Detroit Pistons vs Portland Trailblazers 2/8/2024
Game Breakdown
Pistons - 128-122 W (OT)
Cade, Ivey, Ausar, Muscala, Duren
First Possession of the game is beautiful work between Cade-Ivey
Cade Drives, Ivey with an awesome relocation along 3P line, shot fake and drives lane, Cade had relocated to corner and Ivey kicks for a WIDE OPEN C&S 3PA for Cade (simply misses)
Just a really good example of how they can play off of each other though
ALSO, Detroit gets OREB because running good, flowing offense usually lends itself to more of those opportunities
SILLY TURNOVERS!!! This was ROUGH in the 1st Quarter
You can live with these when they are aggressive but in the 1st quarter these are just loose with the ball and lackadaisical
Travels off attacking closeouts
Two turnovers against the press (a 3rd)
SIMONS carving up the ball screen defense in the 2nd quarter
On ball defender “dying” on the screen and Duren struggling to at least keep in front
DOWN 23 LATER IN THE 3RD….and then the response….
They stayed the course in terms of pressuring the rim and started to payoff with makes and FTAs
Get a couple stops but also Blazer TOs
Go Zone late 3rd and Stay in it to Start the 4th
Sasser/Ivey back to back 3s to start the 4th
Simons does not play 4th/OT (ankle injury)
They go back down 12 after Grant 3PM (great off ball relocation) and 2 FTs…and then 13….and then 14
How many times did they go 1 for 2 at the FT line in the 4th!!!???
DUREN giving some really nice rim protection here Mid 4th and AUSAR with solid defense on Grant
DOWN 5 with 2:00 in the 4th and it’s not looking great
PERFECTLY executed double team on Grant by Ausar and Sasser that leads to a TO and Sasser 3PM
CLUTCH mid range stepback from Cade
Another nice double leads to late shot clock attempt and transition dunk to tie
A THIRD double and steal by Sasser to end regulation
DUREN VERTICALITY! Right into Sasser Transition 3PM in OT is beautiful basketball
AUSAR, SASSER, DUREN defense was insanely impactful in the 4th/OT
UMUDE comes in “shot ready”, good for him!
G League Full Season Stats - 34% on almost 10 3PAs per game with MCC
Giving effort defensively
Forces TOUGH Simons 3PA, “forces” illegal ball screen
MUSCALA floor spacing shows up in the 1st quarter
Blazers go zone ATO and he hits back to back 3s
IVEY is shooting that thing right now!!
Up to 38% on the year on just over 4 attempts
78% on 6 attempts over last 3
62% on 5.6 attempts over last 7
56% on 5.2 attempts over last 11
He had some AWESOME off ball relocations in this game that really stood out
This isn’t just about getting open C&S 3PA’s (or closeout attacks) but also just keeps good floor spacing and floor balance
Some of these first half turnovers were really, really bad
Still, I am just not sure many young players in this league pressure the lane/rim in the way this kid is able to
He just isn’t converting them in this one, feel like maybe he is playing for the foul a little too much? Maybe, should have just looked to finish them?
Again made some hustle plays that probably would have looked more impactful if the buckets had been converted right after
CADE against Grant on defense is very interesting to watch and track in this game if you are a fan of playing him a little more at the “3” defensively
He is holding up fine in some isolated possessions in the first half (Grant gets him on a mid post late 2nd)
I still think the rim finishing is the biggest area of growth for him (or drawing fouls and getting to the FT line)
FTr has increased every year
Finishing 0-3 Feet is UP but only at 63%
Finishing 3-10 Feet is DOWN to 41%
HE WAS MAKING THESE IN THE 2ND HALF
That mid range game is nice in the 2nd quarter though, so smooth snaking into that
One thing with these trades is it DOES give him (and Ivey) more spacing offensively which is good BUT his usage and FGAs will probably go up so I am thinking we won’t see some of the “Growth on the Margins” (defense, rebounding, etc.) that I was hoping for
SASSER floater game stays on point
I honestly thought he might be a 1-level scorer BUT if this is true this makes him so much more dangerous
THIS KID LOOKS READY!!!
MUSCALA can barely move BUT I respect that he NEVER gives up on a play
DUREN deserves a lot of love for his growth offensively in terms of that ability to get downhill AND the footwork in the paint
Can we take his growth here in 1 offseason and feel confident that he can then apply it to other areas of his game….defensively?
Had some nice rim protection in the 4th and in OT
This is what I am here to see!
WISEMAN, to his credit, did disrupt a couple FGAs at the rim during the comeback stretch late 3rd/early 4th
Blazers
Simons, Thybulle, Grant, Camara, Walker
Definitely and interesting defensive lineup for the Blazers with these 4 switchable wing/forwards
Just running pin down after pin down after pin down for Grant
Getting a lot of buckets with their off the ball cutting
Feel like the Blazers broadcast has some of the best in game data/stats/analytics/etc.
CAMARA hounding Cade full court
Believe this team is one of the tops in the NBA terms of pressuring/picking up FC (or at least has some individual players at the top)
THYBULLE really driving the ball downhill early
JUSTIN MINAYA
6’5 2nd year player from Dominican Republic
Went to Providence, 24 years old
UDFA, Two-Way contract
Defensive minded wing?
BADJI just SWINGING at every shot that gets thrown up in the lane
HAGANS getting after it defensively but Pistons not respecting him as a shooter AT ALL
WALKER continues to be interesting to me
Rebounds, plays hard, what can the offensive game be?
SIMONS is just a certified bucket, can really score the ball at multiple levels
GRANT was on one and I just can’t help but wonder what the long term play is for him and the Blazers
Maybe they think they are going to build this out rather quickly and therefore he can be a part of that?
He still drives without a plan a little too much for me BUT he was getting buckets