Detroit Pistons Return Home To Face the Brooklyn Nets

The Eastern Conference’s top team appears to catch a breather on Sunday—at least on paper—when the Detroit Pistons return home from a West Coast business trip to face a Brooklyn Nets squad loaded with rookies.

Detroit bounced back from a lopsided loss to Phoenix on Thursday by knocking off Golden State 131-124 on Friday, improving its record to 35-12, the best record in the East.

The Pistons played with pace and physicality against the Warriors, holding a 25-10 edge in fast-break points and dominating the paint 62-40.

"It's the NBA, it's a lot of games, but that was just unacceptable," guard Daniss Jenkins told the Detroit News.

"That's just not who we are. They [Suns] came out and beat us at our own game, and that's unacceptable from all levels. We just knew we had to come out and put out a better performance. We're gonna lose the game, but not like that. So, we all just wanted to come out and just show ourselves that we can be better than that."

Detroit is particularly dangerous when Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren are both rolling. Cunningham finished with 29 points and 11 assists, while Duren added 21 points and 13 rebounds.

“He’s awesome,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said of Cunningham, an All-Star starter. “He reminds me of Luka and James Harden—just a one-man offense. Everything runs through him. He’s a great player who’s really coming into his own.”

Demin aiming to continue his solid form for the Nets

The Brooklyn Nets, meanwhile, are hoping one of their recent first-round picks emerges as a franchise jewel, as Egor Demin has shown flashes of that potential.

Demin recorded his first career double-double Friday with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists in a 109-99 win over Utah. He also set an NBA rookie record by hitting a three-pointer in his 34th straight game.

"It means a lot," Demin said during a postgame TV interview.

"It's the first second game of a back-to-back we've won, the first [win] without [Michael Porter Jr.]. He's a big, big, big part of our team, but we've got to be able to function without him, too. So that win means a lot, especially for me being back home I can say so. It's pretty fun."

Porter Jr., Brooklyn’s leading scorer, sat out for personal reasons. Demin led a youthful lineup that also featured Nolan Traore and Danny Wolf, which proved effective enough to snap a seven-game losing streak.

Cunningham and Duren were also dominant in the first meeting between the two sides on November 7. Cunningham scored 34 points, Duren added 30, and Detroit cruised to a 125-107 win. Porter Jr. paced Brooklyn with 28 points.