Game ID: 22300283
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Detroit Pistons
Saturday, December 2, 2023 at 7:00 PM ET
Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DET 30 18 34 19 101CLE 25 29 31 25 110
CLE @ DET ScoutingCLE @ DET Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
DET availability going into 11/24 · 3 days' restOUT Duren missed 5 since 11/12, returns tonight: 29 min (100% of 29)
OUT Rhoden missed 5 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Harris missed 8 since 11/06, out tonight
BACK Ivey back 11/12 after 4, 24 min since (83% of 29)
BACK Burks back 11/12 after 6, 21 min since (102% of 21)
BACK Livers back 11/20 after 3, 23 min since (112% of 20)
BACK Umude back 11/17 after 2, 20 min since (159% of 13)
NEW Knox II 18 to 27 min over the last 4
DET availability going into 11/27 · 2 days' restOUT Knox II missed 2 since 11/20, out tonight
OUT Rhoden missed 6 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Harris missed 9 since 11/06, out tonight
BACK Duren back 11/24 after 5, 29 min since (100% of 29)
BACK Livers back 11/20 after 3, 24 min since (120% of 20)
BACK Umude back 11/17 after 2, 17 min since (135% of 13)
DET availability going into 11/29 · 1 day's restOUT Knox II missed 3 since 11/20, returns tonight: 6 min (33% of 18)
OUT Rhoden missed 7 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Harris missed 10 since 11/06, out tonight
BACK Duren back 11/24 after 5, 31 min since (107% of 29)
BACK Livers back 11/20 after 3, 24 min since (118% of 20)
BACK Umude back 11/17 after 2, 14 min since (112% of 13)
DET availability going into 11/30 · back-to-backOUT Rhoden missed 8 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Harris missed 11 since 11/06, out tonight
BACK Duren back 11/24 after 5, 27 min since (92% of 29)
BACK Livers back 11/20 after 3, 24 min since (115% of 20)
BACK Knox II back 11/29 after 3, 6 min since (33% of 18)
DET availability going into 12/02 · 1 day's restOUT Rhoden missed 9 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Harris missed 12 since 11/06, out tonight
BACK Duren back 11/24 after 5, 28 min since (97% of 29)
BACK Livers back 11/20 after 3, 24 min since (119% of 20)
BACK Knox II back 11/29 after 3, 7 min since (40% of 18)
DET availability going into 12/06 · 3 days' restOUT Wiseman missed 2 since 11/30, returns tonight: 8 min (46% of 17)
OUT Rhoden missed 10 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Harris missed 13 since 11/06, out tonight
BACK Duren back 11/24 after 5, 29 min since (98% of 29)
BACK Knox II back 11/29 after 3, 7 min since (40% of 18)
DET availability going into 12/08 · 1 day's restOUT Knox II missed 2 since 12/02, returns tonight: 6 min (30% of 18)
OUT Rhoden missed 11 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Umude missed 2 since 12/02, out tonight
OUT Harris missed 14 since 11/06, returns tonight: 4 min (34% of 11)
BACK Wiseman back 12/06 after 2, 8 min since (46% of 17)
DET availability going into 12/11 · 2 days' restOUT Rhoden missed 12 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Umude missed 3 since 12/02, out tonight
BACK Knox II back 11/29 after 3, 7 min since (37% of 18)
BACK Wiseman back 12/06 after 2, 12 min since (68% of 17)
BACK Harris back 12/08 after 14, 4 min since (34% of 11)
DET availability going into 12/13 · 1 day's restOUT Duren missed 2 since 12/08, out tonight
OUT Rhoden missed 13 since 11/12, out tonight
OUT Umude missed 4 since 12/02, out tonight
BACK Knox II back 12/08 after 2, 3 min since (19% of 18)
BACK Wiseman back 12/06 after 2, 12 min since (70% of 17)
BACK Harris back 12/08 after 14, 4 min since (34% of 11)
