Jalen Duren all but ruled the paint in Game 1, finishing with 12 rebounds to go along with 11 points.
It took a few weeks and some nervous moments along the way, but the Detroit Pistons finally passed the smell test for a top-seeded team. It wasn’t a buzzer-to-buzzer dominant display Tuesday, but there were enough stretches in Game 1 of their best-of-seven semifinal when their top seed status seemed certified.
It came at the expense of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who once again leaned on Donovan Mitchell and James Harden and also once again suffered a bit when those two are merely good but not great. All told, the Pistons had all the solutions in the fourth quarter and never seemed in serious trouble, thanks to their defense and a steady finishing touch by Cade Cunningham and a Cavs team that often seemed out of sync.
Both teams entered this series after enduring tough first rounds where they were pushed to the seven-game limit. And this series could go the distance as well. If nothing else, the Cavs and Pistons are built for longevity.
But first? The Pistons, helped by a 10-point win Tuesday, will enjoy a 1-0 advantage, at least for another few days.
Here are the takeaways from the Cavs-Pistons series opener:
1. Pistons bring more motor
Detroit is known for muscle cars and evidently also for muscle players. This version of the Pistons doesn’t compare to the Bad Boys in terms of flagrancy, but they’re very physical and it showed in Game 1.
Are they too physical for the Cavs? Well, that’s up to Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley to decide. Both Cleveland bigs were chopped down and conquered and the Pistons were only too happy to flex this advantage. Detroit had four more rebounds and even more damaging to the Cavs was the offensive rebounds and second chances to keep possessions alive; Pistons grabbed 16 of those compared to 11 for Cleveland.
Jalen Duren in particular seemed to rule the paint. He had 12 rebounds and managed to cool the Cavs during their fourth quarter rally. Two dunks by Duren put the Pistons up for good with four minutes left. Duren had as many rebounds as Mobley and Allen combined.
“That’s what our physicality does to people,” said Pistons coach JB Bickerstaff. “The aim is to wear you down as much as we possibly can.”
The physical battle managed to send the Pistons to the free-throw line, another byproduct of winning in the paint. Detroit shot 35 free throws, 16 for Cleveland. That’s a wide disparity in a game that was up for grabs midway through the fourth quarter.
“Energy they were at a 9.5,” said Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson. “We were at a 7.”
2. Pistons also firing
One reason the Cavs managed to squeeze past the Toronto Raptors in the seven-game first round? Toronto wasn’t a very good outside shooting team, especially after losing Immanuel Quickley and later Brandon Ingram.
Well, the second round is a different story. The Pistons can spread the floor and hit open shots and this presents a problem for Cleveland’s perimeter defense.
Duncan Robinson shot 7-for-12 from deep and Cleveland struggled to disrupt his rhythm. When he isn’t hitting those shots, he’s unplayable. But since those shots fell, the Pistons were blessed with a weapon other than Cade Cunningham.
Overall, the Pistons always seemed to swish one from deep in big moments, either to keep the Cavs from taking control or stretching the lead. And this was in a game where Cunningham wasn’t especially sharp.
3. Harden (and Cavs) beset by turnovers
He was Cleveland’s most reliable source of offense in the fourth quarter when the Cavs assembled their best stretch of the game and managed to pull even after trailing by 18.
He finished with 22 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Overall, Harden’s flow was solid and he was productive for the most part.
But those turnovers. They’re avalanching on him in these playoffs and cutting short possessions that the Pistons turned into easy transition baskets Tuesday. He had seven, which was one more turnover than field goals.
And this has been a troublesome pattern for him. Harden averaged six turnovers in the first round. Mistakes are understandable for players with heavy ball usage, but in Harden’s case they’re coming at the wrong time.
He lost the ball during double teams; at other times he was simply careless. He’ll need to clean that up because the Pistons, sensing a weakness, will bring more doubles his way and force the ball from his hands and prove he isn’t as aging as he sometimes looked in Game 1.
“That’s the game right there,” he said. “A lot of them are just on me. I’ve got to be better and will be better.”
Actually, it wasn’t just him Tuesday; the Cavs had 19 turnovers which the Pistons used to score 31 points.
“So many things are under our control,” Mitchell said. “It’s just a matter of being sharp and we just weren’t.”
4. Early X-factors
Here are players outside of the stars who could be difference-makers in this series:
- Max Strus. The Cavs needed someone other than Mitchell and Harden to step forward and Strus was that player. He scored 19 points and was in the mix when the Cavs generated a second-half run. His deep shooting will be crucial to Cleveland especially if Harden (1-for-7 from deep) and/or Mitchell aren’t efficient, and if Sam Merrill (hamstring) is limited.
- Daniss Jenkins. He showed good change of pace when replacing Cunningham and Detroit was in good hands throughout the game with their point guards. Jenkins brings a solid dribble and plenty of confidence and Bickerstaff has faith in him. He had 12 points, seven rebounds and four steals.
- Tobias Harris. Fresh off a spectacular showing in Game Seven against the Magic, Harris continued his solid supporting play with 20 points and eight rebounds Tuesday. Harris arrived in Detroit a bit wounded after falling out of favor in Philly. But this has been a career resurrection for him in Detroit, where he’s being asked to do plenty — he played 39 minutes in Game 1 — and he’s delivering.
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA since 1985. You can e-mail him at spowell@nba.com, find his archive here and follow him on X.
