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After the Detroit Pistons dropped their first Summer League game to the Philadelphia 76ers three days ago, the squad knew that something needed to change. In that contest, Chaz Lanier registered just 12 points on 4-for-11 shooting, and coach Steve Scalzi said after the game that he needed to do a better job of finding looks for the shooter.
In their second matchup of the Summer League against the Cleveland Cavaliers, those changes were made.
Right out of the gate, Lanier showed the shooting acumen that allowed him to dominate his brief appearances in the G-League last season and accumulated 17 of the Pistons’ initial 20 points against the Cavs on Sunday. By the time the game ended, Lanier accounted for 25 points as the team’s leading scorer, and the Pistons picked up their first victory of the Las Vegas competition with a 103-94 win over Cleveland.
“I just wanted to come out, be aggressive, do what I had to do for the team,” Lanier said after the game. “Those are shots that I work on everyday, so it was good to come out there and see them go in.”
As soon as Lanier saw a couple shots go in, the bucket seemed to look even larger for the Tennessee product, and he finished the game with a 7-for-12 mark from three-point range.
”As a shooter, you take the looks that are given to you pretty much by the defense, and then you want to hunt your shots as well,” Lanier said. “So, you definitely have to find that balance. As a shooter, you’re also going to take some bad shots, so you just got to live and learn with the shots that you take.”
Playing against their Central Division rivals, the Pistons essentially reversed the game script from their first Summer League loss. Detroit was only able to briefly tie the Sixers in their first game before Philly pulled away, whereas the Pistons allowed the Cavs to take the lead for roughly one minute before snatching back the advantage.
”I feel like last game, they came out and hit us in the mouth first, so we wanted to be very intentional about coming out this game and throwing that first blow, and I feel like we did a great job doing that,” Lanier said.
In addition to Lanier’s influence, Brice Williams had a remarkably strong effort from beyond the arc by connecting on six of his nine attempts from three-point range, which added up to 21 total points for the G-Leaguer.
But despite those efficient scoring performances, Pistons first-round pick Ebuka Okorie faced a bit more adversity in his second matchup as a pro. By the time the clock struck triple zero, Okorie walked off the court with 14 points on 5-for-17 shooting from the field, though the rookie did log six assists in the victory.
”He’s a good player,” Lanier said. “He’s young, he only did one year in college, but he can go. He’s put it on display already, but he’s a great player. He can go.”
Just last year, Lanier was in a similar position as Okorie as a talented rookie who was looking to make a name for himself in the Summer League, so he has a quality perspective in what the former Stanford point guard is going through. But above all else, the Pistons were on the winning side of the table on Sunday and now move to 1-1 in the Summer League before facing the New York Knicks tomorrow.
For more information on the latest Detroit Pistons team or player news, follow @EricJRutter on X for continued basketball coverage, but while you’re here, join Pistons Roundtable for FREE and become a contributing member to our community today. Also be sure to look up Roundtable - Michigan Men Media on Facebook for continued social media coverage of all the sporting teams in the Mitten.
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In their second matchup of the Summer League against the Cleveland Cavaliers, those changes were made.
Right out of the gate, Lanier showed the shooting acumen that allowed him to dominate his brief appearances in the G-League last season and accumulated 17 of the Pistons’ initial 20 points against the Cavs on Sunday. By the time the game ended, Lanier accounted for 25 points as the team’s leading scorer, and the Pistons picked up their first victory of the Las Vegas competition with a 103-94 win over Cleveland.
“I just wanted to come out, be aggressive, do what I had to do for the team,” Lanier said after the game. “Those are shots that I work on everyday, so it was good to come out there and see them go in.”
As soon as Lanier saw a couple shots go in, the bucket seemed to look even larger for the Tennessee product, and he finished the game with a 7-for-12 mark from three-point range.
”As a shooter, you take the looks that are given to you pretty much by the defense, and then you want to hunt your shots as well,” Lanier said. “So, you definitely have to find that balance. As a shooter, you’re also going to take some bad shots, so you just got to live and learn with the shots that you take.”
Playing against their Central Division rivals, the Pistons essentially reversed the game script from their first Summer League loss. Detroit was only able to briefly tie the Sixers in their first game before Philly pulled away, whereas the Pistons allowed the Cavs to take the lead for roughly one minute before snatching back the advantage.
”I feel like last game, they came out and hit us in the mouth first, so we wanted to be very intentional about coming out this game and throwing that first blow, and I feel like we did a great job doing that,” Lanier said.
In addition to Lanier’s influence, Brice Williams had a remarkably strong effort from beyond the arc by connecting on six of his nine attempts from three-point range, which added up to 21 total points for the G-Leaguer.
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NBA Summer League: Detroit Pistons Coach Steve Scalzi Sees Lots Of Promise In Ebuka OkorieThe Detroit Pistons began their Summer League campaign with a 101-93 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, but rookie point guard Ebuka Okorie shined all game longBut despite those efficient scoring performances, Pistons first-round pick Ebuka Okorie faced a bit more adversity in his second matchup as a pro. By the time the clock struck triple zero, Okorie walked off the court with 14 points on 5-for-17 shooting from the field, though the rookie did log six assists in the victory.
”He’s a good player,” Lanier said. “He’s young, he only did one year in college, but he can go. He’s put it on display already, but he’s a great player. He can go.”
Just last year, Lanier was in a similar position as Okorie as a talented rookie who was looking to make a name for himself in the Summer League, so he has a quality perspective in what the former Stanford point guard is going through. But above all else, the Pistons were on the winning side of the table on Sunday and now move to 1-1 in the Summer League before facing the New York Knicks tomorrow.
For more information on the latest Detroit Pistons team or player news, follow @EricJRutter on X for continued basketball coverage, but while you’re here, join Pistons Roundtable for FREE and become a contributing member to our community today. Also be sure to look up Roundtable - Michigan Men Media on Facebook for continued social media coverage of all the sporting teams in the Mitten.
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