Game ID: 22501038
Los Angeles Lakers @ Detroit Pistons
Monday, March 23, 2026 at 7:00 PM ET
Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DET 23 42 24 24 113LAL 27 25 35 23 110
DET vs LAL ScoutingDET vs LAL 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 3/15 · 1 day's restOUT Thompson missed 5 since 3/07, returns tonight: 24 min (90% of 27)
BACK LeVert back 3/13 after 3, 23 min since (122% of 19)
NEW Sasser 12 to 23 min over the last 5
DET availability going into 3/17 · 1 day's restBACK Thompson back 3/15 after 5, 24 min since (90% of 27)
BACK LeVert back 3/13 after 3, 22 min since (115% of 19)
NEW Sasser 12 to 19 min over the last 5
DET availability going into 3/19 · 1 day's restOUT Stewart missed 2 since 3/15, out tonight
BACK Thompson back 3/15 after 5, 26 min since (96% of 27)
BACK LeVert back 3/13 after 3, 21 min since (113% of 19)
NEW Sasser 12 to 20 min over the last 5
DET availability going into 3/20 · back-to-backOUT Stewart missed 3 since 3/15, out tonight
BACK Thompson back 3/15 after 5, 25 min since (94% of 27)
BACK LeVert back 3/13 after 3, 21 min since (112% of 19)
NEW Sasser 12 to 19 min over the last 5
DET availability going into 3/23 · 2 days' restOUT Cunningham missed 2 since 3/19, out tonight
OUT Stewart missed 4 since 3/15, out tonight
BACK Thompson back 3/15 after 5, 25 min since (94% of 27)
BACK LeVert back 3/13 after 3, 21 min since (112% of 19)
NEW Jenkins 21 to 28 min over the last 4
NEW Sasser 12 to 18 min over the last 4
DET availability going into 3/25 · 1 day's restOUT Cunningham missed 3 since 3/19, out tonight
OUT Stewart missed 5 since 3/15, out tonight
OUT Sasser missed 2 since 3/20, out tonight
BACK Thompson back 3/15 after 5, 27 min since (102% of 27)
NEW Jenkins 21 to 33 min over the last 4
DET availability going into 3/26 · back-to-backOUT Cunningham missed 4 since 3/19, out tonight
OUT Stewart missed 6 since 3/15, out tonight
OUT Sasser missed 3 since 3/20, returns tonight: 16 min (137% of 12)
NEW Jenkins 21 to 35 min over the last 5
DET availability going into 3/28 · 1 day's restOUT Cunningham missed 5 since 3/19, out tonight
OUT Stewart missed 7 since 3/15, out tonight
BACK Sasser back 3/26 after 3, 16 min since (137% of 12)
NEW Jenkins 21 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Huerter 19 to 24 min over the last 4
DET availability going into 3/30 · 1 day's restOUT Cunningham missed 6 since 3/19, out tonight
OUT Stewart missed 8 since 3/15, out tonight
BACK Sasser back 3/26 after 3, 13 min since (114% of 12)
NEW Jenkins 21 to 37 min over the last 5
NEW Huerter 19 to 24 min over the last 4
LAL availability going into 3/16 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 14 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Kleber missed 3 since 3/10, out tonight
BACK James back 3/12 after 3, 37 min since (108% of 34)
BACK Hayes back 3/14 after 2, 21 min since (116% of 18)
LAL availability going into 3/18 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 2 since 3/14, out tonight
OUT Smith Jr. missed 15 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Kleber missed 4 since 3/10, out tonight
BACK James back 3/12 after 3, 36 min since (105% of 34)
BACK Hayes back 3/14 after 2, 16 min since (90% of 18)
NEW Reaves 35 to 40 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 3/19 · back-to-backOUT Vanderbilt missed 3 since 3/14, out tonight
OUT Smith Jr. missed 16 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Kleber missed 5 since 3/10, out tonight
BACK James back 3/12 after 3, 35 min since (104% of 34)
BACK Hayes back 3/14 after 2, 15 min since (85% of 18)
NEW Reaves 35 to 40 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 3/21 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 4 since 3/14, out tonight
OUT Smith Jr. missed 17 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Kleber missed 6 since 3/10, out tonight
BACK James back 3/12 after 3, 36 min since (105% of 34)
BACK Hayes back 3/14 after 2, 16 min since (90% of 18)
NEW Reaves 35 to 41 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 3/23 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 5 since 3/14, returns tonight: 16 min (93% of 17)
