More seen on the field since October 23 and the great loss of the Los Angeles Clippers against the Phoenix Suns (95-112), forward Kawhi Leonard returned to the game Thursday night, at home, for the Californian franchise. A comeback without a bang to report (6 points on 2 of 8, 5 rebounds, 4 assists), with limited playing time (25 minutes), but his victory against the Detroit Pistons (96-91).
A success articulated around the solid evening of the leader Reggie Jackson (23 points out of 7 out of 12), the only real thinning in a match where the two teams were rather awkward (37.5% for Detroit, 40.7% for the Clips) . The difference was also made from distance (11-of-30 from three for LA versus 6-of-31 for the visitors) as the two teams set the same record on the shooting line (19-of-24). The landlords’ rebounding domination (51 receptions, of which 18 for Ivica Zubac alone) did the rest.
However, the Pistons had started the match in the best possible way, led by Croatian fullback Bojan Bogdanovic (26 points), also leading at halftime (42-50, 24th). Tyronn Lue’s men reversed the trend coming back from the locker room and then held money in time to get their ninth success of the season (7 defeats), synonymous with 9th place in the West. Detroit, with just 3 wins on the clock, has the worst record in the league (3v-12d), tied with the Houston Rockets.
Killian Hayes clumsy, the splits for Nicolas Batum
The only two French players affected by the three matches of the night opposed the crypto.com Arena (formerly Staples Center), for a rather limited impact. Still in Detroit’s starting lineup in the absence of Cade Cunningham, point guard Killian Hayes was, unlike in his last three outings, particularly awkward: 1 of 8 shots (5 points), for 3 free throws, 3 interceptions, 2 blocks and 1 assist. Most annoying is the -17 shown at the “/-” (worst total for a Detroit player), meaning that when he was on the field, his team was largely dominated.
Opposite, Nicolas Batum lived one evening at the antipodes of the previous one. After passing 22 points to the Dallas Mavericks (with a chubby 7 of 7 three-point range), the fullback was silent in 14 minutes of play (0 of 1 shooting), settling for 3 rebounds.
