John Niyo: 'Baddest' Boys: Pistons' depth charge ignites early success

John Niyo, The Detroit News on Oct 29, 2026

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DETROIT — The Detroit Pistons are off to a pretty good start this season.

But oddly enough, it took an ugly win over Charlotte on Wednesday night for J.B. Bickerstaff to feel better about a team that is once again perched atop the Eastern Conference standings.

After running a gauntlet and raining 3s in wins over a couple of the East’s presumed beasts — Boston and Philadelphia — the Pistons returned home and rediscovered their roots, if you will, in a fatigued, foul-plagued slog against the Hornets.

“We got familiar with ourselves again,” said Bickerstaff, whose team was playing its second game in as many nights after a 3 a.m. return home from New York.

By familiar, he meant feisty, of course. Because it was the Pistons’ scrappy defense that finally shook them out of their first-half funk and a double-digit deficit.

“That's where we get our mojo,” Bickerstaff said. “We get our mojo when it’s gritty, when it’s nasty. Like, that's where our guys thrive. And I think early in the season, coming back off summer vacation, it takes a little bit of time to find that again. But that was Pistons basketball to me. To be able to win ugly is something that we've been able to do, and tonight that's what it took.”

That it took a 35-foot bank shot at the halftime buzzer from Daniss Jenkins to light the fuse probably was fitting, too. He’d go on to play a starring role in Detroit’s second-half comeback, scoring half of his 14 points off the bench in the final 7 minutes as part of Bickerstaff’s closing lineup. Jenkins also had a pair of steals in that stretch, including one that led to a run-out and a run-in with Charlotte’s Brandon Miller, who didn’t appreciate Jenkins’ trash-talking finishing touch.

“He has never shied away from being who he is,” Bickerstaff said, smiling. “And it doesn't matter who the competition is, who the opponent is in front of him. DJ is going to be DJ. You know he's going to talk s---. He's going to bump, he's going to grind, he's going to go at you. He's going to compete at a high level, and he has no fear. That's why he's special. And that's why we love him.”

That’s also why these Pistons just might finish where they’ve started again in a stacked East. With a roster built to withstand the rigors of an 82-game regular season, Bickerstaff can lean on his depth more reliably than almost any other coach in the league.

The NBA’s early-season casualty list already is jarring, littered with All-Star names. And the Pistons certainly aren’t immune: They were missing two starters (Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson) and a key rotation piece (Isaiah Joe) for most of their recent three-game road trip.

“But we’ve got an identity,” Jenkins said after the win over LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers. “No matter who’s out there, you’ve got standards and expectations. … We feel like we’re the baddest dudes in the world. So every time we step on the court, we try to show that.”

It shows in ways big and small, obviously. Jenkins started in Thompson’s place against Philadelphia and played a team-high 38 minutes, finishing with 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Paul Reed, meanwhile, has stepped in for Duren and is averaging 16.3 points and eight rebounds the past four games. The backup center also is 5 for 5 from three-point range, and when asked about his expanded game in the locker room Wednesday night, he shrugged.

“I’m open, and they’re not really guarding me,” said Reed, whose notorious work ethic draws rave reviews from coaches and teammates alike. “I put too many shots up to not take them. I know they’re going in, they feel too good.”

That’s a feeling you’ll find just about everywhere on this team, though. And it stems from the belief Bickerstaff and his staff — as well as the Pistons’ front office — have shown in these players, from Cade Cunningham all the way to the end of the bench.

Javonte Green began the regular season ostensibly as the Pistons’ 11th man. But he sparked the huge comeback win over the Celtics in the opener, and Wednesday he once again served as a catalyst: The Pistons won his 21 minutes on the court by 23 points. Woo, indeed.

“His energy is infectious,” Bickerstaff said. “He just makes game-altering plays, and whether it's a shot, a steal, a stop, a rebound — or things that don't go accounted for — he impacts winning. He’s done it for us time and time again.”

And, once again, this looks like a winning recipe. No matter the situation, the Pistons won’t find themselves out of their depth.

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