Detroit center Jalen Duren has been unusually quiet during his team’s first-round series against the Orlando Magic.
That likely needs to change soon if the Pistons intend to earn their first playoff-series win since 2008.
Duren has been a non-factor for the top-seeded Pistons, who trail 2-1 in this best-of-seven Eastern Conference series heading into Game 4 on Monday in Orlando.
The 22-year-old All-Star, who has averaged just 9.0 points and 8.3 rebounds in this series, posted eight points in 27 minutes before fouling out in Saturday’s 113-105 road loss.
Detroit was down 96-79 with 8:34 left before going on a 26-8 run to move ahead by one with 2:52 remaining. The eighth-seeded Magic responded by scoring the game’s final nine points to seal the victory.
Cade Cunningham scored 27 points and handed out nine assists to lead Detroit, which trailed for most of the game. Cunningham spearheaded the Pistons’ comeback, but he also committed nine turnovers and shot 3 of 10 from 3-point range.
The Pistons’ primary source of concern is Duren, who hasn’t come close to approaching his regular-season average of 19.5 points per game. He did, however, swat five shots Saturday.
“He’s confident,” Cuningham said of Duren. “These last three games haven’t been what he wants or what we might want for him. I and the whole team have no doubt he’s going to figure it out and he knows he’s going to figure it out. Excited for the next game for him to plant his foot in this series.”
Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff remains confident his team will respond to the challenge ahead.
“It’s one game at a time, and that’s what playoff series are,” Bickerstaff said. “We come down here, we win on Monday, we take home-court advantage back. (Saturday’s) game, we’ll learn from it. But it’s over with and it gives us more opportunities, more film to watch, more time to prepare, to get ready for Monday.”
The Pistons face another tough matchup in Orlando, where the Magic are 5-1 in their last six home playoff games.
Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane scored 25 points apiece Saturday to lead the Magic. Franz Wagner added 17, including a key 3-pointer with 1:46 remaining.
Bane showed why the Magic made a blockbuster trade for him during the offseason, bouncing back from a slow start in the series by shooting 9-for-18 from the field and 7 of 9 from 3-point range.
Orlando matched Detroit’s physical play throughout Game 3 and provided the perfect answer after the Pistons stormed back in the fourth quarter.
“Once they tied it up, nobody was panicking,” Banchero said. “Everybody just understood the moment and what had to be done to finish the game off. The guys have enough experience to not panic in those moments and to just stay poised, and that’s what we did.’
Magic coach Jamahl Mosley echoed Banchero’s thoughts.
“That’s what I just said to these guys in there (locker room),” Mosley said. “The composure. They tie it up and we didn’t rattle with three-plus minutes to go. Our ability to stay the course, execute, obviously we had to make a couple big shots down the stretch. But it was more about the stops. Our defense, our composure, our communication — all those little things within the game are so important.”
