The Detroit Pistons are in the middle of a 10-day, five-game Western Conference road trip, and with hard-fought victories over the Portland Trail Blazers and the Sacramento Kings, it is off to a great start. The three remaining games are against the Utah Jazz (10-19), the Los Angeles Clippers (8-21), and the Los Angeles Lakers (19-9). The Pistons have suffered only one Western Conference loss this season, 116-114 to the Dallas Mavericks in overtime. Three more wins this week would push their overall record to 27-6, and their non-conference record to 10-1. Can they do it?
Western Conference trips have been brutal
In recent years, road trips out west have not gone well for the Pistons. The travel is grueling, the back-to-back games are exhausting, and the teams are tough. Only once in the last five seasons have the Pistons come away with a winning record.