Damian Lillard has quite an act to follow when the Portland Trail Blazers host the Toronto Raptors on Saturday night.
Lillard is fresh off the fourth 60-point outing of his 11-season career and has regained the form that was missing when he was limited to 29 games in his injury-riddled 2021-22 campaign.
Lillard was highly efficient while scoring exactly 60 points against the Utah Jazz during Portland’s 134-124 home victory on Wednesday. He made 21 of 29 field-goal attempts — including 9 of 15 from 3-point range — and was 9 of 10 from the free-throw line.
Lillard fell one point short of his career high while also contributing eight assists, seven rebounds and three steals.
Lillard, 32, ranks sixth in the NBA in scoring at 30.1 points per game. He has been on a solid roll over the past 10 games, averaging 38 points with four outings of 40 or more, including 50 against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Jan. 12 in addition to the 60-point effort.
The Trail Blazers have averaged 140.5 points while winning their last two games. The explosive stretch follows a period in which Portland dropped 12 of 16 games.
Toronto is 1-1 on a season-long, seven-game road swing. The Raptors defeated the Sacramento Kings 113-95 on Wednesday before falling 129-117 to the Golden State Warriors on Friday.
Fred VanVleet had 28 points and 10 assists against the Warriors while Scottie Barnes scored 24 and Pascal Siakam 21. Siakam was just 8-of-26 shooting despite posting his fourth straight 20-point outings and ninth in 11 games.
VanVleet has at least 25 points in five of the past six games and is averaging 28.2 points during that span. He has made 26 of 58 3-point attempts (44.8 percent) during the stretch.
Toronto’s OG Anunoby (left wrist) is expected to sit out Saturday’s game after being injured against the Warriors. He was hurt in a hard fall to the court after Golden State’s JaMychal Green contested his driving shot. The Raptors said X-rays were negative.
Precious Achiuwa played 36 minutes and had 17 points and 11 rebounds for his third double-double in four games.
Portland’s Jusuf Nurkic (calf) and Josh Hart (hamstring) are listed as questionable.
The Raptors recorded a 117-105 victory over the visiting Trail Blazers on Jan. 8 to halt a five-game slide in the series. Lillard scored 34 for Portland and Siakam had 27 for Toronto.
* Martin Necas joined rare company in NHL history as he helped the Hurricanes win by scoring the tying goal in the final minute of regulation and the winner within the opening minute of overtime.
* Jack Hughes recorded a multi-goal game, including scoring the overtime winner, and moved into a tie with Jason Robertson for fifth place in the 2022-23 Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy race.
* The League announced that AleksanderBarkov, captain of the host Panthers, will replace the injured AustonMatthews on the Atlantic Division roster for the 2023 Honda NHL All-Star Game.
* One week from today, All-Stars will go head-to-head in South Florida for the 67th NHL All-Star Game. But first, 19 more regular-season contests are to be played including more than half as part of an 11-game Saturday that begins with a matinee between the Blues and Avalanche on HULU, ESPN+, Sportsnet and TVA Sports.
NECAS, AHO COMPLETE CAROLINA’S LATE COMEBACK WIN After the Hurricanes surrendered an empty-netter at 58:08 to face a two-goal deficit, it was Sebastian Aho (58:23) and Martin Necas (59:48) who immediately responded to send it to overtime where Necas completed the comeback just 55 seconds into the extra frame with his League-leading third overtime goal of 2022-23.
* Necas (2-0—2), who became the first player in Hurricanes/Whalers history to score an overtime goal in consecutive games (also on Jan. 25), became the fifth player in NHL history to net a tying tally in the final minute of regulation and the winner within the first minute of the extra frame. The others: Mikko Rantanen (Dec. 11, 2022), Alex Ovechkin (Dec. 15, 2006), Jeff Hamilton (Dec. 2, 2006) and Benoit Hogue (Nov. 16, 1995).
* Friday marked just the second time in Hurricanes/Whalers history that the club has won a contest after trailing by multiple goals in the final two minutes of regulation (also on Dec. 18, 2007 vs. TOR).
HUGHES HEADS TO SOUTH FLORIDA ON A HIGH NOTE Jack Hughes (2-0—2) initiated New Jersey’s multi-goal comeback with a second-period goal and capped it off by scoring 20 seconds into overtime to lift the Devils (32-13-4, 68 points) to victory and help the club keep pace with the Hurricanes (31-9-8, 70 points) in the Metropolitan Division.
