Detroit Pistons Eastern Conference Lead Beginning To Shrink During Playoff Push

With the Pistons loss on Thursday to the San Antonio Spurs, their first place lead over the Eastern Conference has shrunk to 4.5 games. Here’s what to expect moving forward.

Mar 5, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) reacts after drawing a foul while scoring a three point basket during the second half against the San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

The Detroit Pistons have now dropped both their games to the Spurs this season, this time in San Antonio, 121-106.

The Pistons were unable to shake off the ugly display on Tuesday in Cleveland and continued to struggle with the Spurs.

This struggle rang especially true for face of the franchise, Cade Cunningham, who shot in the upper 30% from the field.

This was Cunningham’s second straight rough shooting outing, not a habit you want to get accustomed to in the spring.

Guard struggles

While there were struggles from many players in the rotation, it was Cunningham’s 10-26 shooting that really stood out from the rest of the squad.

Midseason contract holdout Daniss Jenkins has been subpar ever since agreeing to his new deal, he shot 0-6 in San Antonio.

The alternative bench ball handling option in Caris LeVert has had a rough season himself, he shot 0-5 against the Spurs.

The guard struggles extended to starting shooting guard Duncan Robinson who recorded a team worst -23, almost 10 more points than the second worst team plus-minus

Gauntlet schedule winding down

Thankfully for Detroit, their gauntlet of games that started and ended with losses to the Spurs has now concluded. 

The major positive for the Pistons, even though they lost three games throughout the course of the gauntlet, is that they split with the Cavs. 

Losing both games to the Cavs would have sunk the Pistons another game closer to Boston in the standings, making the East an even closer race than it has become.

Staying above a competitive east

The Pistons are now done with their most difficult stretch of the season. 

This leaves the Pistons with the fifth easiest schedule remaining. Boston, the closest team, conversely has the 7th strongest schedule remaining.

This gives the Pistons a solid chance to stay above the Celtics in the standings, based off of schedule strength alone.

The Pistons should also be wary of how close many teams are in the standings. The Knicks are only a game and a half behind the Celtics who are only 4.5 games back from the Pistons.

The Cavaliers are also only a game behind the Knicks, making the gap between the Pistons and the 4 seed a meager seven games. With about 20 games remaining, the Pistons lead is certainly in jeopardy.

If Cunningham can figure out his own struggles, and return to his MVP caliber of play, it is likely the other guards will follow suit.

With very remedial problems, the Pistons are in a prime position to clean up their game and make a strong push ahead of the playoffs.