OUT Smith Jr. missed 18 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Kleber missed 7 since 3/10, returns tonight: 0 min (1% of 10)
BACK Hayes back 3/14 after 2, 17 min since (93% of 18)
NEW Reaves 35 to 41 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 3/25 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 19 since 2/12, out tonight
BACK Vanderbilt back 3/23 after 5, 16 min since (93% of 17)
BACK Kleber back 3/23 after 7, 0 min since (1% of 10)
LAL availability going into 3/27 · 1 day's restOUT Hachimura missed 2 since 3/23, returns tonight: 26 min (88% of 30)
OUT Smart missed 2 since 3/23, out tonight
OUT Smith Jr. missed 20 since 2/12, out tonight
BACK Vanderbilt back 3/23 after 5, 14 min since (84% of 17)
BACK Kleber back 3/23 after 7, 6 min since (56% of 10)
LAL availability going into 3/30 · 2 days' restOUT Smart missed 3 since 3/23, out tonight
OUT Smith Jr. missed 21 since 2/12, out tonight
BACK Hachimura back 3/27 after 2, 26 min since (88% of 30)
BACK Vanderbilt back 3/23 after 5, 13 min since (76% of 17)
BACK Kleber back 3/23 after 7, 6 min since (56% of 10)
NEW Hayes 18 to 24 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 3/31 · back-to-backOUT Smart missed 4 since 3/23, out tonight
OUT Smith Jr. missed 22 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Kleber missed 2 since 3/27, out tonight
BACK Hachimura back 3/27 after 2, 26 min since (87% of 30)
BACK Vanderbilt back 3/23 after 5, 15 min since (91% of 17)
NEW Hayes 18 to 24 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 4-1 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 108, shooting 50 percent and 34 from three, 26 free throws a game; Duren at 27 and Cunningham at 19 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without Cunningham (2 straight), Stewart (4 straight). 2 days' rest. The Lakers come in 5-0 over their last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 113, shooting 51 percent and 34 from three, 30 free throws a game; Dončić at 40 and Reaves at 21 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Vanderbilt (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: Detroit wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Detroit has been plus-9 a night and the Lakers minus-1. Call it Detroit 117, the Lakers 112.
3/15 @ TOR 108-119 — DET notes
DET lost 108-119. DET shot 48% (41 of 85) to TOR's 48%, 10 of 26 from three, and got to the line 24 times to TOR's 30. Cunningham led with 33 (12 of 24, 2 of 8 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Harris added 21, Duren 20. Q2 was theirs, 32-26, turning a 1-point deficit into a 5-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 93-76 against them. Cunningham's -13 in 37 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/17 @ WAS 130-117 — DET notes
DET won 130-117. DET shot 51% (46 of 90) to WAS's 49%, 11 of 27 from three, and went to the line 32 times to WAS's 19 — 27 points from the stripe to their 15. The glass went 50-35 for them. Duren led with 36 (13 of 17, 10 of 11 at the line); Jenkins added 15, Harris 12. The hinge was Q3, 37-26: a lead of 6 became 17, and the lead reached 22. Harris was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
3/19 @ WAS 117-95 — DET notes
DET won 117-95. DET shot 45% (44 of 97) to WAS's 44%, 9 of 30 from three, and went to the line 26 times to WAS's 12 — 20 points from the stripe to their 8. DET turned it over 10 times to WAS's 19. The glass went 56-35 for them. Duren led with 24 (9 of 15, 6 of 8 at the line); Reed added 17, Robinson 14. The hinge was Q1, 35-14: from level to 21 ahead, and the lead reached 25. Huerter was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
3/20 vs GSW 115-101 — DET notes
DET won 115-101. DET shot 52% (45 of 86) to GSW's 46%, 5 of 21 from three. DET turned it over 13 times to GSW's 25. Duren led with 23 (8 of 12, 7 of 9 at the line); Jenkins added 22, Reed 15. The hinge was Q2, 36-24: DET came in trailing by 5 and left it ahead by 7, and the lead reached 24. Robinson was the night's best plus/minus at +37.
