Lakers fall to Pistons despite Anthony Davis’ 37 points
DETROIT — The reasoning could be the Lakers were on the fourth game of a five-game, 11-day road trip.
It could be that despite not being too far apart in the average ages of their teams (24.278 vs. 25.285), the Detroit Pistons are equipped with more speed and athleticism, especially in the backcourt.
It could be that the Lakers took an opponent lightly, given that the Pistons have been one of the league’s worst teams over the last half-decade.
Or it could be a mixture that led to the Lakers (4-3) falling to the Pistons, 115-103, on Monday night at Little Caesars Arena for their third loss in their past four games.
The Pistons (3-5), playing on the second night of a back-to-back after beating the Brooklyn Nets on the road Sunday night, played with more energy.
They were quicker to grab loose balls and rebounding opportunities, scoring 22 second-chance points off of 17 offensive rebounds.
They beat the Lakers to spots, either off drives past the Lakers’ slow perimeter defense or off cuts into gaps they couldn’t recover in time for.
The Lakers also struggled to match the Pistons’ physicality, with Detroit knocking Lakers off their spots as they were trying to move offensively.
Anthony Davis, who came into the game averaging an NBA-best 31.8 points, had another strong performance with 37 points (13-of-23 shooting), nine rebounds and four assists, but he was hobbling late with an apparent left ankle issue. Davis finished the game and Coach JJ Redick did not have an immediate update afterward.
LeBron James finished with 20 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds. Austin Reaves added 17 points on 7-of-17 shooting for the Lakers, who got just 10 points from their reserves, including a scoreless night from Gabe Vincent (0 shots in 18 minutes).
Jaden Ivey (team-high 26 points) essentially sealed the win for the Pistons, hitting a 3-pointer that put Detroit ahead by nine and a floater on the next possession to give the Pistons a 111-100 lead with 1:01 left.
Cade Cunningham, who had 17 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his third career triple-double, made a layup late for a 13-point lead. Tim Hardaway Jr. had 19 points, Tobias Harris scored 15 and Jalen Duren had 11 points and 14 rebounds for the Pistons.
The Lakers close the trip against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night.