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Cade Cunningham bore the brunt of Detroit\u2019s scoring in Game 1. Will he get some help in Game 2?<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Download the NBA App<\/a><\/p>\n It\u2019s odd how easily postseason history can crowd out recency bias, normally a powerful psychological trait that can anchor one\u2019s thoughts and opinions.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Such is the urgency of the NBA Playoffs<\/a>. \u00a0<\/p>\n The Detroit Pistons might reasonably expect their hard work and demonstrated results \u2013 winning 60 games, snagging the Eastern Conference\u2019s No. 1 seed \u2013 to resonate with fans and the basketball world beyond the disappointment of a single game at Little Caesars Arena.\u00a0<\/p>\n That\u2019s not how things go at this time of year. No sooner had the Pistons stumbled 112-101 to the Orlando Magic<\/a> in the teams\u2019 first-round series<\/a> opener than the nail-biting and pearl-clutching began, sparking panic over Detroit\u2019s looming elimination and inability to win a home playoff game again (the last one was in May 2008).\u00a0<\/p>\n Starting 0-1 in a best-of-seven series and losing home-court advantage are to be avoided, whenever possible. But in the days since Sunday, you might have thought the Pistons were about to grab their fishing poles. \u00a0<\/p>\n That anxiety existed outside the team way more than inside, fortunately. To J.B. Bickerstaff and his players, the Game 1 loss was nothing more than a feel-out game. \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey out-physical-ed us,\u201d Detroit wing Ausar Thompson said. \u201cWe\u2019re used to the playoff whistle now. We\u2019ll come back, and we\u2019ll do what we\u2019ve got to do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Orlando, by contrast, hopes their performance Sunday has more legs than that. The Magic set the home team\u2019s nervousness in motion and believe they can replicate it on Wednesday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN<\/a>). Initiating contact, packing the paint, and playing to their talents \u2013 which they often didn\u2019t do in the regular season \u2013 all seem well within their control. \u00a0<\/p>\n Here are three things to watch for in Game 2 \u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n 1. Duren\u2019s overdue series debut \u00a0<\/p>\n Bad things happen when a 1-2 punch combination becomes a lonely 1. Guard Cade Cunningham (39 points) had to carry Detroit\u2019s offense more than usual, and only so far, center Jalen Duren\u2019s inside threat was mosty absent. \u00a0<\/p>\n A finalist for the Kia Most Improved Player Award<\/a> this season, the Pistons\u2019 rugged big man was their second-leading scorer. He averaged 17.8 points, 11 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game in four games against Orlando. But he was minus-21 in Game 1, contributing only eight points and seven rebounds. \u00a0<\/p>\n The crowd around Duren inside had him trying to execute his offense in a closet.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAnytime I had catches deep, they collapsed on me,\u201d\u00a0Duren\u00a0told reporters Tuesday.\u00a0\u201cThey were coming from everywhere. I did not get as many shot attempts\u00a0[four]\u00a0as I should have.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Not good enough.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFor me, just being more aggressive, finding my spots and attacking more\u00a0\u2013 I\u00a0think I could have done a better job of that,\u201d he said. \u201cI just spent time watching the film over and over and over again, seeing where I wasn\u2019t most effective.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Duren wants to produce some different movies in Game 2.\u00a0<\/p>\n 2. Consistency from Carter<\/p>\n Orlando center Wendell Carter Jr. was an unsung star in Game 1, scoring 17 points on only nine shots while adding seven rebounds and five assists. He was a game-best plus-20, and he routinely moved the ball to the right people at the right times.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Rarely, though, does Carter back up such a game with a\u00a0twin.\u00a0He\u00a0has averaged\u00a08.8 points and 9.5 rebounds in his 13 career playoff appearances, with just one\u00a0double-double.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n With the Pistons geared to have Duren taking a higher profile, it will say a lot if it comes at the expense of his Orlando counterpart or not.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n 3. Scoring help for Cunningham<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t just Duren who failed to produce what Detroit needed in the opener. No one on its bench chipped in more than one field goal. It turned into a minimal scoring effort from reserves capable of so much more, including Caris LeVert (three points), Kevin Huerter (three), Isaiah Stewart (three), Javonte Green (three), Ron Holland II (two) and Daniss Jenkins, the guard who went 1-of-7, missing his six 3-pointers and posting a minus-11 while scoring six points. \u00a0<\/p>\n The Pistons\u2019 bench players scored 20 points in a combined 80 minutes on the floor. Orlando also got 20 from its reserves, but in about 64 minutes. \u00a0<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him\u00a0here<\/a>, find\u00a0his archive here<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0follow him on X<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n