* Hughes (Orlando, Fla.), set to become the first Florida-born player to skate in multiple NHL All-Star games (also 2022), has found the back of the net 59 times in 98 games dating to 2021-22 after doing so just 18 times through his first 117 NHL contests.
* The Devils forward (33-31—64 in 49 GP) notched his seventh multi-goal outing of the season to move into a tie with Jason Roberton (33 in 51 GP) for fifth place in the 2022-23 Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy race. Hughes’ 33 goals and 64 points are the most by a Devils/Rockies/Scouts player prior to the team’s 50th game of a season.
* Hughes, who netted the third-fastest goal to start an overtime period in Devils franchise history, recorded his 10th career game-winning goal and tied John MacLean for the most by a player in franchise history at age 21 or younger.
PACIFIC DIVISION RACE CONTINUES TO HEAT UP A pair of Pacific Division teams climbed in the standings as Los Angeles (28-17-6, 62 points) overtook Seattle (28-15-5, 61 points) and Vegas (29-18-3, 61 points) for first place in the division and third in the Western Conference, while Calgary (24-17-9, 57 points) moved into the final Wild Card spot with its win over the Kraken:
* Anze Kopitar (15-25—40) opened the scoring and recorded his 17th straight season with 40-plus points – joining Alex Ovechkin (17) as the only active players to achieve the feat – while Adrian Kempe (20-14—34) became the fifth Kings player in the past 10 years to record consecutive 20-goal campaigns. Kempe joined Jeff Carter (2012-13 – 2016-17), Kopitar (2017-18 – 2019-20), Dustin Brown (2017-18 – 2018-19) and Tyler Toffoli (2014-15 – 2015-16).
* Elias Lindholm (1-2—3) recorded all three of his points in the first frame and fell one point shy of the franchise record for most in a single period. Since joining Calgary in 2018-19, Lindholm is one of three Flames players to have recorded three or more points in a period at least three different times (also 0-3—3 in P3 on April 16, 2022 & 1-2—3 in P2 on Jan. 2, 2019). The others: Johnny Gaudreau (6x) and Matthew Tkachuk (4x).
HORVAT, HUGHES HELP CANUCKS BEST BLUE JACKETS Two-time NHL All-Star Bo Horvat (0-4—4) factored on four of five Canucks goals while Quinn Hughes (1-1—2) posted a multi-point performance as Vancouver defeated Columbus at Rogers Arena on Friday.
* Hughes recorded his 40th assist of 2022-23 and became the only active defenseman to reach the mark in a season three times before age 24. He also became the first Canucks player, regardless of position, to accomplish the feat.
KREIDER ONE OF SIX 20-GOAL SCORERS FEATURED IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES The Friday edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates featured six players reach the 20-goal mark across the eight-game slate, including Chris Kreider who did so in the Rangers’ victory against the Golden Knights at Madison Square Garden.
* Kreider became the eighth player in Rangers history to record at least eight 20-goal seasons with the club, joining Rod Gilbert (12x), Jean Ratelle (9x), Adam Graves (8x), Andy Bathgate (8x) and Camille Henry (8x).
RECENT CHAMPIONS SET TO CLASH IN NATIONAL BROADCAST IN CANADA AND THE U.S. Two of the past four Stanley Cup champions will go head-to-head on ESPN+ and HULU in the United States as well as Sportsnet and TVA Sports in Canada when the Blues (23-23-3, 49 points) travel to Colorado to take on the Avalanche (26-18-3, 55 points).
* Jordan Kyrou (23-23—46 in 46 GP) leads the Blues with 46 points in 2022-23 and sits one assist shy of 100 in his five-season career (69-99—168 in 219 GP). Among skaters to debut with the Blues, Kyrou can become the seventh to reach the milestone in 220 games or fewer; Joe Mullen (163 GP), Mike Zuke (175 GP), Wayne Babych (175 GP), Bernie Federko (179 GP), Jorgen Pettersson (196 GP) and Robert Thomas (220 GP) have done so.
* Mikko Rantanen (34-26—60 in 47 GP) sits tied for third in the NHL’s 2022-23 Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy race thanks to a double-digit goal total since Jan. 1 (10-5—15 in 12 GP). Rantanen (199-269—468 in 455 GP) sits one tally shy of becoming the ninth player to score 200 goals with the Avalanche/Nordiques franchise – a feat teammates Nathan MacKinnon (255) and Gabriel Landeskog (248) have both accomplished.
