A few things we learned from the Pistons’ 1-3 West Coast swing, which concluded with arguably their worst loss of the season, 114-99 to the Los Angeles Lakers Sunday night.
Their defense has been pretty offensive thus far:
Allowing opponents to shoot 49 percent and tying for 25th in points against is not what anyone envisioned. Simple pick-and-rolls give the Pistons trouble, and opponents have gotten a parade of easy shots with ball movement.
While losses to Golden State and the surprising Portland Trail Blazers aren’t anything to be ashamed of in the long run, letting the Lakers run loose to the tune of 61 percent shooting in the second half is nearly cause for alarm.