Detroit Pistons haven’t been okay lately and Isaiah Stewart thinks it is because they are not playing their kind of game.
East no. 1 team dropped three of their last four games, with the latest one coming from the Miami Heat. They had a mediocre Western Conference trip as they recorded wins over the Portland Trailblazers, Sacramento Kings, and Los Angeles Lakers but dropped the winnable ones, against the Utah Jazz and the Los Angeles Clippers.
Stewart, an emerging defensive juggernaut, thought they have been bad on the defensive end of the game and so, they need to do some sort of reflection.
“We haven’t played to our standard on that side of the floor. You know what we’re known for on that side of the floor,” he told reporters when asked about the latest loss.
“We haven’t been there, you know, this last stretch out West and even tonight. We have to look at ourselves in the mirror and challenge ourselves, each one of us, to be the best we can on that end. Because that’s what this team is about. We’re a defensive team. Start on the defensive and translate to offense.”
The Pistons big man might have a point here as they allowed Jazz’s Keyonte George to drop 31 on them and allowed Kawhi Leonard to score 55 points. Against the Heat, it was Norman Powell who exploded.
Stewart provided the defense he was talking about as he blocked five shots and deflecting many passes and attempts.
Detroit Pistons got suckerpunched
Cade Cunningham dropped 31 points and 11 assists for them but then they were not enough as Powell torched them with 36 while Jaime Jaquez Jr. contributed 19 points and made the shot that sealed the 6-point win for them.
Ausar Thompson, who scored 12 points and had the team 2nd worst -12, points to their readiness as the main suspect for the loss. He thinks they did not have the right mentality.
“We just did not come to play,” Thompson said. “We took this game for granted. They came in and hit us (in the mouth).”
Pistons will have a two-day rest before heading for tough assignments against the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks on a back-to-back.
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