In the end, they climbed all the way out of the giant hole, then pushed the Orlando Magic into it. The clock was ticking down, the crowd at Little Caesars Arena was roaring the chorus of “Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye.” And it was indeed, finally, blissfully, goodbye.
Goodbye to all that Orlando crunching. Goodbye to Paulo Banchero muscling in and Desmond Bane banging 3-pointers. Goodbye to the idea that these Detroit Pistons, in struggling with a No. 8 seed, were some kind of mirage, a No. 1 seed that didn’t deserve their ranking, destined to make the wrong kind of history.
Goodbye to all that. Down three games to one? Overcome. Down 24 points in the second half of Game 6? Overcome. Never faced a Game 7 together before? Overcome. Like a patient climber, hand over hand, grip over grip, these Pistons pulled themselves from a near-disastrous exit to a level not seen in Detroit in nearly two decades: a playoff series victory, with another round to go.
And at the heart of this amazing win on Sunday, May 3, alongside the expected superstar efforts of Cade Cunningham (32 points, 12 assists) was a 33-year-old veteran on his fifth different franchise and second stint in this city, a guy who’s had dirt thrown on him himself, but shook it free forever on Sunday.
Tobias Harris, in scoring 30 points in this series finale, made every important shot, grabbed critical rebounds, stole balls, drew fouls, played knees-bent, clap-your-hands defense like a kid half his age, and squashed the last of Orlando’s hopes with a virtuoso display of timely heroics. It was his best – and most important – game since arriving back in this city.
Mr. Harris’ Opus.
“Nobody can talk [expletive] to me about Tobias Harris,” coach JB Bickerstaff declared after Harris’s clutch performance helped the Pistons surge past the Magic for good in Game 7, 116-94. “He is dependable, reliable, prepared for the moment. He’s a leader, he’s a great teammate. He’s a great human being. …
“I can come up with more adjectives if you want, but I think you get my drift.”
We get the drift.
Mr. Harris’ Opus.
Defying physics, changing his reputation
Understand that two years ago, in a first-round series for the Philadelphia 76ers, Harris had no points and just two shots in 29 minutes of an elimination game. You can only imagine how much trash he heard in Philly, given his rich contract and that town’s love of blaming someone after failure. A popular social media mantra: “0 Points, $180 Million.”
That turned out to be Harris’ last game for the Sixers. He signed back here with Detroit, talking about mentoring a younger bunch. But no doubt, somewhere in the back of his mind, he was waiting for a chance to put an end to all that “disappears in big games” talk.
Consider Sunday a mouth-closer. From the jump, Harris was aggressive and unflappable. And come the second quarter, with Cunningham in a slow-start mode, Harris all but took the game over. He hit drives, back-ins, turnarounds and 3-pointers. He hit a double-pump shot in mid-air that almost defied physics. He had 17 points in the period, and in the final 2½ minutes, he hit four straight shots, turning a neck-and-neck game into an 11-point Pistons lead at the break.
That stretch actually prompted ESPN’S Charles Barkley to declare, at halftime, that the Pistons “just won” the series.
Turns out Barkley was prophetic.
“What were you feeling during that second-quarter run?’’ someone asked Harris in the Pistons’ locker room afterwards.
“Finding those right opportunities and just vibing with what’s happening out there,” he said. “I was feelin it. … I tell all these guys here, it’s not a one-game thing. … Shoot the shots that are available to you and don’t change your game. Tonight was a testament to that.”
Was it experience that allowed him such a calm approach in such a big game?
“I would hope so,” he said. “I think you learn through the journey. You learn through the disappointment. You learn through the excitement as well.”
Spoken like a man who’s had both.
Mr. Harris’s Opus.
Sunshine awaits Pistons, as do the Cavaliers
“He’s a pro’s pro,” Cunningham said of Harris after the win. “We’re lucky to have him. He was huge this game, and huge reason why we won this game the way we did, because he set the tone.”
And once he did, Cunningham was there to slam the door closed. The butter-smooth superstar seemed to mature in front of our eyes this series. They say the best athletes experience things slower than their competitors, which lets them make better decisions and relax in their technique.
Cunningham is the instruction manual for that. He moves like he’s in his own time zone. He dribbles with his head often directed at the defender’s feet, easy, easy, then suddenly he’s in another gear and is gone for a layup or a swishing jumper.
Moment after big moment Sunday, when the Magic threatened to get back into it, Cunningham wagged the figurative “Nuh-uh” finger, hitting 3-pointers, floaters, soft jumpers. He eventually crushed the will of the stubborn and talented Magic, who, after a tight first half of sharpshooting, finally withered under the relentless pressure of the Pistons’ signature defense.
And make no mistake. The scoring by Harris and Cunningham provided the cushion. But defense won this series. Defense saved Game 6 when all seemed lost. And defense iced Game 7. The Pistons finished with nine steals, six blocks, and 11 offensive rebounds on Sunday, numbers that reflect the turnaround moments.
Offensively, they had 30 assists, easily won the points-in-the-paint battle and hit nearly half of their 33 3-point attempts.
As a result, the final minutes were a joyous countdown, and a shedding of the losing patina that has hung over the basketball court in this town for the past 18 years.
No more. The Pistons just won a playoff series. More than won it. They clawed it back and earned every inch of it, the way a once-wayward romantic earns back the heart of his true love.
“To be honest with you,” Bickerstaff said, “I never doubted we were going to win this series. …
“I know a lot of people would have liked it to be easier, but I think it was great for our guys to go through what they went through, to understand what it looks like and where they have to be in order to get it done.”
It bodes well for the next time things get tough. Which will come soon enough, with Game 1 of the second round starting Sunday against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
A good hour after the game ended, Cunningham, in a simple black sweatsuit, walked slowly down the tunnel with a colleague towards his car. And Harris, in a denim outfit and yellow jacket, greeted people and shook hands before leaving with a small group. They looked tired. They looked content. They looked lighter.
That’s what happens when you shed bad skin, bury bad echoes and climb out of a big old hole: Sunlight awaits. So does more basketball. How good a piece of news is that?
Contact Mitch Albom: malbom@freepress.com. Check out the latest updates on his charities, books and events at MitchAlbom.com. Follow @mitchalbom on x.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mitch Albom: Pistons emerge into the sunlight, shedding dark vibes and labels
Reporting by Mitch Albom, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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