The Cavaliers had won eight of nine, with LeBron James looking as fresh as ever, despite there being chatter that he’s past his prime.
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Andre Drummond had 25 points and 18 rebounds and made crucial free throws when he was fouled intentionally to help Detroit beat Cleveland, the Cavaliers’ second straight loss.
“We haven’t done anything, ” James said Tuesday after a second consecutive Cleveland loss, this one to the Pistons by 104-99.
Jackson had 23 points and 12 assists for the Pistons, and Ersan Ilyasova added 20 points. Past year Drummond looked like a good and occasionally brilliant player with a middling Pistons roster around him, but the first campaign of a new era in Detroit was something of a miss-although it was hard to tell how much of this was on Drummond, given the injuries and trades that upended the team last season.
But that was the pinnacle of the trip, as they squandered leads against the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers and couldn’t find a way to stop the Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers, who each had one win before topping the Pistons. Through 11 games, Drummond is shooting 40.3 percent from the line. Although his free throw shooting needs work, he has become one of the league’s most dominating centers and is a force on the defensive end with his ability to block shots and grab rebounds at a frantic rate.
“I played too poorly probably for us to get over the hump”, said Jackson, who averaged 21.6 points in the six games. Then James, double-teamed again, threw the ball away with 48.8 seconds remaining.
Jackson missed a floater, but Cleveland’s Timofey Mozgov missed from the baseline and the Cavaliers had to foul. Nick Young scored, and 11 seconds later, Jackson threw the ball into the crowd.
When Jackson came back into the game with 9:50 to play, the Pistons led 72-69. The Cavs eventually led by as many as 13 points, with big shots by Kevin Love and Mo Williams. James wouldn’t single anybody out, but he clearly feels like the team isn’t giving its all every single game.
James was specifically asked if the rivalry with MI will have a bit more buzz now that Jim Harbaugh is coaching the Wolverines.
But on this night he didn’t, and the Pistons were full marks for the win, no matter what their coach felt about the accomplishment.
“It’s not always about being Iron Man”, James said.
It’s a touchy subject for Drummond, the 6-foot-11 center who is a career 40-percent shooter from the stripe.
On a positive note, the Pistons beat the beasts of the east, and hit the road to face off against the Minnesota Timberwolves this Friday at 8:00pm EST.
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However, their past has come up to catch them and they have dropped four straight games to be at. No, Van Gundy won’t go there.
