It turns out we’ll have at least one Game 7 in the NBA conference semifinals.
The Detroit Pistons, the No. 1 seed in the East, played with more intensity and energy, and their shot-making responded in kind Friday, May 15 in a 115-94 victory over the No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 6.
The Pistons finally got some help for Cade Cunningham, as they saw six players reach double-figures in scoring.
Later Friday night, in the Western Conference, the No. 2 San Antonio Spurs visited the No. 6 Minnesota Timberwolves, who have fallen into a 3-2 series deficit and were looking to avoid elimination.
Here are the biggest takeaways from Friday night’s Game 6s of the NBA Playoffs:
Cleveland’s effort, in a closeout game at home, was unacceptable
The Pistons were clearly the more desperate team, but Cleveland compounded that with effort at times that could be described only as casual. And it started early in the game.
Players like James Harden, who stood around on defense – and often didn’t get back on after most of his 8 turnovers – were emblematic of Cleveland’s issues Friday night. Detroit, time and time again, won the hustle plays.
All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell did play with some effort, but a poor shooting night (6-of-20) marred that energy. The biggest issue was that many of his teammates didn’t follow suit.
The most fight the Cavaliers showed Friday night was with 0.3 seconds left in the game, when Cleveland’s bench players who were on the floor in garbage time, shoved a few Pistons players.
Early turnovers and offensive rebounds allowed put Cavaliers in a hole
The most concerning part was that these effort problems led to many of the same issues that have plagued the Cavs throughout the postseason: turnovers and offensive rebounds.
Through the first 14:34 of the game, the Pistons had generated six offensive rebounds (and 15 boards, overall) compared to Cleveland’s two (and 9). In both the regular season and playoffs, the more intentional and aggressive teams tend to be rewarded with rebounding.
Somehow, early turnovers were even worse. Through that first 14:34, the Cavs gave the ball away 11 times, which turned into 14 Pistons points off turnovers, compared to five Detroit turnovers (for six Cavaliers points off those).
Cleveland let itself down with its lack of energy and careless attention to detail.
Jalen Duren (finally) responds
Give Jalen Duren credit. The Pistons All-Star center was benched in Game 5 and didn’t play the entire fourth quarter and overtime, ceding that time to backup Paul Reed.
Just two days after that, Duren played his most impactful game of the series. The stats (15 points on 7-of-10 shooting, 11 rebounds, 3 blocks, 1 steal) don’t necessarily paint the entire picture. Duren’s activity led to contested shots and Cavaliers players backing away from drive attempts and his performance was closer to what he showed during the regular season.
It’s telling, too, that Duren came back after rolling his left ankle in the third quarter and continued to make plays.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pistons beat Cavaliers in Game 6; Spurs seek close out Timberwolves
