Detroit Pistons guard Daniss Jenkins. Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Pistons bench player goes off for 21 points in a single quarter

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Renzo Pocholo Salao | Last updated Jan 4, 2026 10:33 PM ET

Detroit Pistons guard Daniss Jenkins channeled his inner Klay Thompson on Sunday to put up the greatest quarter of his young NBA career.

The second-year backup did not play at all in the first quarter of the Pistons’ game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.

Jenkins was apparently saving all his strength for the best second quarter of his life.

Jenkins drained a 30-foot three-pointer two minutes into the period, then hit a 32-foot bomb a couple of possessions later. That proved to be a sign of things to come as the Pistons reserve 7-of-7 from the field and sizzling 6-of-6 from beyond the arc.

DANISS HAVING A GAME…
21 PTS | 6-6 3PT | 7-7 FG | 3 AST pic.twitter.com/6Ylxc4FfBE
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) January 4, 2026

Jenkins’ lone two-point make fittingly came on a three-point play, giving him 21 points in the second. Jenkins also tallied three assists in the quarter.

“It’s everything for me, because that’s what I’m about,” Jenkins said of the support he got from his teammates on Sunday, via The Athletic’s Hunter Patterson. “It was my night tonight. But I’m happy every night we get the win, whoever’s night it is, and that’s the same thing for everybody else on this team.”

The St. John’s product came into the game averaging just 7.0 points per contest as a backup point guard. He tripled that production and recorded a new career high with six triples across just 12 minutes of play.

Jenkins only scored four points outside of the second quarter. His contributions, however, were more than enough to help the top-seeded Pistons secure a 114-110 win over the Cavaliers.

Jenkins entered the season on a two-way contract. If there were any questions about the Pistons offering him a full-time contract later in the year, he answered them in a single quarter.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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