CLE availability going into 11/25 · 2 days' restOUT Mitchell missed 4 since 11/17, returns tonight: 35 min (98% of 36)
OUT Okoro missed 9 since 11/05, returns tonight: 18 min (70% of 26)
BACK LeVert back 11/22 after 2, 18 min since (65% of 28)
NEW Wade 20 to 27 min over the last 4
NEW Porter Jr. 13 to 22 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 11/26 · back-to-backOUT Wade missed 2 since 11/22, out tonight
BACK Mitchell back 11/25 after 4, 35 min since (98% of 36)
BACK LeVert back 11/22 after 2, 22 min since (78% of 28)
BACK Okoro back 11/25 after 9, 18 min since (70% of 26)
NEW Porter Jr. 13 to 24 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 11/28 · 1 day's restOUT Wade missed 3 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Merrill missed 2 since 11/25, out tonight
BACK Mitchell back 11/25 after 4, 34 min since (96% of 36)
BACK LeVert back 11/22 after 2, 22 min since (78% of 28)
BACK Okoro back 11/25 after 9, 14 min since (54% of 26)
NEW Porter Jr. 13 to 26 min over the last 4
CLE availability going into 11/30 · 1 day's restOUT Wade missed 4 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Merrill missed 3 since 11/25, out tonight
BACK Mitchell back 11/25 after 4, 35 min since (97% of 36)
BACK LeVert back 11/22 after 2, 24 min since (84% of 28)
BACK Okoro back 11/25 after 9, 15 min since (56% of 26)
NEW Porter Jr. 13 to 21 min over the last 4
CLE availability going into 12/02 · 1 day's restOUT Wade missed 5 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Merrill missed 4 since 11/25, returns tonight: 2 min (15% of 17)
OUT Thompson missed 2 since 11/28, returns tonight: 2 min (23% of 11)
BACK Mitchell back 11/25 after 4, 34 min since (96% of 36)
BACK LeVert back 11/22 after 2, 24 min since (86% of 28)
BACK Okoro back 11/25 after 9, 15 min since (58% of 26)
NEW Porter Jr. 13 to 18 min over the last 3
CLE availability going into 12/06 · 3 days' restOUT Wade missed 6 since 11/22, returns tonight: 14 min (68% of 20)
BACK Mitchell back 11/25 after 4, 34 min since (95% of 36)
BACK Okoro back 11/25 after 9, 19 min since (71% of 26)
BACK Merrill back 12/02 after 4, 2 min since (15% of 17)
BACK Thompson back 12/02 after 2, 2 min since (23% of 11)
CLE availability going into 12/08 · 1 day's restOUT LeVert missed 2 since 12/02, out tonight
BACK Wade back 12/06 after 6, 14 min since (68% of 20)
BACK Merrill back 12/02 after 4, 2 min since (15% of 17)
BACK Thompson back 12/02 after 2, 4 min since (37% of 11)
CLE availability going into 12/11 · 2 days' restOUT LeVert missed 3 since 12/02, out tonight
BACK Wade back 12/06 after 6, 19 min since (95% of 20)
BACK Merrill back 12/02 after 4, 6 min since (37% of 17)
BACK Thompson back 12/02 after 2, 8 min since (76% of 11)
CLE availability going into 12/12 · back-to-backOUT Eva. Mobley missed 2 since 12/08, out tonight
OUT LeVert missed 4 since 12/02, returns tonight: 23 min (81% of 28)
BACK Wade back 12/06 after 6, 23 min since (110% of 20)
BACK Merrill back 12/02 after 4, 10 min since (58% of 17)
BACK Thompson back 12/02 after 2, 13 min since (123% of 11)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 124, shooting 45 percent and 35 from three, 20 free throws a game; Cunningham at 26 and Ivey at 14 a game. That is 5 straight losses. One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 112, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 14 free throws a game; Mitchell at 24 and Eva. Mobley at 16 a game. Without Wade (5 straight), Merrill (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Cleveland allowing 112 a night to Detroit's 124 and the line, where Detroit takes 20 free throws a game to Cleveland's 14. Call it Cleveland 114, Detroit 112, Detroit keeping it close.
