Pistons at Nets
The Brooklyn Nets dropped six of their last seven games but the lone win in that span came at the Detroit Pistons in overtime on Saturday. The Nets will try to victimize the Pistons again when they host a rematch on Wednesday.
Kyrie Irving scored 45 points in that win at Detroit but was ruled out the next day against the New York Knicks after being overwhelmed with emotions at the announcement of Kobe Bryant's tragic death in a helicopter accident. "Everyone's feeling sick," Brooklyn forward Joe Harris told reporters after the 110-97 loss to the Knicks. "I think for most of us, (Irving) and some of these guys have different relationships with him, where they're very close friends. But a lot of us from the outside looking in, still just sick. It's one of those things where we're glad that we're all together and we're glad that you can still honor him and respect him by going out and competing." The Pistons made their own tributes to Bryant before Monday's game against Cleveland and went on to fall 115-100 - their third consecutive setback. "So many emotions were caught up in this game," Detroit guard Langston Galloway told reporters. "We just couldn't figure it out. But we wanted to go out there and represent (Bryant) as best we could."
TIME: 7:30 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN, FS Detroit, YES, NBA TV Canada
ABOUT THE PISTONS (17-31): Detroit has been hit hard by injuries and added point guard Derrick Rose to the list on Monday, as he sat out to rest a sore knee. "He's our most talented player we have right now," Pistons coach Dwane Casey told reporters of Rose, who is day-to-day. "The most talented player with the ball. A lot of stuff like it was last year with (injured forward) Blake (Griffin). You've got to have a queen bee and right now he's our queen bee." Casey, who suggested the famously competitive Bryant "would be embarrassed at our non-compete level" after the game, used his 23rd different starting lineup against the Cavaliers.
ABOUT THE NETS (19-26): Guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who grew up idolizing Bryant in Los Angeles, saw his production decrease with Irving's return from a shoulder injury but led Brooklyn with 23 points at New York on Sunday. Dinwiddie, who is averaging 21.2 points, reached 20 twice in the previous seven contests. Irving's best game since his return came at Detroit, where he went 15-of-30 from the floor, 10-of-10 from the line, and added seven assists and six rebounds while knocking down five 3-pointers.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Nets C DeAndre Jordan (finger) sat out he last five games and remains day-to-day.
2. Pistons PG Reggie Jackson is averaging 17.3 points in three games since returning from a back injury.
3. Detroit's last win in Brooklyn came on April 1, 2018.