Game Recap: Pistons 107, Cavaliers 97
The Pistons defeated the Cavaliers, 107-97 to take a 2-0 series lead.
Two years ago, the Pistons won 14 games. Now they’re two wins from reaching the Eastern Conference Finals.
It has been a stunning turnaround in such a short amount of time, and here they are, up 2-0 on the Cleveland Cavaliers in the semifinals and showing few if any signs of stumbling.
For the second time in the series, they had all the answers and plays in the fourth quarter, played better defense, made fewer mistakes and had the better star player — Cade Cunningham outshined Donovan Mitchell and James Harden when it counted.
Until and unless the Cavs demonstrate otherwise over the next two games in Cleveland, the Pistons are the better team, far steadier and bringing multiple ways to dictate the outcome.
The Cavs are heavily dependent on Mitchell and Harden, who delivered mainly tame outputs in the first two games, while the supporting help hasn’t made much of a difference.
“I don’t know what it is,” said Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson, searching for solutions after his team fell behind big once again and had to scramble back. “I’ve got to look at everything … still back to the drawing board.”
Here are the takeaways from the Pistons’ 10-point Game 2 win:
1. Cunningham took ownership of the 4th
He’s Cool Hand Cade, bringing precisely what it takes to rescue a team engaged in a spirited fourth quarter that was up for grabs.
Cunningham seems built for this — the playoffs (his first), the demands and thankfully for the Pistons, the steady hand in times of need. His leadership, trust in his teammates, scoring, passing and defense all came together to trigger key stretches and plays when the Pistons needed it most.
And that’s the beauty of Cunningham — not only does he bring talent, but the intangibles, allowing him to make plays both directly and indirectly that impact winning.
He must be watched to fully appreciate. He goes beyond statistics, which don’t reflect his decision-making, court awareness or composure. He doesn’t seem to flinch, no matter the situation, and is always accountable.
So what did he do in the fourth Thursday? Score 12 of his 25 points and play solid defense.
He’s averaging 31 points, shooting 55% from deep and just over seven assists in the Pistons’ last five games, all wins, three of them elimination games.
What’s strange is Cunningham isn’t super athletic and mainly plays beneath the rim. Yet he still finds ways to beat his man off the dribble and create space for jumpers and is rarely out of position or overpowered on defense.
2. Harden doesn’t make it easy
Had he not agreed to a midseason trade from the Clippers, Harden would be home right now, unable to repair his post-season reputation. Instead, he’s in the playoffs and … unable to repair his post-season reputation.
He’s one of the game’s greatest scorers, a former MVP, a tremendous passer and a Hall of Fame lock. But his playoff history is another conversation, which Harden is desperate to change. Still.
He endured a sketchy first round which was hampered by turnovers — six per game. In the first game of this semifinal, he was avalanched by his turnovers again. And Thursday was more of the same — four turnovers, three baskets (out of 13 attempts) and 10 points. He took just two shots in the second half.
This was the fourth time in nine playoff games this spring that Harden had more turnovers than made baskets.
Harden hasn’t returned to the NBA Finals since 2011 with Oklahoma City, which means he hasn’t gone that far as a star. Not in Houston, not Brooklyn, not Philadelphia, the Clippers and now finds himself two losses away from failing to reach the second round with the Cavs.
He had some tough playoff performances in that stretch, and this series, so far anyway, hasn’t produced a statement game. Furthermore, he’s 36, which means not only is he running out of chances in this series trailing 0-2, he might not have many more in the future.
Conversations can change in a hurry. A solid outing in Game 3 would help. It’s an uphill climb for Harden and his confidence.
3. Cavs can’t connect from deep
To paraphrase broadcaster Mike Breen, whenever the Cavs took a deep shot in the fourth quarter it was more clang than bang. How about 0-for-11 on 3-pointers in the period? And a tightly-contested period? That pretty much was the ballgame.
Because if the Cavs shot a reasonably decent percentage, they would’ve had a chance to win. Instead, those missed 3-pointers became empty possessions for Cleveland and enabled the Pistons to take advantage and pull away.
The issue for Cleveland is their stars — Mitchell and Harden — are inconsistent from that range, and in this game combined to shoot 2-for-13. The Cavs’ most reliable shooters, Max Strus and Sam Merrill, combined to miss five of six from that range. And it should be mentioned that those were all attributed to Strus because Merrill was a scratch due to a hamstring issue.
The silver lining is Cleveland once again was involved in a competitive game in spite of their flaws. If they clean up the turnovers and poor outside shooting they’d increase their chances of pulling even for the series.
But they’re down 2-0, which means their margin for error is shrinking. They can’t afford another relapse of shooting and ball handling mistakes, or else.
4. Castoffs coming through
There are folks in Miami and Philadelphia scratching their heads right now while watching this series and specifically two players in particular — Duncan Robinson and Tobias Harris. And folks in those cities are saying in unison — who’s that guy?
Robinson left the Heat and Harris left the 76ers when those teams had no more use for them. Robinson lost his starting job with the Heat once his 3-point shooting suffered; he was a liability primarily because of defense. Harris’ final game in Philly two years ago was forgettable — 29 minutes, zero points in a playoff loss to the Knicks.
Here with the Pistons, it’s a different story. Both are enjoying career rebirths and doing it together. Harris just had his seventh straight 20-point playoff game; he had only four previously for his playoff career. He’s harming the Cavs by repeatedly backing his man down on the dribble and then swishing turnaround jumpers.
“There’s no insecurity in who he is,” said Pistons coach JB Bickerstaff. “He’s got a spot and knows his game. Tobias knows he’s going to get you in the post. He might back you down, he might face you up, but he’s going to get to the same spot and knock it down.”
Robinson is 10-for-17 on 3-point shooting in this series. His importance is growing; Bickerstaff gave him 37 minutes Thursday and Robinson replied with 17 points, making timely shots during key moments.
Not only have they been solid, but consistent. Another reason why followers in Miami and Philadelphia are a bit confused right now.
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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.
