Where is Cade Cunningham in the MVP conversation?
Following the Pistons’ big win over the Boston Celtics, Omari and Bryce break down the improvements they’ve seen from the franchise star player.
INGLEWOOD, CA — The Detroit Pistons had no answer for Kawhi Leonard, and dropped their second straight game on their West Coast road trip.
The Pistons fell to the Los Angeles Clippers, 112-99, at the Intuit Dome two nights after falling to the Utah Jazz on Friday. Leonard scored a career-high 55 points on Sunday, Dec. 29, after scoring 51 through the first three quarters. They trailed the Clippers by 26 points early in the fourth quarter before a late run trimmed the final deficit.
It was a poor night on both ends for the Pistons (24-8), who shot just 7-for-29 (24.1%) from 3. Cade Cunningham led them with 27 points and nine assists, and Jalen Duren had a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
Jaden Ivey, who has been on a minute restriction, played a season-high 28 minutes and 44 seconds and finished with 11 points.
The Pistons can still return home with a winning road trip, as they wrap things up against the L.A. Lakers on Tuesday (10:30 p.m., NBC, FanDuel Sports Network Detroit). Then they host the Miami Heat on Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena.
Pistons come out flat, fall behind early
The Clippers opened the game hot. The Pistons? Not so much. Â
They trailed the Clippers by 19 points, 33-14, with 2:33 remaining in the first quarter. Other than Duren, who scored 10 points on 4-for-5 shooting in the period, they struggled to make shots, with the rest of the team going 5-for-18. Cunningham was whistled for three early fouls and sat with 3:31 on the clock, and didn’t return until the 2:37 mark of the second quarter.Â
It was another poor defensive game for the Pistons after a soft effort in Utah. They allowed the Clippers to shoot 55.6% in the first half, with Leonard leading the way with 25 points (on 8-for-12 shooting) through the first two quarters. At halftime, they trailed, 60-42.
After missing most of the second quarter with foul trouble, Cunningham came out swinging in the third. He scored 12 of the Pistons’ first 14 points, and a 3-pointer from Duncan Robinson cut the Clippers’ lead to nine, 68-59, with 8:10 on the clock. But Leonard proceeded to dominate the rest of the period, scoring 26 points.
A steal and dunk by Leonard sparked a 24-10 Clippers run that pushed their lead to 23, 92-69, at the end of the third.
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Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on XÂ @omarisankofa.