11/24 @ IND 113-136 — DET notes
DET lost 113-136. DET shot 48% (43 of 90) to IND's 48%, 7 of 18 from three. DET turned it over 14 times to IND's 8. Cunningham led with 31 (10 of 26, 2 of 4 from three, 9 of 9 at the line); Ivey added 25, Duren 13. Q2 was theirs, 37-28, turning a 7-point deficit into a 2-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 108-76 against them. Hayes's -25 in 17 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/27 vs WAS 107-126 — DET notes
DET lost 107-126. DET took 13 more shots (102 to 89), fed by 18 offensive rebounds, but shot 42% to WAS's 51%, 8 of 38 from three, and got to the line 19 times to WAS's 28. Cunningham led with 26 (10 of 22, 2 of 7 from three); Thompson added 16, Ivey 15. Q2 was theirs, 27-26, the deficit cut from 4 to 3, but the other 3 periods went 100-80 against them. Livers's -26 in 23 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/29 vs LAL 107-133 — DET notes
DET lost 107-133. DET took 9 more shots (97 to 88), fed by 10 offensive rebounds, but shot 41% to LAL's 51%, 15 of 36 from three, and got to the line 14 times to LAL's 38. The glass went 39-49 against them. Cunningham led with 15 (6 of 15, 2 of 4 from three); Livers added 14, Stewart 12. Q4 was theirs, 31-32, but the other 3 periods went 101-76 against them. Cunningham's -33 in 23 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/30 @ NYK 112-118 — DET notes
DET lost 112-118. DET shot 53% (43 of 81) to NYK's 47%, 15 of 35 from three, and got to the line 17 times to NYK's 28. DET turned it over 20 times to NYK's 11, and NYK turned those into 8 steals. Cunningham led with 31 (12 of 20, 4 of 9 from three); Hayes added 23, Sasser 17. Q2 was theirs, 37-23, the deficit cut from 14 to 0, but the other 3 periods went 95-75 against them. Thompson's -13 in 13 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/02 vs CLE 101-110 — DET notes
DET lost 101-110. DET shot 47% (39 of 83) to CLE's 49%, 8 of 30 from three. DET turned it over 16 times to CLE's 11, and CLE turned those into 11 steals. Cunningham led with 23 (8 of 20, 3 of 6 from three); Bogdanović added 22, Duren 17. Q1 was theirs, 30-25, but the other 3 periods went 85-71 against them. Livers's -22 in 14 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/06 vs MEM — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 125, shooting 46 percent and 34 from three, 19 free throws a game; Cunningham at 25 and Ivey at 12 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Without Wiseman (2 straight). 3 days' rest. Memphis comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 106, shooting 46 percent and 30 from three, 16 free throws a game; Bane at 19 and Jackson Jr. at 18 a game. Without Morant (19 straight), Smart (8 straight), Jackson (4 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Memphis wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Memphis allowing 106 a night to Detroit's 125. Call it Memphis 111, Detroit 110, Detroit keeping it close.
12/08 @ ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Orlando comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 122, shooting 51 percent and 36 from three, 31 free throws a game; F. Wagner at 25 and Banchero at 24 a game. Without Carter Jr. (16 straight), Fultz (13 straight), Isaac (2 straight). One day's rest. Detroit comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 121, shooting 45 percent and 33 from three, 16 free throws a game; Cunningham at 22 and Duren at 12 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Without Knox II (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Orlando wins, and the game turns on the line, where Orlando takes 31 free throws a game to Detroit's 16. Call it Orlando 120, Detroit 111.
12/11 vs IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 120, shooting 45 percent and 33 from three, 17 free throws a game; Cunningham at 21 and Bogdanović at 18 a game. That is 5 straight losses. 2 days' rest. Indiana comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 123, shooting 52 percent and 34 from three, 24 free throws a game; Haliburton at 32 and Turner at 17 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Smith (4 straight), Sheppard (2 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Indiana wins, on the road, and the game turns on the turnovers, Detroit giving it away 16 times a game to Indiana's 11 and the line, where Indiana takes 24 free throws a game to Detroit's 17. Call it Indiana 122, Detroit 116.
