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Wins are not a given in the NBA Playoffs even if a team is the top seed in the Eastern Conference. The Detroit Pistons had to face this reality against the Orlando Magic. Cade Cunningham and Co. allowed Paolo Banchero's squad to pop off right off the gates. The consequences immediately crept up which led to a rough 112-101 loss. The star guard did know what went wrong and made it know to the basketball world.
Cunningham diagnoses what Pistons did wrong in NBA Playoffs loss to Magic
At no point in this NBA Playoffs game were the Pistons able to claw themselves back. In fact, they were not able to lead at at all while the Magic led as much as 13 points. These problems for Cade Cunningham's squad started when the Pistons allowed Paolo Banchero's team to score 35 points in the first quarter. The Pistons star guard outlined why this was a large concern, via the NBA.
"We came out a little too tight, lax or whatever the word is, maybe both for some of us. We just did not come out with the right energy and gave them life early on. We had to deal with that for the rest of the game. We were better in the standings but we cannot dig a hole like that," Cunningham said.
Cunningham is right. The first quarter outburst of the Magic was the largest amount of points scored between these NBA Playoffs teams in Game 1. Moreover, Banchero led the Magic to another 30-point quarter in the fourth which sealed the fate of the Pistons. Cunningham did manage to score 39 points but no one else on the Pistons scored more than 10 points aside from Tobias Harris.
“I know that they feel great about this game. It was a big win for them. They came in and handled their business and stole one on the road. That’s what you want to do in a playoff series, so I’m sure that they feel great about that. Obviously, we are sick about losing this one. It’s a long series, though," the Pistons star guard added.
There is a lot of factors for why the Pistons are not yet able to win an NBA Playoffs home game since 2008. Will Cunningham break that streak after knowing what they lacked against the Magic come Game 2?
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