5-Time NBA Champion Praises Detroit Pistons Play vs LA Lakers

Detroit Pistons pick up season sweep over LeBron James and the LA Lakers.
Dec 23, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Jaden Ivey (23) celebrates the victory against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Dec 23, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Jaden Ivey (23) celebrates the victory against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Coming off an impressive win over the Phoenix Suns last Saturday, the Detroit Pistons headed to Crypto.com Arena for the second matchup of their four-game road trip. They'd square off against LeBron James and the LA Lakers with a chance to sweep the season series.

It would end up being a close matchup, but the Pistons managed to hold on and secure their third win over their last four games. Behind a strong performance from their backcourt, Detroit left LA with a 117-114 victory.

Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey have been two of the Pistons' top performers all season, and Monday's matchup was a testament to that. The former No. 1 pick led the way with 20 points, five rebounds, and 10 assists, while Ivey chimed in with 18 points of his own.

Following the matchup, Derek Fisher shared his thoughts on how things unfolded between the Pistons and Lakers. The five-time champion had a lot of praise for the young Detroit squad as he touched on the intensity they play with on a nightly basis.

"Pistons physicality, their aggression," Fisher said. "Just a really scrappy bunch and it wasn't that the Lakers weren't playing hard but you could just feel the Pistons' grit and toughness and resilience throughout the game”

With their victory on Monday, the Pistons were able to accomplish something they haven't done in seven years. That being complete a season sweep of the Lakers (last done in 2016-17 season.

Detroit followed up with an impressive win over the Sacramento Kings. They head into their Saturday night game against the Denver Nuggets sitting in ninth place in the Eastern Conference with a 14-17 record.


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