12/13 vs PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 120, shooting 48 percent and 31 from three, 21 free throws a game; Cunningham at 23 and Bogdanović at 18 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Without Duren (2 straight). One day's rest. Philadelphia comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 118, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Embiid at 41 and Maxey at 28 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Philadelphia at 40 percent from three to Detroit's 31 and the line, where Philadelphia takes 27 free throws a game to Detroit's 21. Call it Philadelphia 120, Detroit 113.
11/25 vs LAL 115-121 — CLE notes
CLE lost 115-121. CLE shot 47% (43 of 91) to LAL's 52%, 9 of 28 from three. Mitchell led with 22 (4 of 18, 2 of 6 from three, 12 of 13 at the line); Allen added 21, Mobley 18. Q1 was theirs, 40-35, but the other 3 periods went 86-75 against them. Strus's -19 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/26 vs TOR 105-102 — CLE notes
CLE won 105-102. CLE shot 46% (45 of 97) to TOR's 42%, 10 of 31 from three, and got to the line 6 times to TOR's 29. Garland led with 24 (10 of 16, 3 of 6 from three); Strus added 20, Allen 18. The hinge was Q3, 32-20: CLE came in trailing by 10 and left it ahead by 2. CLE trailed 42-52 at the half and won the second half 63-50. Niang was the night's best plus/minus at +13.
11/28 vs ATL 128-105 — CLE notes
CLE won 128-105. CLE shot 54% (50 of 93) to ATL's 35%, 13 of 36 from three, and got to the line 17 times to ATL's 24. CLE turned it over 16 times to ATL's 10, and ATL turned those into 9 steals. The glass went 55-44 for them. Mitchell led with 40 (14 of 25, 3 of 11 from three, 9 of 9 at the line); Garland added 19, Mobley 17. The hinge was Q4, 26-15: a lead of 12 became 23. Strus was the night's best plus/minus at +30.
11/30 vs POR 95-103 — CLE notes
CLE lost 95-103. CLE took 12 more shots (89 to 77), fed by 14 offensive rebounds, but shot 43% to POR's 51%, 7 of 32 from three. CLE turned it over 17 times to POR's 22. Mitchell led with 23 (7 of 20, 1 of 9 from three, 8 of 8 at the line); Mobley added 20, Garland 15. Q1 was theirs, 25-22, but the other 3 periods went 81-70 against them. They led by as many as 16. LeVert's -17 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/02 @ DET 110-101 — CLE notes
CLE won 110-101. CLE shot 49% (44 of 89) to DET's 47%, 10 of 30 from three. CLE turned it over 11 times to DET's 16. Strus led with 22 (9 of 16, 4 of 10 from three); Garland added 22, Mitchell 20. The hinge was Q2, 29-18: CLE came in trailing by 5 and left it ahead by 6. Okoro was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
12/06 vs ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 106, shooting 48 percent and 31 from three, 15 free throws a game; Mitchell at 23 and Garland at 17 a game. Without Wade (6 straight). 3 days' rest. Orlando comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 117, shooting 51 percent and 42 from three, 28 free throws a game; F. Wagner at 26 and Banchero at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Carter Jr. (15 straight), Fultz (12 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the arc, Orlando at 42 percent from three to Cleveland's 31 and the line, where Orlando takes 28 free throws a game to Cleveland's 15. Call it Cleveland 114, Orlando 113, Orlando keeping it close.
12/08 @ MIA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Miami comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 124, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 24 free throws a game; Butler III at 29 and Martin at 18 a game. Without Adebayo (2 straight), Herro (13 straight). One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 104, shooting 49 percent and 33 from three, 15 free throws a game; Mitchell at 26 and Garland at 21 a game. Without LeVert (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Miami wins, and the game turns on the defense, Cleveland allowing 104 a night to Miami's 124 and the line, where Miami takes 24 free throws a game to Cleveland's 15. Call it Miami 114, Cleveland 113, Cleveland keeping it close.
