What the Detroit Pistons must do to defeat Boston Celtics

The Pistons will face the Boston Celtics on Monday night at TD Garden in their third meeting of the season. The two teams have split the first two matchups, but this one carries added weight for a young Detroit squad that sits at 20–5.

This is the type of game the Pistons tend to circle. Of their five losses this season, two have come against teams they later faced again—the Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks. In the games following those losses, Detroit has responded emphatically, posting a 123.1 offensive rating and a 111.7 defensive rating, good for a +11.4 net rating.

Those numbers would rank second in the league on both ends, representing the version of the Pistons they’re striving to sustain more consistently.

Their most recent loss to Boston was a three-point defeat, and it came down to one clear factor: three-point shooting. The Celtics went 20-for-43 from deep, while the Pistons—who rank 28th in the league at 11.2 made threes per game—finished 11-for-36. Detroit drifted from its identity, bending to Boston’s pace and shot profile, which created problems on both ends of the floor.

That lapse in discipline showed up defensively. Derrick White and Jaylen Brown combined for 60 points and eight made threes, capitalizing on breakdowns and late closeouts.

Elsewhere, the Pistons controlled the game. They won the rebounding battle by 12 and dominated the paint 42–22. But Boston’s ability to cash in from beyond the arc dramatically narrowed Detroit’s margin for error.

Nov 26, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) defends against Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren (0) in the first half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

The key to Monday night starts with defensive discipline. Boston ranks second in the NBA in three-pointers made at nearly 16 per game, meaning Detroit must stay locked into its assignments and avoid drifting off shooters.

That challenge begins on offense. Teams have increasingly shown Detroit zone looks designed to take away paint dominance and bait them into perimeter shots. In the previous matchup, that approach worked.

The Pistons attempted 36 threes, and the misses led to long rebounds, fueling Boston’s transition offense and three-point hunting. Those sequences left Detroit scrambling to match up, resulting in missed assignments and poor attachment to shooters.

If the Pistons stay true to who they are—a physical, paint-dominant team that controls the glass—while maintaining defensive discipline on the perimeter and limiting turnovers, they’ll put themselves in position to secure a statement win in Boston.