Three quick observations from Tuesday night’s 117-96 loss to the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden in the preseason opener
THAT’S A START – Dwane Casey probably didn’t get everything he wanted out of the preseason opener, but he got enough on a few different levels. The 22 turnovers, 13 in the first half, and leaky transition defense – typical stuff a week into training camp – will serve as useful teaching points in the short term. In the long term, the story of Tuesday’s loss to the Knicks, though, might well be the impact of a few newcomers. Rookie Jaden Ivey, the fifth pick in June’s draft, showed off the dynamic speed as advertised but also the passing skills, not as well known, that have caught Casey’s attention already. Ivey finished with 16 points on 6 of 9 shooting in 22 minutes. He hit his only 3-point attempt, a pull-up in transition, and made several strong passes to open shooters off of penetration. He blew by R.J. Barrett for a layup and picked Barrett’s pocket to score a breakaway dunk. He finished with four rebounds, two assists and zero turnovers. Veteran Bojan Bogdanovic, a sublime trade acquisition by GM Troy Weaver late in the off-season, hit 3 of 3 from the 3-point line in an 11-point first half, giving the Ivey-Cade Cunningham the space to operate that eventually figures to reap huge dividends for the Pistons. The Knicks are a largely intact veteran team that added Jalen Brunson as a big-ticket free agent and that was reflected in their much more notable cohesion than the youthful Pistons. The Knicks opened the second half with a 13-2 run to take a 12-point lead to 23 and weren’t threatened after that. Dwane Casey started with Cade Cunningham, Stewart and Saddiq Bey in addition to Ivey and Bogdanovic.
FINDING AN IDENTITY – The second unit of Killian Hayes, Isaiah Livers, Corey Joseph and two big men – Marvin Bagley III and Jalen Duren – checked in en masse with about three minutes left in the first quarter and got a Joseph triple on its first possession, then went scoreless for the rest of the quarter. When Alec Burks returns from ankle surgery – he’s due to be re-evaluated in two weeks – he figures to be the scorer that helps prevent such droughts. In the meantime, the Pistons will have to figure it out with their second unit. They were tied with the Knicks at 27 early in the second quarter when New York went on a 13-0 run fueled by transition scoring – including triples on three consecutive possessions in a 50-second span and breakaway layups on successive possessions following Pistons turnovers. Hayes was a bright spot for the second unit, scoring 11 points on 5 of 12 shooting, hitting 1 of 3 triples, and led the Pistons with five assists. Duren, the 13th pick who was tied for first as biggest draft steal in the annual NBA.com survey of general managers, made an overwhelmingly favorable impression in Summer League but the one thing he didn’t do was rebound. But Dwane Casey has said several times over the first week that Duren has gone after every rebound and that was apparent with his work at both ends. He finished with 14 rebounds in 23 minutes, four at the offensive end.
STAR STRUGGLES – One thing Casey won’t fret for a minute will be the first-game struggles of Cade Cunningham and Saddiq Bey. Cunningham missed his first five shots and finished with seven points on 3 of 12 shooting, 1 of 4 from the 3-point arc, to go with two rebounds, three assists, a steal and four turnovers. Cunningham attempted a few post-up shots when he found himself against Jalen Brunson, but was called for an offensive foul once and missed another time. Bey didn’t hit a 3-pointer in five attempts, finishing with six points on 1 of 8 shooting in 23 minutes. He hit 4 of 5 from the foul line, adding three rebounds, two assists and two steals. The starters checked out with between seven and eight minutes left in the third quarter and played between 22 and 25 minutes apiece. Casey kept the first and second units almost exclusively intact for all of their time on the court, then Casey began sprinkling in other players in the fourth quarter. Veteran Rodney McGruder, whose value includes coming off the bench and taking open shots without hesitation, played true to form, scoring eight points in seven minutes and hitting 2 of 3 triples.