3/23 vs LAL 113-110 — DET notes
DET won 113-110. DET shot 45% (40 of 88) to LAL's 48%, 11 of 26 from three, and got to the line 24 times to LAL's 31. Jenkins led with 30 (11 of 18, 4 of 5 from three); Duren added 20, Harris 14. The hinge was Q2, 42-25: DET came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 13, and the lead reached 16. Green was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
3/25 vs ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 108, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 27 free throws a game; Duren at 25 and Jenkins at 19 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Cunningham (3 straight), Stewart (5 straight). One day's rest. Atlanta comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 113, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Alexander-Walker at 25 and Johnson at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Johnson (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Detroit wins, and the game turns on the line, where Detroit takes 27 free throws a game to Atlanta's 21. Call it Detroit 117, Atlanta 114, Atlanta keeping it close.
3/26 vs NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 111, shooting 49 percent and 33 from three, 26 free throws a game; Duren at 26 and Jenkins at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Cunningham (4 straight), Stewart (6 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 110, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 22 free throws a game; Bey at 21 and Williamson at 21 a game. Without Poole (2 straight), McGowens (7 straight), Jordan (6 straight). One day's rest.
So: Detroit wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Detroit has been plus-5 a night and New Orleans minus-2 and the arc, New Orleans at 37 percent from three to Detroit's 33. Call it Detroit 117, New Orleans 113, New Orleans keeping it close.
3/28 @ MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 105, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 23 free throws a game; Randle at 21 and Dosunmu at 19 a game. Without Edwards (5 straight). 2 days' rest. Detroit comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 109, shooting 50 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Duren at 25 and Jenkins at 20 a game. Without Cunningham (5 straight), Stewart (7 straight). One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it Minnesota 114, Detroit 113, Detroit keeping it close.
3/30 @ OKC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 109, shooting 50 percent and 36 from three, 27 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 30 and Jal. Williams at 16 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. Detroit comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 107, shooting 51 percent and 37 from three, 22 free throws a game; Duren at 22 and Jenkins at 21 a game. Without Cunningham (6 straight), Stewart (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, Detroit giving it away 15 times a game to OKC's 11 and the glass, where OKC has been plus-5 a night and Detroit plus-1. Call it OKC 115, Detroit 112, Detroit keeping it close.
3/16 @ HOU 100-92 — LAL notes
LAL won 100-92. LAL shot 44% (37 of 84) to HOU's 48%, 8 of 34 from three, and went to the line 22 times to HOU's 15 — 18 points from the stripe to their 11. LAL turned it over 11 times to HOU's 22. The glass went 32-44 against them. Dončić led with 36 (14 of 27, 4 of 12 from three); James added 18, Reaves 15. The hinge was Q3, 32-23: LAL came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 3. LAL trailed 51-57 at the half and won the second half 49-35. James was the night's best plus/minus at +13.
3/18 @ HOU 124-116 — LAL notes
LAL won 124-116. LAL shot 61% (46 of 76) to HOU's 49%, 15 of 32 from three, and went to the line 27 times to HOU's 17 — 17 points from the stripe to their 15. Dončić led with 40 (12 of 25, 7 of 17 from three, 9 of 14 at the line); James added 30, Ayton 16. The hinge was Q4, 35-24: LAL came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 8. Hachimura was the night's best plus/minus at +8.
3/19 @ MIA 134-126 — LAL notes
LAL won 134-126. LAL shot 53% (43 of 81) to MIA's 51%, 14 of 32 from three, and went to the line 45 times to MIA's 22 — 34 points from the stripe to their 18. Dončić led with 60 (18 of 30, 9 of 17 from three, 15 of 19 at the line); James added 19, Reaves 18. The hinge was Q3, 38-23: LAL came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 9. LAL trailed 59-65 at the half and won the second half 75-61. Smart was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
3/21 @ ORL 105-104 — LAL notes
LAL won 105-104. LAL shot 45% (39 of 87) to ORL's 43%, 8 of 32 from three, and went to the line 29 times to ORL's 23 — 19 points from the stripe to their 21. Dončić led with 33 (12 of 30, 3 of 13 from three, 6 of 9 at the line); Reaves added 26, Kennard 13. The hinge was Q1, 37-30: from level to 7 ahead. LAL trailed 62-65 at the half and won the second half 43-39.