McDAVID, OILERS READY FOR FINAL OUTING BEFORE ALL-STAR BREAK
Connor McDavid and the Oilers (27-18-4, 58 points) will partake in their 50th game of the season against Patrick Kane and the Blackhawks (15-28-4, 34 points) in their last outing before 2023 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend. McDavid can collect his 90th point of a season in 50 games or fewer for the second time in as many campaigns (50 GP in 2020-21) – a feat Mario Lemieux last accomplished in 1991-92 (48 GP) and 1992-93 (34 GP).
* McDavid leads the NHL with 40-49—89 this season (49 GP), tied for the most points by any player before the All-Star/Olympic break over the past 26 years. Alex Ovechkin (42-47—89 in 54 GP) also had 89 points in 2009-10 before the League paused for the Olympics in Vancouver. The last time a player had at least 90 points before either the All-Star or Olympic break was 1995-96, when Mario Lemieux (40-60—100 in 38 GP) hit the 100-point mark with a goal in his final contest before the 1996 All-Star Game in Boston.
STREAKS LOOK TO SURVIVE SATURDAY SLATE The Lightning (31-15-1, 63 points) and Sabres defenseman Owen Power (3-16—19 in 45 GP) enter the weekend with the hopes of maintaining their recent strings of success against the Kings (27-17-6, 60 points) and Wild (26-17-4, 56 points), respectively.
* Tampa Bay looks to become the second team to capture 12 consecutive home wins during the 2022-23 campaign after Boston went 14-0-0 at TD Garden from Oct. 15 to Dec. 3, 2022. In doing so, the Lightning would establish the longest home win streak in franchise history.
* Power has found the back of the net in each of his past three games. Should he do so against Minnesota, the 20-year-old can become just the fourth rookie defenseman in NHL history with a four-game goal streak. Barry Beck (6 GP in 1977-78 w/ CLR), Brian Benning (4 GP in 1986-87 w/ STL) and Stan Brown (4 GP in 1926-27 w/ NYR) are the only three to do so to date.
The Sacramento Kings open a seven-game road trip on Saturday with the first of two consecutive games in Minneapolis against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Kings have dropped two of three since the end of their six-game winning streak, which ran Jan. 9-20. They scored a season-low 95 points their last time out in a loss Wednesday to Toronto.
Domantas Sabonis’ offensive woes underscored Sacramento’s collective struggles against the Raptors. Sabonis committed a season-high nine turnovers on Wednesday, one game removed from coughing up eight turnovers in a win over Memphis.
Despite the turnover issues the last two games, Sabonis has been a driving force behind Sacramento’s surge to third place in the Western Conference. He is averaging an NBA-best 12.4 rebounds per game and a career high of 7.3 assists per game to go with his 18.4 points a contest.
Sabonis is one of six Kings averaging at least 12.4 points per game, with De’Aaron Fox’s 23.8 setting the pace for the league’s highest-scoring offense at 119.7 points per game.
Sacramento brings its efficient and balanced offense into Minnesota to face a Timberwolves team playing the second game of a weekend back-to-back.
Minnesota opened its six-game homestand on Friday with a 111-100 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Timberwolves weathered a 27-point, 11-assist, 10-rebound triple-double from Ja Morant thanks to 25 points from Anthony Edwards. Kyle Anderson also scored 23 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the arc and the Wolves got 19 points, eight rebounds and seven assists from D’Angelo Russell.
Nathan Knight came off the bench to score 10 points, his second game producing double figures in the last four.
Minnesota has used a variety of big men in the rotation with center Rudy Gobert while awaiting the return of Karl-Anthony Towns, who last played Nov. 28 due to a calf injury.
Knight, Naz Reid and Luka Garza have all seen significant minutes. Reid is averaging more than 10 points per game but has been limited to single-digit scoring in the last five contests after finishing with nine on Friday.
Edwards has effectively shouldered Minnesota’s scoring load at 34.3 points per game over the last four. Friday ended a streak of three straight outings posting at least 31 points.
Minnesota comes into Saturday’s matchup a winner in four of five and has climbed to a game above .500. The Timberwolves are 10-4 since the beginning of 2023.
The Chicago Bulls’ season-long search for answers continues Saturday when they visit the Orlando Magic to wrap up a three-game trip.
The Bulls fell to 22-26 after another baffling performance on Thursday, when they shot 4 of 25 (16 percent) from 3-point range in a 111-96 loss to the Charlotte Hornets.
Chicago, which was outscored 34-17 in the fourth quarter, has lost two straight following a three-game winning streak.
DeMar DeRozan is averaging 26.3 points for the Bulls, who have been unable to build on impressive victories earlier this month over the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers.
The Bulls will aim for a more complete effort against Orlando, which is playing on short rest after losing 110-105 to the host Miami Heat on Friday.
Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner and Cole Anthony all scored 19 points for the Magic, which is 6-6 this month.
Orlando committed 20 turnovers against Miami, leading to 32 points for the victors.
Orlando has won nine of its past 12 home games and boasts an impressive young roster led by Banchero, who is averaging 20.3 points on 43.8 percent shooting in 12 games this month.
Orlando is seeking its second straight victory over Chicago after winning 108-107 on Nov. 2. DeRozan had 41 points in the loss and is averaging 32.6 points in his last five games against the Magic. Vucevic, who spent nine seasons in Orlando before joining the Bulls, is averaging 19.6 points and 13 rebounds in 12 games this month.
Chicago is tied for 10th in the Eastern Conference standings and will need to find solutions for its inconsistent play sooner than later.
A potential matchup of two of the best European players in the NBA will not happen Saturday night in Salt Lake City.
Luka Doncic, the Slovenian superstar who was just voted in as a 2023 NBA All-Star starter, was ruled out for the Dallas Mavericks’ game against the host Utah Jazz and Finnish big man Lauri Markkanen.
Doncic twisted his left ankle early in the Mavericks’ 99-95 win against Phoenix on Thursday night after stepping on the foot of a Suns player. Doncic, whose X-ray was negative, did not return to action after leaving with 8:39 left in the first quarter.
Unfortunately for Doncic, the quick injury and exit from Thursday’s contest resulted in him going scoreless for the first time in his NBA career. The empty points total dropped his scoring average to 33.0 points per game from 33.8, allowing Joel Embiid (33.4 ppg) to leapfrog him for the league lead.
Markkanen comes in tied for 17th in the scoring race with a career-best average of 24.8.
Remarkably, Markkanen etched his name in the NBA history books in the Jazz’s loss at Portland on Wednesday night. The All-Star candidate, who narrowly missed out on earning a starting role, has hit a 3-pointer in 37 consecutive outings. That’s the most in NBA history for a 7-footer.
Unfortunately for the Jazz, Markkanen’s milestone was overshadowed by an enormous game from Portland’s Damian Lillard. The standout guard scored 60 points, including 20 straight at one point in the third quarter.
Lillard made 21 of 29 shots, drained nine 3-pointers, dished out eight assists and snagged seven rebounds in the Blazers’ 134-124 victory.
Saturday’s game against Dallas kicks off a five-game homestand for the Jazz. The stretch includes two games against the Mavericks. It’s an especially important period for Utah, which goes into the All-Star break with a four-game Eastern Conference road trip.
Spencer Dinwiddie carried the Mavericks’ scoring load — with Doncic in the training room for most of Thursday’s game. Dinwiddie scored 36 points with nine assists.
Though the Mavs beat the Suns mostly without Doncic, Dallas is 0-5 this season in games in which the talented playmaker has not played at all as he was rested during back-to-back games scheduled.
Including this one, Dallas will play seven of 10 games before the midseason break away from home.
Two of the NBA’s marquee players will face each other Saturday night when Jayson Tatum and the slumping Boston Celtics play LeBron James and the visiting Los Angeles Lakers.
On Thursday, Tatum and James were announced as starters for this year’s NBA All-Star Game, which will be played Feb. 19 in Salt Lake City. James is averaging 29.9 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7-0 assists per game. Tatum is averaging 31.1 points, 8.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists per contest.
Saturday night’s game will be the second meeting between the teams this season. Tatum scored a game-high 44 points to go along with nine rebounds and six assists when the Celtics went to Los Angeles and beat the Lakers 122-118 in overtime on Dec. 13. Anthony Davis led the Lakers with 37 points and 12 rebounds. James finished with 33 points, nine rebounds and nine assists.
The Celtics are coming off Thursday night’s 120-117 overtime loss to the visiting New York Knicks. That extended Boston’s losing streak to three games.
The Celtics trailed by one when Boston’s Jaylen Brown went to the free-throw line with 7.6 seconds remaining in overtime, but he missed both shots. Brown made each of his five free-throw attempts in the game up to that point.
Boston played without starting point guard Marcus Smart, who missed his third straight game with a right ankle sprain. He’s listed as day-to-day.
The Lakers got a boost when Davis returned to the court and scored 21 points in 26 minutes during Wednesday’s 113-104 victory over San Antonio. Davis, who missed nearly six weeks with an injured right foot, also had 12 rebounds and four blocked shots.
It was the first time Davis has come off the bench in a game since 2013.
