Neither the Detroit Pistons nor the Memphis Grizzlies had their desired seasons a year ago. But both clubs have given their fans reason to believe again ahead of Wednesday’s matchup in Detroit.
Detroit is coming off a franchise-worst 14-68 campaign that saw it lose a single-season NBA record 28 straight games. The Pistons, led by first-year head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, have already won eight games this year, a total they didn’t reach until Feb. 8 last year.
The Grizzlies, who were on the heels of three straight postseason appearances, lost 55 games last year, much due to superstar Ja Morant playing only nine games due to a suspension and season-ending shoulder injury. Memphis appears to have returned to form this season, owning the fifth-best record in the Western Conference.
The Pistons enter play following Monday’s 102-100 home win over the Toronto Raptors, clinched with Jaden Ivey’s buzzer-beating midrange jumper.
Ivey led Detroit, which outscored Toronto 30-20 in the fourth quarter, with 25 points and eight assists.
“When (Jaden) has the ball in his hands in space, there aren’t too many guys who can stay in front of him in the league. I don’t care who it is, or how good you are defensively,” Bickerstaff said. “I thought he did a great job, obviously, getting to that spot. Those are shots that he works on.”
Ivey’s 18.4 points per game rank second on the team, behind Cade Cunningham’s 23.5.
Memphis, currently winners of three in a row, is vying for its longest win streak of the early season. Monday saw the Grizzlies go wire-to-wire in a 123-98 home win over the Portland Trail Blazers. Morant, who had missed eight straight games due to a hip injury, returned in style, logging 22 points and 11 assists in just 23 minutes.
“(Ja) worked his tail off throughout the return to play process,” Memphis head coach Taylor Jenkins said. “He missed being out there, but even his engagement when he’s out is great. You all don’t get to see the work that he’s putting in, but this past week was some of the best work I’d seen from him. … He loves the game. He put in the work and this is no shock to see the impact he made in his first game back.”
In nine games this year, Morant is averaging 20.8 points per game. Jaren Jackson Jr. leads Memphis with 22.8 per contest, and chipped in 21 points, six boards and three blocks in Monday’s win.
The Grizzlies also got 13 points and a season-high 17 rebounds off the bench from Santi Aldama, who’s averaging career highs of 12.7 points and 7.8 boards per game.
“With Santi, I just love the effort,” Jenkins said. “That’s something that we’re challenging him with every single day. He had seven offensive rebounds (against Portland), and that’s huge. That’s an instinctual part of his game that aids us when we can create second chance opportunities.”
