CHARLOTTE, NC – It was close until it wasn’t.
After three competitive quarters, the Detroit Pistons showed the Charlotte Hornets why they’re the East’s No. 1 team and the Hornets, one of the league’s hottest teams since Jan. 1, are battling for play-in position.
The Pistons opened the fourth quarter on Friday, April 10, with a decisive 22-4 run, all while holding the Hornets to just 10 points, on 26.3% shooting, for a 118-100 win.
Charlotte – among the five East teams without a top-six seed clinched, still in the morass of playoffs and play-in tournament – needed a victory much more than Detroit, which has known its playoff berth and seed for nearly a week.
In the meantime, the Pistons have been focused on getting ready for the playoffs, with nearly a week off coming; their win Friday saw them healthy fully for the first time in more than a month and starting a win streak anew. Their final game of the regular season, on the road against the Indiana Pacers on Sunday (6 p.m. FanDuel Sports Network Detroit) has history on the line – a shot at 60 wins for only the third time in franchise history – and then a breather before the NBA playoffs begin April 18 (with the Pistons’ postseason opener likely on April 19 at Little Caesars Arena).
“I think we’re in a good spot,” said Cade Cunningham, who had 14 points and seven assists. “We’re playing good basketball. Tonight, fourth quarter, defensively I thought we were really good. Charlotte’s been playing really good basketball, so for us to come in here, a game that they really needed to win, and handle our business the way we did is a good sign for us. Just gotta keep going and take this week, this Indiana game and our first playoff game serious.”
Late-season injuries to Cunningham and Isaiah Stewart threatened to knock the Pistons off track down the stretch. Stewart missed 13 games with a left calf strain, and Cunningham joined him on the injury report March 17 after he went down with a collapsed left lung against the Washington Wizards, missing 11 games. Both players returned Wednesday in the team’s home finale.
It would be hyperbole to say the Pistons didn’t miss the duo, but their absence isn’t reflected in the team’s record. They’ve won 11 of 14, the bulk of featured Cunningham either in street clothes or absent entirely. The only player on Friday’s injury report was Kevin Huerter, for “illness,” and he participated in shootaround and eventually was upgraded to available.
After potentially missing the rest of the regular season, Cunningham played 28 minutes Friday, capitalizing on an opportunity to get up to full speed before the postseason begins.
“It’s good man,” teammate Jalen Duren said. “It’s good to have everybody back. It’s good to be back out there. Obviously we’ve played together before, but it’s been a little minute. Having everybody in rotation and get some bump for everybody, Deuce [Cunningham] getting his feel back, Stew getting his feel back, it’s been good and I feel like throughout this next game and these couple days we have to get right, by the time it’s ready to go again, we’ll be ready.”
The Pistons have a chance to join the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder as 60-game winners this season –an enormous accomplishment for a franchise that had 14 wins just two seasons ago, as part of a campaign with a 28-game losing streak and the worst record in team history.
And now? A win over the Pacers would give them their third 60-win season – equaling the franchise’s NBA championships, which shows the rarity of the feat.
On Friday, the Pistons played like the best version of themselves. The metrics – highlighted by the league’s second-best defense and a top-11 offense – show they are a genuine contender. The win over the Hornets showed an ability to turn on their defensive intensity at well. The Pistons force turnovers at an elite rate and wear teams down with physicality and in transition.
It was the final expression of a preseason confidence – even as they weren’t sure how many wins would come – that they had a chance to reach heights not seen for nearly two decades.
“I went in with no expectations, to be honest,” Cunningham said. “I went in trying to be better than last year and not knowing where that would take us or what that would look like, and to what extent it would go. I’m pleased with where we’re at but I’m not really satisfied or anything. It’s been a great year so far and now we’re where we want to be, which is the playoffs. Now we’re flowing and the real grind starts.”
The Pistons crushed their regular-season goals. They have a meaningful milestone – 60 wins – to chase Sunday, and then they’ll regroup for what they believe will be a significant postseason run.
“Obviously we had high expectations coming off of last year and our playoff series.,” Stewart said. “We didn’t know what it was going to look like, but for us to be here in this position, I would say we definitely achieved the goals.”
Bigger goals, however, await in the playoffs. First up, winning a home postseason game – something not achieved since 2008, a run of 10 straight losses dating back to the Pistons time at the Palace of Auburn Hills. After that, becoming the first Pistons team to win a playoff series since, yes, also 2008. Also, avenging last year’s first-round loss to the New York Knicks would be good. And, finally, a championship is the ultimate hope – one that players haven’t shied away from discussing this season.
“But we’re not done yet,” Stewart said. “This is only the regular season and we put the work in to be where we’re at. Now we’re looking at the journey ahead of us and what we want to achieve.”
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky and/or X @omarisankofa.
Next up: Pacers
Matchup: Pistons (59-22) at Indiana (19-62); regular-season finale.
Tipoff: 6 p.m. Sunday, April 12; Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis.
TV/radio: FanDuel Sports Network Detroit, WMYD-TV (Ch. 20 in Detroit); WXYT-FM (97.1)
At stake: A Pistons win would give them the third 60-win season in franchise history; a Pacers win would let them avoid tying the worst record in franchise history (19-63 in 1982-83).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons a win from history, right where they want to be
Reporting by Omari Sankofa II, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
