The #Pistons couldn’t hold on late in the game giving up 33 points in the fourth quarter to the Houston Rockets to put them 0-1 on the season. James Harden, acquired in a trade with Oklahoma City over the weekend, more than impressed in his Houston debut with 37 points and 12 assists as the Rockets defeated the Detroit Pistons 105-96 Wednesday at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
Key Points:
- Don’t give all of the credit for the victory for the Rockets to Harden. Former Piston Carlos Delfino was a spark plug for Houston coming off the bench. Delfino, made 5-of-6 3-point attempts and grabbed 7 rebounds.
- The Pistons guards didn’t show up at the Palace Wednesday night.
- Rodney Stuckey was just 1-for-10 from the floor for 9 points and 6 assists.
- Brandon Knight waited till later in the game to get going. He shot just 5-for-15 from the floor for 15 points on the night with 4 assists and 2 turnovers.
- Andre Durmmond with his first two and only two NBA points of the game. He looked a bit nervous, but you can bet we’ll see some double-double’s from him soon.
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- Kim English can shoot! He knocked down two consecutive high pressure three’s to add to the Pistons lead in the third quarter. He finished with 8 points on 3-for-6 shooting with 3 assists and 2 steals in just 13:47 minutes on the floor.
- Kyle Singler can shoot too! Singler with 10 points on 4-for-5 shooting in 15 minutes on floor. He may be this year’s Need4Sweede.
- Austin Day may want to start packing for Europe, he’s not going to play a minute for this team unless everyone else gets kidnapped and held for ransom.
- Jason Maxiell as active as he’s been in a few seasons. He was solid on both ends of the floor showing everyone why he’s starting for this team. Jason with 10 points, 8 boards and 2 blocked shots on the night. The Baby Eater is back.
- Highlights of the game via NBA.com
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- Greg Monroe led the Pistons with 14 points on 7-for-13 shooting with 8 boards, 4 assists and 4 steals. He know that he’s a big part of the team and if he’s playing well, the team does well.
- Bynumite in the rotation. Will played well and was a solid spark for the Pistons when they were trying to mount a lead. Bynum finished with 9 points, 2 assists and a steal in 13 minutes on the floor.
Photo Getty Images/Editing Need4Sheed.com
- A 20 point fourth quarter swing in the fourth quarter doesn’t translate into wins. Everything that was going right started going wrong for Detroit as the defense broke down and Houston stepped up.
- Kravtsov and Maggette were both inactive for the game. Why not put CV31 on the inactive list since that’s what he is when he’s on court. The only way that Charlie Villanueva is going to get playing time with this organization is with the Mad Ants.
Tom Gores: “I came here to win. I’m a now person,” he said. “Last year, we said we’re going to get into the playoffs (this season) and I meant it. We need to get into the playoffs.”
- After just one game, this team look like it’s on the rise. You can see the team has changes and the youth can really take them places. They may not be vying for championships just yet, but mark my words this team is going to be really fun to watch.
- Don’t forget about the 2012-2012 Detroit Pistons Intros.
- Next up: On the road in Phoenix to take on the Suns Friday night.
maxie played fantastic, if he continues this thru the whole year, he’s going to be a very good power forward. Knight looks a bit bigger and stronger than last year, and I noticed he can take more contact, but he still is unable to distribute the ball, Moose is better at generating assists than Knight. Stuckey didn’t really have a bad night what happened is harden played out of his mind. Look for Stuckey to bounce back.
we have a serious need 4 defense. we stiil cant outscore any and I mean any team. defense defense defense.
Great game, In the third quarter I think they showed their best side. Improvement on the defense is what we need. Maxiell, Monroe,Singler were very good…. I think we have a good thing in the mix for this season!
It would’ve been nice to see Drummond and Monroe on the floor together at some point at least 5 minutes maybe to start off the 4th.
coach has to put Drummond and Monroe together because I think once Drummond gets in the game the whole team game changes once he gets in and starts to play I start to believe the pistons are going to make the playoffs this year.
drummond isnt ready. he was all “Which way did he go?” You’ll have to wait til March.
Stuckey didnt have a bad night? That was his worst performance ever. Im tired of sticking up for him. He has been around long enough and should be more of a threat on the floor. Its all about progressing year by year. He looks like the same player he was 4 years ago. Hell, maybe worse. Im done w him. And no Im not going by that one game…