DETROIT — Coming off three straight Detroit Pistons losses in which he averaged 14 points on 30.8 percent shooting, Jaden Ivey found himself walking out of a timeout knowing the ball would be in his hands with an opportunity to win the game. There were 22.3 seconds remaining and the score was even at 100, and Ivey made sure to do one thing in particular before action resumed.
“Before I actually even did the play,” Ivey laughed during his postgame news conference. “I was just talking to Jesus, man. I’m like, ‘Lord, just do something special.’ And He delivered and gave me the strength to go out there and execute the last play.”
And Ivey executed the final play without a hitch. He had the ball at the top of the key with Toronto Raptors guard Davion Mitchell guarding him. Malik Beasley rushed up to set a screen on Mitchell, switching Ochai Agbaji onto Ivey with just over six seconds on the clock. Ivey slowed his pace, went from right to left between his legs before a double crossover, and accelerated to the rim for a right-handed floater.
HIM https://t.co/fPD4SUW5wX pic.twitter.com/zbkSB2Molh
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) November 26, 2024
All of Little Caesars Arena watched as the ball gently went through the net as time expired and the Pistons defeated the Raptors 102-100. Ivey finished with a team-high 25 points, eight assists, five rebounds and a steal on an efficient 10-of-14 shooting from the field and 2-of-4 from 3-point range. He was a plus-25 in a 2-point win.
Apart from Ivey hitting the game winner in front of his parents and wife, there were things he did this game that can be replicated in future outings — especially depending on how long his backcourt mate, Cade Cunningham, is sidelined with a sprained left sacroiliac joint. Ivey scored from all three levels on layups, floaters, midrange jumpers and 3s. Plus he was effective both in transition and in the half court.
“(Ivey) played a complete basketball game tonight,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said after the win. “He’s good enough to do it again and again. He’s just got to trust it like he does and keep putting the confidence in the work that he’s put in. … For me, it wasn’t just that last shot. He was phenomenal to start the game and for all of his minutes, setting the tone and attacking when he needed to be aggressive.
“But I thought he did an unbelievable job of playing the complete floor tonight, making sure his teammates were involved, getting us organized. Just from a point guard perspective, that was a huge step for JI tonight.”
J.B. Bickerstaff on a thrilling victory for his team. #DetroitBasketball pic.twitter.com/SdqGbQC5FV
— FanDuel Sports Network Detroit (@FanDuelSN_DET) November 26, 2024
So, what exactly did Ivey do for this to be categorized as a “huge step” and how can he sustain it? Let’s unpack.
To start, Ivey was responsible for 45 of Detroit’s 102 points on the evening by way of his own points and assists, good for just over 44 percent of the team’s scoring output. As Bickerstaff mentioned, that is a step forward for a 22-year-old guard less than 20 games into his third season. But more specifically, his approach to the game was replicable. He began by getting half of his assists in the first quarter.
He found a cutting Jalen Duren in transition for his first dime of the night. Duren running hard on the break to beat his man to the paint should eventually become a habit. And the way Ivey pushes the ball down the floor regularly, there should be no reason this could not be a common occurrence to allow an easy basket and assist for the duo.
Ivey’s second assist came in more of a half court setting when he caught a pass from Tim Hardaway Jr. and curled to the free-throw line before skipping a pass to Beasley for a corner triple. Ivey’s penetration directly caused Toronto defenders to help over and freed up Beasley for the shot in the first place. That’s another replicable scenario, given that he takes 14.9 shot attempts per game and 7.2 of those are specifically within less than 10 feet of the rim, where he can force the defense to help just as he did here.
Malik goin’ back to back from behind the arc pic.twitter.com/lxKmFZsQj8
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) November 26, 2024
He then caught the Raptors’ defense snoozing and whipped an inbounds pass to Tobias Harris for an easy dunk, which was more a reflection of Toronto’s lack of awareness. Finally, Ivey was once again in transition and found Beasley for another corner 3. Similar to the description above for the transition assist with Duren, this should be a more frequent way for Ivey to get his teammates going.
“Tonight I did a better job just trying to find my teammates, get them more opportunities and looks,” Ivey said. “But just trying to utilize and manipulate the game with my speed and finding my teammates. They knocked shots down so I give credit to them. We’ve just got to keep making the right plays as a team and obviously missing our leading scorer in Cade, he brings so much to our team.
“So we’ve got to utilize each other more, share the ball and keep playing through each other.”
The speed Ivey mentioned he used to find his teammates also proved to be the key to his 5 points in the first quarter that didn’t require a dribble. Duren returned the favor and found Ivey sprinting to the rim in transition for a reverse layup. Next, Ivey came off a handoff from Isaiah Stewart and knocked down a 27-foot 3-pointer from the top of the key.
Ivey, who runs hard on the break with or without the ball, is now shooting a career-high 37.2 percent from 3 and shoots just a tick better at 37.3 percent on “above the break” 3s — much like he did on the 3 assisted by Duren. These should again be situations Ivey and the Pistons could find themselves in more often with this type of focus and effort moving forward.
Ideally for Detroit, these habits will carry over even when Cunningham returns to make the unit even more effective.
The Purdue product accounted for 12 points and two assists between the second and third quarters, and all of it was necessary. Ivey and the Pistons faced an 8-point deficit as the Raptors were in front 80-72 going into the fourth. But that was when Ivey started to get going.
Ivey had 8 of his 25 points in the final frame, his most in any quarter this game, and added the final two of his eight assists. He also missed just one of his four shot attempts, though he missed two of his four free throws in the fourth while turning it over just once.
Two of Ivey’s four most crucial points of the night came when he pushed past three Toronto defenders, as he often does against most teams, to finish over multiple outstretched arms and even the score at 98 with 1:07 remaining.
Stewart, who scored a team-high 9 fourth-quarter points, then flushed home a one-handed slam to give the Pistons a 100-98 lead after a stop. But Scottie Barnes had been the primary scorer for the Raptors to this point and eventually notched his 29th and 30th points of the contest.
Then, Ivey called game to send Detroit off on a two-game trip against the Memphis Grizzlies and Indiana Pacers with a win, a potential repeatable formula for personal and team success, and an 8-11 record.
(Photo: Rick Osentoski / Imagn Images)
