Detroit, MI

Monty Williams’ all-bench lineup keeps hurting Detroit Pistons. Here’s why he keeps doing it

Published

10 months ago

March 2, 2024

Monty Williams’ all-bench lineup keeps hurting Detroit Pistons. Here’s why he keeps doing it

The Detroit Pistons’ second unit needs help.

Monty Williams addressed the flaw in his rotation after the 110-100 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers at Little Caesars Arena on Friday, in which the Pistons trailed by 26 points after a 40-15 first-half run. That stretch started once most of Detroit’s starters were out of the game.

Williams likes to go deep into his bench early, and typically closes first quarters with five bench players on the floor, even if the opposing team still has its starters in the game. The all-bench lineups have been a factor in many of the Pistons’ losses this season, as the starters have often had to close double-digit deficits after checking back in.

Detroit closed the first quarter on Friday with Malachi Flynn, Quentin Grimes, Evan Fournier, Simone Fontecchio and James Wiseman. Cleveland, which closed the first with Evan Mobley and left him in the game to start the second, used a 14-2 run to push their lead to 13 before Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey re-entered the game early in the second.

A GOOD START? Pistons sacrifice offense to prioritize ‘core five’ by starting Isaiah Stewart

The guard duo was unable to stop the bleeding, though, as Darius Garland knocked down six 3-pointers during the 40-15 run. The starters eventually found a rhythm, closing the first half with an 11-0 run to whittle the lead down to 15.

But ultimately, the second-unit stretch was too much to overcome.

“I’m not happy about the outcome, for sure,” Williams said after the game. “There were a number of lapses with the second unit tonight. I thought that group, for a new group, the ball got sticky and we couldn’t score. When you score in the low 20s against a good defensive team like that, it’s gonna put a lot of pressure on your defense.

“I didn’t see the same ball movement, body movement that we saw in Chicago and even in New York. That part was a little frustrating because I gotta figure out a combination with that second unit that can play the way we want to play.”

The all-bench units have become a frequent topic on NBA Twitter and a source of pain for many Pistons fans, who have only nine wins against 50 losses this season. Many teams stagger their best playmakers, but Ivey typically subs out before Cunningham, leaving a bench guard to run the second unit.

Williams shifted his strategy in the second half, staggering Ivey and Cunningham down the stretch. Ivey subbed out midway through the third before coming back in for Cunningham a few minutes after. Cunningham came back in for Ivey with 8:51 remaining in the game, and Ivey checked back in to join Cunningham with under 4 minutes left.

SHAWN WINDSOR: Monty Williams’ lineup choices are stunting Pistons development

The Pistons outscored Cleveland by 11 in the fourth, and cut their deficit to seven with 1:22 to play. However, Williams sees an inherent flaw with allowing Ivey to run the second unit. Defensively, he said the 6-foot-4 guard would likely play alongside an even smaller guard in Flynn or rookie Marcus Sasser, who missed Friday’s game with a right knee contusion.

Staggering the two guards has been a frequent topic this season, and remains a potential solution to the second unit’s woes, at least offensively. On the other end, Williams would have to figure something out.

“The tough part is if I take JI out and then I bring him back with the second unit, no matter how you slice it you’re going to have two small guards out there with Malachi and Sass and JI,” Williams said. “It’s a tough one. I may have to bring (Isaiah Stewart) out, bring (Fontecchio) out and bring Stewy back with the second unit. We need an anchor out there on both ends and just didn’t have that tonight.”

Of course, the Pistons have other guards and wings on the bench who can play next to Ivey. Trade deadline acquisition Quentin Grimes has impressed early with his defensive ability, and Troy Brown Jr. can also defend and hit 3s. Williams has shied away from utilizing Ivey as Detroit’s lone on-ball creator on the floor, but the second-year guard ran the show with Fournier, Ausar Thompson, Fontecchio and Wiseman next to him in the fourth quarter.

Detroit trailed by 22 when Ivey initially subbed out in the fourth. With Cunningham back in and Stewart in at center, the Pistons found momentum. Thompson’s second 3-pointer of the night brought them within 13 midway through the fourth, and a pair of free throws by Cunningham cut it to 10.

Ivey’s 3-pointer with 1:22 to play cut it to 107-100, but they couldn’t complete the comeback. They were the superior team in the fourth, and Williams’ rotation decisions helped the team sustain momentum after a flat first half and third quarter.

It isn’t clear which direction Williams will go to bring more life to the bench. What is clear is that the all-bench units need to be shaken up.

“Defensively we were a lot better, and then in the fourth we played pretty good defense,” Williams said. “We just dug ourselves a hole. We were down 26. It felt like 56 because we just weren’t playing the kind of basketball that we had been playing in all of the games leading to this particular game. I gotta figure out the second unit, for sure.”

Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him @omarisankofa.

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Next up: Magic

Matchup: Pistons (9-50) at Orlando (34-26).

Tipoff: 6 p.m. Sunday; Kia Center, Orlando, Florida.

TV/radio: Bally Sports Detroit; WXYT-FM (97.1).

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Detroit, MI

Detroit Pistons Decide on Isaiah Stewart’s Playing Status vs Kings

Published

8 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Press Room

Detroit Pistons Decide on Isaiah Stewart’s Playing Status vs Kings

While the Detroit Pistons have had a healthy starting five in place lately, a key member of their bench unit has been dealing with a notable injury concern.

