Pistons most to blame for 2-1 series deficit vs. Magic after ugly Game 3 loss

On Saturday afternoon, the Detroit Pistons fell behind 2-1 in their first round playoff series against the Orlando Magic with an ugly 113-105 loss in Game 3. The Pistons trailed this one for most of the way, and although they came back to take a late lead, they then melted down over the next few minutes and lost.

Let’s take a look at who is most to blame for the Pistons’ current predicament.

Jalen Duren

No one has underperformed more in these NBA playoffs than Pistons big man Jalen Duren. After registering an All-Star nod this season, Duren has been arguably the worst player in the rotation for either team so far in this series, getting thoroughly outplayed by Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. in the process.

On Saturday, Duren shot an inexplicable 3-10 from the field, scoring just eight points, and he also has not brought the same presence as a rim protector on defense in this series as he did during the regular season.

Put simply, Duren has to be a whole lot better over the next couple of games, or the Pistons will be the rare one seed to go home in the first round.

JB Bickerstaff

Bickerstaff received some well-deserved praise for helping this Pistons team form something bigger than the sum of their parts during the regular season, but his ability to handle rotations and make decisions on the fly has been erratic to say the least in these playoffs.

Bickerstaff received criticsm for allowing the bench unit, led by Dannis Jenkins, too much leeway in Game 1, when it was clear they were not having a good night, and on Saturday, he looked to make the opposite mistake, as Jenkins came in and provided some immediate playmaking for Detroit, but ended up finishing the game with just seven minutes played.

Overall, Bickerstaff will need to improve his malleability as a coach and adjust based on the flow of the game in order to win this series.

Cade Cunningham

It may not seem fair to criticize Cunningham, considering that he has largely been the Pistons’ sole source of offense so far in this series, but the star has to play better than he did on Saturday.

In Game 3, Cunningham shot an inefficient 8-23 from the floor, and reverted to playing hero ball down the stretch of the game. The All-Star also set the Magic in transition countless times by recording nine turnovers in the game, numerous of which were unforced.

Cunningham will need to play much more under control, team-oriented basketball in order to help his team even up this series in Game 4 on Monday night.