Pistons’ fast-start story missed by many fans
Detroit’s 10-3 start, good for No. 2 in the Eastern Conference standings, is one of the biggest good surprises in the NBA through the season’s first month.
The Pistons already have a road win at Golden State, swept a five-game homestand — possibly to the delight of all those unoccupied red seats at Little Caesars Arena — and are off to their best start in 12 years.
“I know that we’re playing as a team right now,” Detroit’s Luke Kennard said.
“We’re really locked in. We’re really playing together and we play hard. When you have a team that does that together, you win.” Now comes the test. Starting Wednesday, the Pistons play five of their next six games on the road — visiting Milwaukee, Indiana and Minnesota before returning home to face Cleveland, then heading right back out for a trip to Oklahoma City and Boston.
After topping Miami to finish off a 5-0 homestand Sunday, Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy made no effort to hide how pleased he is.
“We did a great job here, and now you just move on to the next challenge,” Van Gundy said.
“Now nine of 11 on the road, the next three games on the road against teams you beat at home so you know they want back at you. The challenges just keep mounting, but you put wins in the bank.”
Maybe at some point, there will be fans in the seats.
The brand-new Detroit arena has a listed capacity for basketball at 20,491, which was the announced crowd for opening night.
In seven games since, the Pistons have announced crowds between 13,709 and 17,683 — and those numbers might be generous, given how empty the building looks on television.
Rockets
Chris Paul is expected to return for Houston Thursday night after missing all but one game this season with a bruised left knee. The point guard, who is in his first year with the Rockets after a trade from the Clippers, returned to practice Wednesday.
76ers
Sources confirmed that Robert Covington and Philadelphia are close to finalizing a contract extension and reworking his deal for this season. ESPN reported that the deal would be a fouryear, $62 million extension. The fifth-year veteran forward has blossomed into one of the team’s leaders.