The Detroit Pistons are without Cade Cunningham in their 111-96 loss to the 76ers

Just before the opening tip, the Detroit Pistons learned they would be without their best player for the fourth time in five games.

On an evening that even had the makings of a “cancellation of appointments”. with Cade Cunningham, without him they clearly fell short. The Pistons were beaten 111-96 at home by the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.

It was their second straight night after beating the Indiana Pacers in Indianapolis on Friday and third game in four nights after a road loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday.

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Cunningham was not listed on the pregame injury report but was ultimately ruled out due to a left sacroiliac joint sprain, which also cost him three games before he returned on Friday. (The only other player on the injury report was Bobi Klintman, their 2024 second-round pick, who has not yet made his season debut because of a calf injury.)

The Pistons fell behind by 18 points in the first quarter but were made to sweat by their bench in the second period. They cut the deficit to five by halftime, thanks largely to a hot night from Malik Beasley, who knocked down three 3-pointers and scored 11 points in the quarter, as well as an improved defensive performance with Isaiah Stewart and Ausar Thompson on the court.

However, they couldn’t hold on and were 15 points below in the third period. It was a lethargic performance as the Pistons shot just 38.5% overall and 27.5% from 3. They were led by Beasley (19 points, six assists) and Jaden Ivey (15 points, five assists). Thompson added nine points and two blocks in nearly 14 minutes.

Tyrese Maxey led the Sixers with 27 points. They were without Joel Embiid due to a left knee injury.

Cunningham was a late scratch with a sprained back

After leading the Pistons to victory with 24 points and 11 assists on Friday, Cunningham appeared ready to compete on the second night of their meeting. However, the team made a last-minute decision to hold him back, presumably to ensure he would be healthy for Tuesday’s NBA Cup East Group B final against the Milwaukee Bucks.

It was Cunningham’s fourth missed game after he injured his back and fell heavily on his tailbone late in the fourth quarter against the Charlotte Hornets last week. The Pistons fell to 1-3 overall this season when Cunningham doesn’t play.

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The schedule does Pistons no favors

The Pistons (9-13) lead the NBA with 22 games played. There are only three teams that have played 21, and the remaining 20 have played 20 or less. For comparison: the Miami Heat have only played 17 times. It was the 18th game for the Sixers.

Through the first five weeks of the season, the Pistons have played more than a full week of games than some other teams.

“I made that comment last year about back-to-back (NBA Cup) games, and the energy that guys waste in a playoff-like atmosphere and then having to come back and play the next night, that’s extremely difficult,” said Head coach JB Bickerstaff before the game. “But we expect our guys to show up and compete every night. So we don’t expect it to be any different. We don’t change our approach night by night or game by game. We prepare the same way, we motivate the same way.

“Look back at the list of difficult circumstances this group has been through and in most cases they have found a way to cope. Our expectations don’t change from that standpoint.”

Bickerstaff played all 12 active Pistons players in the first quarter and looked for a spark as the Sixers took control early. He also experimented with lineups and went small, playing Thompson at center for a time.

The schedule will be relaxed in December. They will have consecutive days without a game on Sunday and Monday and Thursday and Friday, with a home game against the Bucks (at Little Caesars Arena) and the Boston Celtics in between. It is only the second and third time this season that the team has had two days off between games.

(MUST WATCH: Make The Pistons Pulse your favorite Detroit Pistons podcast, available wherever you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) or watch live/on-demand on YouTube. )

Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on X @omarisankofa

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