Pistons Trade Brandon Jennings, For Magic’s Tobias Harris

Desperation becomes a powerful tool when used for good. They stand at 27-27, in ninth place in the Eastern Conference.

On the season, the Pistons average 101.8 points, 46.7 rebounds and 18.7 assists per game.

Marcin Gortat had 15 points for Washington.

Rescheduled from January 23 because of a snowstorm, the game was first of three in three days for Washington following the All-Star break. “I think we’re in a great position going forward and it’s just a matter of how quickly we’ll be able to adjust for the rest of this season”. The game marked the debut for Detroit forward Tobias Harris and Washington big man Markieff Morris with their new teams. Washington is 24-28 overall, 12-16 at home and 27-25 against the spread. His numbers have fallen slightly this year, but he could thrive in Detroit as a small forward or stretch-four, acting as another scorer and shooter with length on defense. “I thought they quit doing three in a row”.

Center Andre Drummond had 13 rebounds, but the NBA’s leading rebounder didn’t record one on the offensive boards.

Detroit got off to a bad offensive start by opening the game 1 of 11 from the field including missed shots from close to the rim.

The matchup also pitted two teams in contention for a playoff berth. Washington defeated the Utah Jazz 103-89 on Thursday in the first of three games in three nights. “We got to play hard”. “We don’t have room for errors anymore, we don’t have room for losses now”. “We’ve got to play hard”. They began a four-game win streak the next day.

Van Gundy said Harris will come off the bench for his first handful of games in a new uniform, but the expectation is that he’ll take the starting spot vacated by Ersan Ilyasova at some point. Markieff Morris replacing Kris Humphries and DeJuan Blair, two players that were rarely on the floor over the last month before they were traded to the Phoenix Suns, is the only change; Morris played just 22 minutes Friday. The athletic power forward’s jumper gave the Wizards their largest lead at 86-63. Detroit’s visit to the nation’s capital is our Friday night National Basketball Association free pick. Marcus Morris finished with nine points. In their November meeting in Detroit, Washington’s reserves outscored the Pistons’ bench 51-15.

Pistons: Coach Stan Van Gundy said he hopes Caldwell-Pope and Marcus Morris will benefit from fewer minutes as a result Detroit’s deadline moves. Reggie Jackson tops in points with 19.1 and in assists with 6.2 per game.

The Pistons also acquired shooting guard Marcus Thornton in the deal that sent center Joel Anthony and a top-eight protected first-round pick to the Rockets. The scheduling quirk comes because of the Utah games was originally snowed out in January.