When the Pistons faced the Miami Heat last week, the veteran center Isaiah Stewart was injured just seven minutes into his shift off the bench. He left the court with four points and three rebounds.

After getting evaluated back in the locker room, Stewart did not get clearance to return to help the Pistons close out the matchup against the Heat.

Since then, Stewart has been out. Will the trend continue on Thursday night against the Sacramento Kings?

Unfortunately, for Detroit, that will be the case. Stewart has been downgraded to out for Thursday’s game.

Isaiah Stewart (knee) listed out Thursday.
— Underdog NBA (@Underdog__NBA) December 27, 2024

After going out against Miami, Stewart was not part of the action when the Pistons hosted the Utah Jazz the following game. On a positive note, Pistons head coach JB Bickerstaff mentioned that Stewart’s recovery would not require a long timeline. He was viewed as day-to-day.

When the Pistons traveled to take on the Phoenix Suns, Stewart hit the road with the team. He was seen putting in work following a shootaround session. Although Stewart didn’t play, the Pistons found success against the Suns with an eight-point win.

Nothing changed earlier this week when the Pistons paid a visit to the Los Angeles Lakers. Stewart was ruled out, but the Pistons did well enough to win without him. After getting a couple of days off following the win over the Lakers, Stewart was upgraded on the injury report to questionable.

While it’s a positive sign he seems to be making progress, Stewart is still not ready to return.

The Pistons and the Kings are set to tip at 10 PM ET.

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Detroit, MI

New Coach, Same Outcome for Red Wings

Published

16 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Press Room

The Detroit Red Wings announced the inevitable with the firing of head coach Derek Lalonde. The team showed life at the start of his tenure and even improved to 41 wins last season. But this year was a noticeable plateau under Lalonde, and Detroit made the only call they could.

In Lalonde’s place, the Red Wings hired Todd McLellan. The former San Jose Sharks, Edmonton Oilers, and Los Angeles Kings coach has over 15 years of NHL head coaching experience, and Detroit is hoping he can bring the team back to the postseason. It’s a gamble worth taking for the Red Wings organization, but the outcome won’t change as long as the roster construction remains the same.

McLellan is a good coach. He’s certainly an improvement over Lalonde, bringing more career wins and nine playoff appearances across three organizations, but he’s a band-aid. The wound in the Red Wings organization runs much deeper than who is behind the bench, and McLellan will be the next bench boss to fall victim to the lack of talent in Detroit

The Red Wings haven’t made the postseason since the 2015-2016 campaign. Long gone is the 30 year stretch where they were basically a perennial playoff team, capturing four Stanley Cups since 1996. The organization has been attempting to rebuild that dynasty for the last decade, with repeated failures along the way.

The current attempt to build the right core is another one of those missteps. They have good players. Captain Dylan Larkin will be a member of the United States roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off and is a talented point producer. Lucas Raymond continues to improve and become the team’s best offensive player. Alex DeBrincat has speed and scoring capabilities. Top defensemen Moritz Seider and Simon Edvinsson give them quality minutes every night.

Beyond them, though, the roster is so far from a playoff one, let alone a championship one. They lack depth across every position and they’ve consistently failed with their analysis of goaltenders. For several seasons now, the organization has been banking on their overflow of young prospects breaking through to the NHL, but it’s still a waiting game.

That won’t help McLellan take this middling team to the postseason. He has some weapons to work with and his arrival is sure to reinvigorate the Red Wings players. It ultimately won’t matter though. It won’t change the outcome this year or next year or even the year after until their NHL lineup improves drastically.

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Detroit, MI

Toledo vs Pitt bowl game in Detroit today: GameAbove Time, TV, channel, streaming info

Published

1 day ago

December 26, 2024

Press Room

Toledo vs Pitt bowl game in Detroit today: GameAbove Time, TV, channel, streaming info

College football’s annual bowl game visit to Detroit has a new name. This year, the Pittsburgh Panthers (7-5) meet the Toledo Rockets (7-5) in the 2024 GameAbove Sports Bowl at Ford Field, home to the Detroit Lions.

The Panthers lost five in a row in the ACC to close the regular season after beginning 7-0.

The Rockets were a MAC contender before losing their final two games of the regular season.

The GameAbove Bowl takes the name from what used to be the Quick Lane Bowl, won last year by Minnesota, 30-24, over Bowling Green.

Here’s the game info on Pitt vs. Toledo in the bowl game in Detroit:

Pittsburgh vs Toledo GameAbove Sports Bowl TV channel, start time

TV channel: ESPN.
Date: Thursday, Dec 26.
Start time: 2 p.m. ET.
Where: Ford Field, Detroit.
Streaming: ESPN+ or Fubo (free trial).

What are the bowl games today?

There are three bowl games today, Thursday, Dec. 26.

Pitt vs Toledo (GameAbove Sports Bowl): 2 p.m., ESPN
Rutgers vs Kansas State (Rate Sports Bowl): 5:30 p.m., ESPN
Arkansas State vs Bowling Green (68 Ventures Bowl): 9 p.m., ESPN

Watch today’s bowl games on Fubo (free trial)

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