Playoff Preview: Detroit Pistons vs New York Knicks

What Can the Pistons Expect Against the Knicks?

It’s playoff basketball time in Detroit. The Pistons have won 30 more games this season than last, finishing 44-38, booking themselves a first-round date with the New York Knicks. Regardless of the outcome of this series, the season has been a massive success, and the Pistons look poised to be even better in the next few years. With that being said, what are some factors that Pistons fans should keep an eye on going into the playoffs?

Briefly looking at who these teams have been so far, Detroit boasts the league’s tenth best defensive rating, versus New York with the thirteenth best, right around league average. On offense the Knicks have been superior, with the ninth best offensive rating, compared to the Pistons in twelfth. New York finished 51-31, 7 wins better than the Pistons, but have actually been worse since the All-Star break, sitting a game behind Detroit in the loss column over that span. The Knicks have a net rating of just 0.5 points per 100 possessions since the break, 17^th in the league, whereas the Pistons are up in ninth with 4.8 (per NBA.com).

In the regular season, Detroit won the season series 3-1, winning their last 3 meetings and both games at Madison Square Garden. One of the key stories across those 4 games was the play of Cade Cunningham. Cade averaged 30.8 points per game on awesome efficiency against the Knicks, including two 36-point outputs, one of which was just last week. One chess move to look forward to in the first round will be seeing who gets the assignment of guarding Cade. Miles McBride had most of that responsibility last week, and Cunningham took advantage of the size and strength mismatch seemingly each time down the court. Over the course of the season, we’ve seen Mikal Bridges and O.G. Anunoby spend a lot of time guarding Cade, but he has remained productive against both.

As a Knick, Bridges has yet to live up to his reputation as a true perimeter stopper from his time in Brooklyn and Phoenix, but he is still a very talented defensive option. Cunningham has proved a handful for him, though, as we see in this clip above. Cade crosses to his right hand and uses his acceleration to get by Bridges and put in the strong layup.

Anunoby has been one of the most versatile defenders in the league the past few years, and he has the size (6’8”, 240 pounds with a 7’2” wingspan) to really cause problems for the Pistons and Cunningham. Cade has been a challenge for him as well, though. This play is the next possession for Detroit after the clip against Bridges. He freezes Anunoby with a ball fake before even dribbling, then goes downhill and sinks a floater with contact over Karl-Anthony Towns’ contest.

I think we’ll see both of these guys on Cunningham at various points, but I would guess Tom Thibodeau will start out with Bridges. It will be fascinating to see when he turns to O.G., and if either can slow Cade down from his performances in the regular season.

Unfortunately for Detroit, the Knicks have a similarly dynamic offensive initiator on their side. J.B. Bickerstaff will have to make some tough decisions of his own when it comes to trying to stop Jalen Brunson. Ausar Thompson is the Pistons’ best point of attack defensive guy, but starting him on Brunson runs the risk of putting him in early foul trouble. Brunson is an expert at maneuvering his body in tight spaces and forcing contact, like he does in the clip below versus Cade Cunningham, feeling him on his hip and stopping abruptly to draw the foul.

This craftiness could pose a problem to second-year Ausar, but physically, he’s the best matchup for the Knicks’ star point guard.

Another potentially dangerous area on defense for Detroit will be how they deal with Karl-Anthony Towns. The Pistons have struggled this season with big men who can stretch the floor, and KAT is the preeminent example of that in the league today. Jalen Duren will get pulled out to the perimeter, where he is weak at guarding ball screens and moving his feet in space. Towns shot 43.8% on threes against Detroit in the regular season, so the Pistons will need to adapt in order to limit his opportunities.

If the Pistons are to win this series, one player whose impact will have to be felt is Tobias Harris. After missing time with right heel soreness, Harris has returned to the lineup, and his veteran playoff experience will be valuable to this young squad. Harris can serve as a secondary creator for the Pistons, and will be who they look to when the ball is out of Cunningham’s hands. If he can efficiently score and get good looks in the post against Josh Hart (not an easy task), the Pistons will have another option on offense. This would even give more opportunities to shooters like Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr.

The Pistons are ahead of schedule, but the playoffs are here whether they’re ready or not. The lights will be brighter than they have been in years for this franchise when they take the court at Madison Square Garden on Saturday. In a season of growth and surprises, this series gives Cade and company a chance to really turn heads on a national stage. As fans, we have the perfect opportunity to judge where this team is and where it can go down the line. Can the Pistons make some noise with their unexpected spot in the Eastern Conference landscape? Let’s see what they’ve got.