3/23 @ DET 110-113 — LAL notes
LAL lost 110-113. LAL shot 48% (38 of 79) to DET's 45%, 8 of 29 from three, and went to the line 31 times to DET's 24 — 26 points from the stripe to their 22. Dončić led with 32 (11 of 29, 3 of 13 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Reaves added 24, Ayton 13. Q3 was theirs, 35-24, the deficit cut from 13 to 2, but the other 3 periods went 89-75 against them. James's -8 in 39 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/25 @ IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 131, shooting 52 percent and 46 from three, 18 free throws a game; Nesmith at 17 and Walker at 16 a game. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. Without Slawson (2 straight), Thompson (6 straight), Jones (2 straight). One day's rest. The Lakers come in 4-1 over their last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 110, shooting 50 percent and 33 from three, 31 free throws a game; Dončić at 40 and Reaves at 19 a game. One day's rest.
So: The Lakers win, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, the Lakers allowing 110 a night to Indiana's 131 and the arc, Indiana at 46 percent from three to the Lakers' 33. Call it the Lakers 120, Indiana 115.
3/27 vs BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 4-1 over their last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 118, shooting 52 percent and 36 from three, 33 free throws a game; Dončić at 42 and Reaves at 21 a game. Without Hachimura (2 straight), Smart (2 straight). One day's rest. Brooklyn comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 117, shooting 44 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; Williams at 15 and Wilson at 14 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 14 a night. Without Clowney (4 straight), Wolf (2 straight), Sharpe (9 straight). One day's rest.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the glass, where the Lakers have been plus-2 a night and Brooklyn minus-14 and the line, where the Lakers take 33 free throws a game to Brooklyn's 22. Call it the Lakers 119, Brooklyn 109, the Lakers by 10.
3/30 vs WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 4-1 over their last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 114, shooting 51 percent and 35 from three, 36 free throws a game; Dončić at 42 and Reaves at 24 a game. They have won the glass by 5 a night. Without Smart (3 straight). 2 days' rest. Washington comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 128, shooting 48 percent and 38 from three, 17 free throws a game; Hardy at 18 and Riley at 15 a game. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without George (14 straight), Whitmore (53 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the line, where the Lakers take 36 free throws a game to Washington's 17 and the glass, where the Lakers have been plus-5 a night and Washington minus-8. Call it the Lakers 124, Washington 112, the Lakers by 12.
3/31 vs CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 4-1 over their last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 109, shooting 52 percent and 32 from three, 34 free throws a game; Dončić at 37 and Reaves at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. They have won the glass by 6 a night. Without Smart (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 120, shooting 51 percent and 34 from three, 27 free throws a game; Mitchell at 27 and Mobley at 20 a game. Without Tyson (5 straight), Wade (3 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the defense, the Lakers allowing 109 a night to Cleveland's 120 and the line, where the Lakers take 34 free throws a game to Cleveland's 27. Call it the Lakers 119, Cleveland 115, Cleveland keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
LALAR A. Reaves
AT A. Thiero
DA D. Ayton
DO Doncic
JH J. Hayes
JL J. LaRavia
JV J. Vanderbilt
LD L. Dončić
LJ L. James
LK L. Kennard
DETAT A. Thompson
CL C. LeVert
DJ D. Jenkins
DR D. Robinson
JD J. Duren
JG J. Green
KH K. Huerter
PR P. Reed
RH R. Holland II
TH T. Harris
LAL/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
Daniss Jenkins puts up career-high 30 points as Pistons end Lakers' 9-game win streak, 113-110
DETROIT -- — Daniss Jenkins scored a career-high 30 points, including six in the final 34 seconds, and the Detroit Pistons ended the Los Angeles Lakers’ nine-game winning streak with a 113-110 win on Monday.
The Pistons overcame 32 points from Luka Doncic and 24 from Austin Reaves to win their fourth straight and seventh in eight games. Jalen Duren added 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Doncic was cleared to play Sunday after the NBA rescinded his 16th technical foul of the season, which triggers a one-game suspension.
LeBron James went scoreless in the first half, but finished with 12 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.
The Lakers trailed by 16 points early in the third quarter, but came back to take a 108-107 lead on two Deandre Ayton free throws with 39.9 seconds left.
Jenkins answered with two free throws at the other end to put Detroit back in front, but Reaves hit a jumper in the lane to make it 110-109 with 29.7 seconds to play.
Jenkins scored again, then made two free throws after Doncic missed. That put Detroit ahead 113-110 with nine seconds left and Doncic missed a contested 3-point shot at the buzzer.
The Lakers tied the game at 91-all with nine minutes to play, but the Pistons responded with a 10-3 run to go up 101-94. Los Angeles struggled to keep Detroit away from the rim, but finally made it 105-105 on three Luke Kennard free throws with 2:39 left.
Up next Lakers: Visit the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday.