The Detroit Pistons faltered yet again on Saturday, as they suffered a 141-135 loss at home against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. Detroit actually looked much more competitive versus a legitimate NBA title contender than what the pre-game odds suggested, which also just made the defeat a harder one to swallow for head coach Monty Williams, especially because it looked as though his team lost that one on the free-throw line.
“It's hard to play defense when a team has 50 free throws,” Williams said after the game (h/t Mike Curtis of the Detroit News).
While the Pistons went 26-for-32 fro the foul line, the Bucks were 35-for-49. The disparity between the free-throw chances of Detroit and Milwaukee seems to spell where exactly Detroit fell short in the game. It also showed just how difficult it was for the Pistons to contain the Bucks' superstar tandem of Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, who had 38 of Milwaukee's total free-throw attempts among themselves.
For what it's worth, the Pistons entered the Bucks game allowing opposing teams to have an average of 26.7 free-throw attempts per game, already second-worst in the NBA.
Pistons' struggles more than just about free throws
The Pistons' struggles in the 2023-24 NBA regular season can't just be explained by free throws, though. It goes beyond that, with the team having trouble on both ends of the floor and in several other areas. They are among the worst offensive teams and also have one of the leakiest defenses in the league.
Detroit will look to get just their fifth win of the season this Monday when they face the Bucks again at home.
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