Game ID: 42400126
New York Knicks @ Detroit Pistons
Thursday, May 1, 2025 at 7:30 PM ET
Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DET 23 38 24 28 113NYK 37 22 37 20 116
DET vs NYK ScoutingDET vs NYK 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 4/21 · 1 day's restBACK Harris back 4/10 after 3, 27 min since (84% of 32)
BACK Smith back 4/13 after 19, 22 min since (100% of 22)
BACK Stewart back 4/19 after 2, 19 min since (95% of 20)
BACK Harper Jr. back 4/13 after 31, 17 min since (100% of 17)
BACK Sasser back 4/13 after 2, 43 min since (304% of 14)
DET availability going into 4/24 · 2 days' restOUT Fontecchio missed 2 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Sasser missed 2 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Harris back 4/10 after 3, 30 min since (94% of 32)
BACK Smith back 4/13 after 19, 22 min since (100% of 22)
BACK Stewart back 4/19 after 2, 19 min since (95% of 20)
BACK Harper Jr. back 4/13 after 31, 17 min since (100% of 17)
DET availability going into 4/27 · 2 days' restOUT Stewart missed 2 since 4/21, out tonight
OUT Fontecchio missed 3 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Sasser missed 3 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Smith back 4/13 after 19, 22 min since (100% of 22)
BACK Harper Jr. back 4/13 after 31, 17 min since (100% of 17)
DET availability going into 4/29 · 1 day's restOUT Stewart missed 3 since 4/21, out tonight
OUT Fontecchio missed 4 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Sasser missed 4 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Smith back 4/13 after 19, 22 min since (100% of 22)
BACK Harper Jr. back 4/13 after 31, 17 min since (100% of 17)
NEW Cunningham 36 to 42 min over the last 4
DET availability going into 5/01 · 1 day's restOUT Stewart missed 4 since 4/21, out tonight
OUT Fontecchio missed 5 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Sasser missed 5 since 4/19, out tonight
NEW Cunningham 36 to 41 min over the last 5
NEW Harris 32 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Duren 27 to 33 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 4/21 · 1 day's restBACK Towns back 4/19 after 2, 39 min since (112% of 35)
BACK Achiuwa back 4/10 after 2, 29 min since (158% of 18)
BACK Tucker back 4/10 after 11, 28 min since (180% of 16)
BACK Wright back 4/10 after 2, 17 min since (121% of 14)
NYK availability going into 4/24 · 2 days' restOUT Achiuwa missed 2 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 2 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 2 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Towns back 4/19 after 2, 36 min since (104% of 35)
NYK availability going into 4/27 · 2 days' restOUT Achiuwa missed 3 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 3 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 3 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Towns back 4/19 after 2, 38 min since (108% of 35)
NYK availability going into 4/29 · 1 day's restOUT Achiuwa missed 4 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 4 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 4 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Towns back 4/19 after 2, 39 min since (110% of 35)
NYK availability going into 5/01 · 1 day's restOUT Achiuwa missed 5 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 5 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 5 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Towns back 4/19 after 2, 38 min since (108% of 35)
NYK availability going into 5/05 · 3 days' restOUT Achiuwa missed 6 since 4/19, returns tonight: 5 min (28% of 18)
OUT Tucker missed 6 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 6 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 2 since 4/29, out tonight
NYK availability going into 5/07 · 1 day's restOUT Tucker missed 7 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 7 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 3 since 4/29, out tonight
BACK Achiuwa back 5/05 after 6, 5 min since (28% of 18)
NEW Bridges 37 to 43 min over the last 5
NEW Anunoby 37 to 42 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 5/10 · 2 days' restOUT Tucker missed 8 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 8 since 4/19, returns tonight: 3 min (22% of 14)
OUT Shamet missed 4 since 4/29, returns tonight: 3 min (22% of 14)
BACK Achiuwa back 5/05 after 6, 5 min since (28% of 18)
NEW Bridges 37 to 44 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 5/12 · 1 day's restOUT Tucker missed 9 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Achiuwa back 5/05 after 6, 6 min since (30% of 18)
BACK Wright back 5/10 after 8, 3 min since (22% of 14)
BACK Shamet back 5/10 after 4, 3 min since (22% of 14)
NEW Bridges 37 to 43 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 106, shooting 45 percent and 34 from three, 27 free throws a game; Cunningham at 25 and Harris at 16 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Stewart (4 straight), Fontecchio (5 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 105, shooting 44 percent and 37 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 30 and Towns at 22 a game. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Achiuwa (5 straight), Tucker (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: Detroit wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Detroit has been plus-6 a night and New York minus-6 and the turnovers, Detroit giving it away 16 times a game to New York's 11. Call it Detroit 111, New York 109, New York keeping it close.
