Free Press columnist Carlos Monarrez answers three burning questions from Little Caesars Arena about the Detroit Pistons’ 116-109 victory over the Orlando Magic in Game 5 of their first-round NBA playoff series Wednesday, April 29.
Should Wednesday’s game have been this close?
Not really. The Magic were without one of their key players, when Michigan alumnus Franz Wagner sat out with a high ankle sprain. Wagner has been the main defender on Cade Cunningham, meaning his absence was a big reason the Pistons star went off with 45 points. It should have been an outsized advantage for the Pistons playing at home. But thanks to Paolo Banchero’s fabulous shooting night, resulting in 45 points, the Magic battled back from an early 17-point deficit, refused to go away and kept it to a single-digit deficit consistently through the end of the game. Look, give the Pistons plenty of credit for winning – surviving, perhaps– to force a Game 6. But it doesn’t bode well to have such a big advantage and not win such a huge game more decisively.
Cade in control
Obviously, Cade Cunningham is the All-Star focal point of the Pistons’ offense. And even though he had 35 points late in the third quarter, a colleague turned to me and asked, “How many points do you think Cade needs to have tonight?” I jokingly said 50, but really I wanted to say “all of them.” Cunningham was fantastic, going 13-for-23 for 45 points in 43 minutes. Coach J.B. Bickerstaff was expertly judicious getting Cunningham rest when he could, considering how spent he looked after Game 4. And don’t forget it hasn’t been that long since Cunningham returned from a collapsed lung. Of course this team will only go as far as Cunningham takes them. He proved as much again Wednesday and will have to do so as least two more times in this series if the Pistons are going to get their first playoff series victory since 2008.
How was the crowd?
I ran into a couple of Pistons fans in the morning, both of whom were planning to attend the game. And both were worried – and borderline angry. One said, “They better flippin’ win.” Except he didn’t say “flippin’.” The LCA crowd seemed to share those sentiments and wasn’t exactly overwhelmingly enthusiastic. Maybe the rainy rush-hour commute had something do with it, but the arena had many empty seats in the lower and upper levels until about halfway into the first quarter. Eventually, most seats ended up occupied, but there was a general sense of disquiet among the fans for most of the game. Even when the Pistons were up 17 points in the first half, there was never truly a sense of overwhelming confidence from the Pistons faithful. It’s hard to blame them, considering how disappointing this series has been.
Contact Carlos Monarrez at cmonarrez@freepress.com and follow him on X @cmonarrez.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Even with win, Detroit Pistons shouldn’t feel good about Game 6 hopes
Reporting by Carlos Monarrez, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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