12/11 @ ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Orlando comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 117, shooting 51 percent and 37 from three, 28 free throws a game; F. Wagner at 25 and Banchero at 24 a game. Without Carter Jr. (17 straight), Fultz (14 straight), Isaac (3 straight). 2 days' rest. Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 104, shooting 49 percent and 34 from three, 19 free throws a game; Mitchell at 29 and Garland at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without LeVert (3 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Orlando wins, and the game turns on the defense, Cleveland allowing 104 a night to Orlando's 117 and the line, where Orlando takes 28 free throws a game to Cleveland's 19. Call it Orlando 114, Cleveland 111, Cleveland keeping it close.
12/12 @ BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 112, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 20 free throws a game; Tatum at 27 and Brown at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. 3 days' rest. Cleveland comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 104, shooting 45 percent and 31 from three, 22 free throws a game; Mitchell at 25 and Garland at 23 a game. Without Eva. Mobley (2 straight), LeVert (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the arc, Boston at 37 percent from three to Cleveland's 31 and the defense, Cleveland allowing 104 a night to Boston's 112. Call it Boston 115, Cleveland 108.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
DETAT A. Thompson
BB B. Bogdanović
BO Bogdanovic
CC C. Cunningham
IL I. Livers
IS I. Stewart
JD J. Duren
JI J. Ivey
KH K. Hayes
MB M. Bagley III
MS M. Sasser
CLECP C. Porter Jr.
DG D. Garland
DM D. Mitchell
EM E. Mobley
GN G. Niang
IO I. Okoro
JA J. Allen
MS M. Strus
SM S. Merrill
TT T. Thompson
DET/CLE the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Strus, Garland each score 22 points, Cavaliers hand Pistons 17th straight loss
DETROIT -- — Max Strus and Darius Garland each scored 22 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers handed the Detroit Pistons their 17th straight loss, 110-101 on Saturday.
“That was a physical game,” said Strus, who scored 14 points in the second half. “You could tell they were trying to earn one, and all respect to them. They played hard and they crashed the glass.”
The Pistons are 2-18, with the losing streak the longest in one season in franchise history and second-longest overall behind a 21-game slide at the end of the 1979-80 season and start of 1980-81. They haven't won since Oct. 28 against Chicago and are 4-41 since last season's trade deadline.
"I want to win, because I know how hard it is, especially when you’re young and we’re struggling,” said Bojan Bogdanovic , who had 22 points in his season debut after an offseason calf injury. “It’s hard to say good words and hard to say something positive. We want to win.”
Donovan Mitchell added 20 points for Cleveland, and Jarrett Allen had 19 points and 11 rebounds, but Strus and Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff had special praise for reserve Isaac Okoro . He had nine points, seven rebounds, four steals and four assists in 33:01 off the bench.
“He was unbelievable down the stretch,” Bickerstaff said. “He was taking charges, making shots, driving to the basket and scoring. He was awesome when we needed him to be, and that's who he is.”
Cade Cunningham added 23 points and 11 assists for Detroit.
Detroit started the second half with a 10-0 run to take a 58-54 lead, and pushed the advantage to eight. Cleveland, though, used an 11-0 run to take an 81-77 lead with 1:13 left in the quarter.
Detroit outscored the Cavaliers 34-31 in the period, but Allen's layup with 2.1 seconds left put Cleveland up 85-82 going into the fourth and the Cavs quickly took a 10-point lead.
“When you’ve lost this many games, you’re trying to do your darndest to do whatever it takes to win the game,” Pistons coach Monty Williams said. “We just had a lull in the second and then we had that lull at the end of the third and the beginning of the fourth."
Jaden Ivey 's free throw pulled Detroit to 96-92 with 6:01 left, but Bogdanovic missed a tying 3-pointer with 3:29 left. Garland scored at the other end and, after another Bogdanovic miss, Mitchell made it 104-97.
“I ran some stuff down the stretch for (Bogdanovic), but I think he was a bit gassed at that moment,” Williams said. “I just love having him on the floor.”
Jalen Duren missed two free throws with 2:13 to play, and Allen's tip put it away.