Pistons High / Low: Pistons let another opportunity slip away

The Brooklyn Nets improved to 14-56 after a 98-96 win over the Detroit Pistons, thanks in large part to a fourth quarter dominated by Brook Lopez.

On the year, the Nets are 2-0 against the Pistons and 12-56 against the rest of the league.

Ugh.

To the tape.

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High

Final sequence:

Ish with the block (and like all good shot blockers, he keeps it in play); Harris with fantastic positioning; Lopez with the game winner.

Losing on an unbalanced leaner from a seven-footer is a tough pill to swallow but somewhat acceptable. Being in a position to lose on an unbalanced leaner against this Nets team is a much bigger issue.

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Again, it was Ish Smith and Tobias Harris who breathed life into a hapless offense. Harris finished with a team-high 24 points, while Smith scored 12 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter to keep the game close.

Smith and Harris continued their fastbreak connection:

Smith’s fourth quarter offense kept the Pistons within reach:

Harris connected on 10-of-15 shots, mostly because he punished any smaller defender:

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Andre Drummond finished with 12 points and 17 rebounds but wasn’t on the floor for the Lopez game winner. Below, Drummond gets rewarded for his defense:

Now, if Drummond could only master Baynes’ verticality:

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Drummond erases Randy Foye:

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Low

Brook Lopez’s 29 points included these two offensive put-backs:

That second one hurt.

Below, Drummond doesn’t help his own cause any by taking himself out of position to defend:

Simply not ready to defend:

Lopez’s ability to knock down threes....

....lured Andre away from any rim protection duties:

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The Nets scored 48 of their 98 points in the paint. The perimeter defense leaves a lot on the table:

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Quick turnaround. See you in Chicago.