4/21 @ NYK 100-94 — DET notes
DET won 100-94. DET shot 45% (33 of 74) to NYK's 42%, 6 of 27 from three, and went to the line 34 times to NYK's 19 — 28 points from the stripe to their 16. The glass went 48-34 for them. Cunningham led with 33 (11 of 21, 1 of 4 from three, 10 of 12 at the line); Schröder added 20, Harris 15. The hinge was Q1, 25-18: from level to 7 ahead, and the lead reached 15. Reed was the night's best plus/minus at +13.
4/24 vs NYK 116-118 — DET notes
DET lost 116-118. DET shot 45% (39 of 86) to NYK's 47%, 16 of 37 from three. DET turned it over 14 times to NYK's 9, and NYK turned those into 11 steals. Cunningham led with 24 (10 of 25, 2 of 5 from three); Hardaway Jr. added 24, Schröder 18. Q4 was theirs, 33-25, the deficit cut from 10 to 2, but the other 3 periods went 93-83 against them. Beasley's -13 in 23 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/27 vs NYK 93-94 — DET notes
DET lost 93-94. DET shot 43% (36 of 84) to NYK's 37%, 7 of 29 from three. DET turned it over 17 times to NYK's 10, and NYK turned those into 11 steals. The glass went 54-38 for them. Cunningham led with 25 (11 of 23, 0 of 3 from three); Harris added 18, Hardaway Jr. 14. Q3 was theirs, 28-14, turning a 7-point deficit into a 7-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 80-65 against them. They led by as many as 11. Duren's -17 in 38 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/29 @ NYK 106-103 — DET notes
DET won 106-103. DET shot 42% (36 of 85) to NYK's 43%, 8 of 29 from three, and went to the line 36 times to NYK's 27 — 26 points from the stripe to their 16. Cunningham led with 24 (6 of 17, 1 of 4 from three, 11 of 12 at the line); Thompson added 22, Harris 17. The hinge was Q3, 28-24: DET came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 3. DET trailed 49-50 at the half and won the second half 57-53. Duren was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
5/01 vs NYK 113-116 — DET notes
DET lost 113-116. DET shot 47% (38 of 81) to NYK's 48%, 9 of 34 from three. Cunningham led with 23 (9 of 22, 0 of 8 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Duren added 21, Beasley 20. Q2 was theirs, 38-22, turning a 14-point deficit into a 2-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 94-75 against them. Harris's -23 in 39 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/21 vs DET 94-100 — NYK notes
NYK lost 94-100. NYK shot 42% (34 of 81) to DET's 45%, 10 of 35 from three, and got to the line 19 times to DET's 34. The glass went 34-48 against them. Brunson led with 37 (12 of 27, 4 of 12 from three, 9 of 11 at the line); Bridges added 19, Anunoby 10. Q4 was theirs, 27-25, the deficit cut from 8 to 6, but the other 3 periods went 75-67 against them. Towns's -10 in 33 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/24 @ DET 118-116 — NYK notes
NYK won 118-116. NYK shot 47% (40 of 86) to DET's 45%, 12 of 32 from three. NYK turned it over 9 times to DET's 14. Towns led with 31 (10 of 18, 4 of 8 from three, 7 of 7 at the line); Brunson added 30, Anunoby 22. The hinge was Q2, 33-26: a lead of 6 became 13.
4/27 @ DET 94-93 — NYK notes
NYK won 94-93. NYK shot 37% (34 of 91) to DET's 43%, 15 of 33 from three. NYK turned it over 10 times to DET's 17. The glass went 38-54 against them. Brunson led with 32 (13 of 26, 4 of 7 from three); Towns added 27, Hart 14. The hinge was Q1, 29-19: from level to 10 ahead, and the lead reached 16.
4/29 vs DET 103-106 — NYK notes
NYK lost 103-106. NYK shot 43% (39 of 90) to DET's 42%, 9 of 25 from three, and got to the line 27 times to DET's 36. Anunoby led with 19 (8 of 13, 3 of 4 from three); Bridges added 17, Towns 17. Q1 was theirs, 23-22, but the other 3 periods went 84-80 against them.
5/01 @ DET 116-113 — NYK notes
NYK won 116-113. NYK shot 48% (41 of 86) to DET's 47%, 10 of 30 from three. Brunson led with 40 (15 of 33, 3 of 10 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Bridges added 25, Anunoby 22. The hinge was Q1, 37-23: from level to 14 ahead. NYK trailed 59-61 at the half and won the second half 57-52.
