Pistons Get Commanding Win in Potential NBA Finals Preview

The NBA is starting to get real exciting. The final stretch of the season is finally here, and the true contenders are starting to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. As of Wednesday, the two best teams in the league were the Detroit Pistons (42-14) and the Oklahoma City Thunder (45-14). Each team leads their conference, and is favored to represent its conference in the NBA Finals. 

On Wednesday night, the Pistons and Thunder faced off in a game that could be a preview of June’s NBA Finals. 

The Pistons won the game 124-116 after falling behind big in the first quarter 34-22. The Pistons’ two young stars, Jalen Duren and Cade Cunningham, led the way with 29 points each. Duren added 15 rebounds and Cunningham added 13 assists to his stat line. 

Unfortunately for the Thunder and NBA fans, this potential NBA Finals preview wasn’t representative of what we are hoping to see later this season. The Thunder were without their three best players with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren missing the game due to injury. 

Jaylin Williams and Cason Wallace led the scoring charge for the Thunder with 30 points and 23 points, respectively. Aaron Wiggins and Jared McCain also chipped in 20 points apiece. 

Still, it wasn’t enough to overcome the Pistons, who were mostly healthy and showed it. Hopefully, these two teams will battle again in the postseason with fully healthy rosters. Both teams are young, gritty, and playing elite-level basketball. If we can get a healthy Finals matchup between the two, it is guaranteed to be entertaining.