surrounded that youthful core with veterans like Duncan Robinson, Caris LeVert and Javonte Green who can fill in the gaps and provide leadership for another postseason push. 

Through nearly a quarter of the NBA season, the Pistons have climbed to the top of the Eastern Conference by sticking to the team’s defense-first identity. Now that more players are returning with a clean bill of health, Detroit is looking to maintain its position atop the conference, and Cunningham is stringing together MVP-caliber performances to ensure the Pistons do so. 

For more information on the latest Detroit Pistons team or player news, follow @EricJRutter on X for continued basketball coverage. Also be sure to look up Roundtable - Michigan Men Media on Facebook for continued social media coverage of all the sporting teams in the Mitten.