5/05 @ 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 106 a night and allowing 94, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 26 free throws a game; Tatum at 31 and Brown at 23 a game. Without Holiday (3 straight). 5 days' rest. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 106, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 25 free throws a game; Brunson at 31 and Towns at 19 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Achiuwa (6 straight), Tucker (6 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 94 a night to New York's 106 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-2 a night and New York minus-4. Call it Boston 111, New York 104.
5/07 @ BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 98, shooting 44 percent and 32 from three, 27 free throws a game; Tatum at 33 and Brown at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest. New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 107, shooting 43 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Brunson at 29 and Anunoby at 20 a game. Without Tucker (7 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-4 a night and New York minus-4 and the arc, New York at 40 percent from three to Boston's 32. Call it Boston 111, New York 106.
5/10 vs BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 101, shooting 43 percent and 38 from three, 23 free throws a game; Brunson at 27 and Towns at 18 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Tucker (8 straight). 2 days' rest. Boston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 96, shooting 42 percent and 31 from three, 24 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Brown at 21 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, New York at 38 percent from three to Boston's 31 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-3 a night and New York minus-4. Call it Boston 107, New York 106, New York keeping it close.
5/12 vs BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 106, shooting 43 percent and 34 from three, 27 free throws a game; Brunson at 26 and Towns at 17 a game. Without Tucker (9 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 96, shooting 43 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and Brown at 21 a game. Without Hauser (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 96 a night to New York's 106. Call it Boston 109, New York 106, New York keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
NYKCP C. Payne
JB J. Brunson
JH J. Hart
KT K. Towns
MB M. Bridges
MM M. McBride
MR M. Robinson
OA O. Anunoby
DETAT A. Thompson
CC C. Cunningham
DS D. Schröder
JD J. Duren
MB M. Beasley
PR P. Reed
SC Schroder
TH T. Hardaway Jr.
TH T. Harris
NYK/DET 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
Brunson scores 40, Knicks top Pistons 116-113 in Game 6, advance to 2nd-round series with Celtics
DETROIT -- — Jalen Brunson 's crossover dribble between his legs created space for a game-winning 3-pointer with 4.3 seconds left and he blew a kiss to a quiet crowd that relentlessly taunted him for three games.
Brunson finished with 40 points to lead the New York Knicks to a 116-113 win over the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night in Game 6 and into the second round of the NBA playoffs.
“I stay poised and I rely on the trust and composure my teammates give me," Brunson said.
A week after the point guard won the NBA’s clutch player of the year award, he lived up to the billing.
“He’s at his best when his best is needed and he’s done it all year," Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. "That’s what makes him special.”
Detroit didn't get a shot off to potentially tie the game and send it to overtime because Malik Beasley fumbled a pass with four-tenths of a second left.
“This is tough,” said Beasley, who had 16 points in the second quarter and finished with 20. “I had a chance to make a three and tie the game. I’m mad about that.”
The third-seeded Knicks will face second-seeded Boston, shooting to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2000.
Game 1 is Monday night in Boston.
“They’re the defending champion so we’re going to have to be at our best,” Thibodeau said.
Mikal Bridges had 25 points and OG Anunoby added 22 for the Knicks, who closed the game out with clutch shots and stops after losing an 11-point lead in the fourth quarter and a 15-point advantage in the second quarter.
The sixth-seeded Pistons had an unprecedented turnaround during the regular season and ended the NBA’s longest playoff losing streak in their first postseason appearance since 2019, but broke another league mark with a 10th straight setback at home dating to 2008.
“We proved to ourselves and to the rest of the league that what we have in our room can be very successful,” Cunningham said.
Detroit’s Cade Cunningham had 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Cunningham was 0 for 8 on 3-pointers and his backcourt mate Tim Hardaway Jr . was 1 of 6 beyond the arc and scored seven points.
Hardaway made a jumper to put Detroit ahead 112-105 with 2:35 left and Brunson responded by scoring the next five points.
Cunningham missed a contested layup with 22 seconds left that when the score was 113-all and Brunson took advantage of the opportunity to win it on the next possession.
“We did so many things well and gave ourselves a chance,” Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “They just made one more play than we did.”
Brunson was booed almost every time he touched the ball in the series and heard much worse than that in Game 3.
It was so vulgar that Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr came to Brunson's defense.
Thibodeau, though, said no one can rattle Brunson.
“His focus is terrific," Thibodeau said. "He doesn’t get sidetracked with anything but the game. He’s not thinking about what people say, or fans.”