CHICAGO — The Pistons entered the first contest of their five-game road trip short-handed in the aftermath of suspensions from Wednesday’s controversial game against the Orlando Magic.
The timing couldn’t have been worse since they were facing a longtime rival and an opponent they hadn’t beaten in 11 straight meetings over the last three seasons.
Despite not having Killian Hayes and Hamidou Diallo available, Detroit competed until the final few minutes, but couldn’t finish the deal in a 132-118 loss to the Chicago Bulls at the United Center.
The Pistons trailed by three going into the fourth quarter and fell into a nine-point deficit after an 8-1 run by the Bulls. Detroit overcame the run and eventually tied the game at 115 with 4:23 left after Saddiq Bey knocked down a 3-pointer after a size-up dribble.
However, Zach Lavine attracted multiple Pistons defenders shortly after and found Alex Caruso in the corner for an open 3-pointer to give the Bulls a six-point lead. Lavine, who scored a game-high 43 points, extended Chicago’s lead for good when he completed a 3-point play with 2:41 remaining.
The deficit eventually grew to 14, which was too large for the Pistons to overcome.
Lavine’s dominant scoring performance began in the first quarter, when he scored 18 points in the first 12 minutes, mostly on drives to the basket. He got to the free-throw line often and made all eight attempts from the stripe.
Lavine, a former Slam Dunk Contest champion known for his high-flying abilities, brought the crowd to its feet in the waning seconds of the first quarter as he caught an alley-oop from Coby White with one-hand before throwing it down with 0.7 seconds left.
Before the game, Pistons coach Dwane Casey said there would need to be a “next-man mentality” approach from his team since Hayes and Diallo weren’t available due to the league’s decision to suspend them for their roles in Wednesday's altercation with Magic center Moe Wagner.
Six players scored in double-figures for the Pistons, led by Bojan Bogdanovic's 20 points, four rebounds and five assists. Jaden Ivey and Alec Burks added 19 points each. Isaiah Stewart tallied a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds.
The Pistons entered the game leading the NBA with 675 bench points (48.2) since Dec. 1. A large contributor to that number is Burks, the offensive generator for Detroit’s second unit. After scoring 32 points on 10-of-11 shooting against the Magic, Burks finished with 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field. Rodney McGruder received an increased role on Wednesday and finished with 11 points off the bench.
Former Pistons center Andre Drummond, who spent eight seasons in Detroit from 2012-20, spent most of his time on the floor grabbing rebounds and dunking the ball. After each dunk, he would shrug his shoulders as a symbol of his strength. He finished with 12 points and seven rebounds on 5-of-7 shooting from the field against his former team.
Bey returned to the starting lineup in the wake of Hayes’ absence. But after totaling a season-high 28 points against the Magic, the third-year forward struggled on Wednesday, finishing with just 10 points and four rebounds on 4-of-13 shooting from the field. He missed five 3-pointers before knocking down two triples to tie the game at 115.
Marvin Bagley III returned after missing the last two games due to a non-COVID illness. He entered at the 2:30 mark of the first quarter. He played sparingly due to not being able to participate in live basketball activities, but he was productive in his time on the floor with seven points and two rebounds in 13 minutes of action.
Nikola Vucevic added 19 points and nine rebounds. DeMar DeRozan, who spent seven seasons playing under Casey in Toronto, added 22 points, six rebounds and five assists.
Friday’s meeting was the first of four games between the Pistons and Bulls. They will meet overseas for an international matchup on Jan. 19 for the NBA Paris Game, along with meetings on March 1 and April 9.