Rui Hachimura, who was acquired in a trade with the Washington Wizards earlier this week, also made his debut for the Lakers on Wednesday. He scored 12 points in 22 minutes.
The Lakers sent guard Kendrick Nunn and three second-round draft picks to Washington for Hachimura, who was the No. 9 selection in the 2019 NBA draft.
The Phoenix Suns and San Antonio Spurs will look to get back on the winning track when they square off on Saturday but there will be a different level of desperation for the teams.
The Suns are trying to hold on until they get everyone healthy while San Antonio is looking for a way, any way in fact, to find the win column in a season that’s been a struggle.
The Suns travel to San Antonio after a 99-95 loss at home to short-handed Dallas on Thursday that snapped a four-game winning streak. Cam Johnson and Chris Paul led Phoenix with 22 points each, with Deandre Ayton racking up 19 points and 20 rebounds after missing the last three games with a non-COVID illness.
Mikal Bridges scored 16 points and Paul amassed 10 assists in the loss. Phoenix trailed by nine points with 3:34 remaining and cut its deficit to 96-95 on Paul’s layup with 19 seconds remaining but couldn’t get over the hump.
The Suns played without injured guards Devin Booker (groin), Cameron Payne (foot) and Landry Shamet (foot). Thirteen players saw the court for Phoenix, including backup center Jock Landale, who was originally listed as a DNP (coach’s decision) at the start of the game.
The Spurs head back to the Alamo City for a four-game homestand after a 138-100 loss to the Clippers in Los Angeles on Thursday. The setback came on the back end of a road back-to-back and extended San Antonio’s losing streak to four games.
Keldon Johnson hit for 19 points while Isaiah Roby had a career-high 14, Keita Bates-Diop scored 13, Doug McDermott added 11 and Jakob Poeltl tallied 10 for the Spurs. San Antonio never led, was down by 21 points in a first half in which it allowed the Clippers to score a season-high 78 points and stumbled to the finish line.
San Antonio, which played without starter Jeremy Sochan (left quad contusion) and key reserves Josh Richardson (left knee tightness) and Romeo Langford (injured hip), has dropped nine of its past 10 games.
The Spurs have won just twice in their 13 contests in January and have lost 10 straight road games, marking the fifth time in franchise history that they’ve reached that dubious mark.
The Washington Wizards and the New Orleans Pelicans are heading in different directions as they meet Saturday night in New Orleans.
The Wizards have won four games in a row and the Pelicans have lost six consecutive games.
Washington’s most recent win came despite falling behind by 19 points and trailing by 10 entering the fourth quarter before rallying to beat the Rockets 108-103 on Wednesday night in Houston.
Kyle Kuzma led the comeback by scoring 20 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter.
Kristaps Porzingis missed his second straight game because of an ankle injury and Monte Morris was sidelined by a sore right hamstring, but Kendrick Nunn made his debut after being acquired in a trade that sent Rui Hachimura to the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. Nunn had 12 points.
The Pelicans’ season-worst losing streak continued Wednesday, primarily due to Minnesota outscoring them 39-21 in the third quarter on the way to a 111-102 victory.
Forward Brandon Ingram, the Pelicans’ second-leading scorer, returned after a 29-game absence due to a bruised toe and scored 13 points in about 26 minutes, but he made just four of 18 shots from the floor.
Valanciunas had 27 points and 12 rebounds and CJ McCollum added 34 points as the Pelicans had a season-high point total in a 132-112 victory at Washington on Jan. 9.
The Atlanta Hawks and Los Angeles Clippers will both try to keep their momentum going when they meet on Saturday in Atlanta.
Atlanta has won seven of its last 10 games after a 137-132 shootout victory over Oklahoma City on Wednesday. The Clippers pounded San Antonio 138-100 on Thursday and have won four in a row — their longest streak of the season.
Atlanta defeated the Clippers 112-108 in their first meeting on Jan. 8 in Los Angeles. The Hawks have won the last three meetings in Atlanta. The teams split their two-game series a year ago.
This is Atlanta’s final home game before embarking on a five-game road trip to face Western Conference opposition. This is the opener of a six-game road trip against Eastern Conference opponents for the Clippers.
Atlanta’s recent success has been led by the backcourt duo of Dejounte Murray and Trae Young.
Murray has scored 20-plus points in seven consecutive games. He lost out on Eastern Conference Player of the Week honors to the Milwaukee Bucks’ Jrue Holiday despite averaging 28.3 points, 6.5 assists, five rebounds and 1.8 steals, and shooting 60 percent from the floor and 58.3 percent on 3-pointers to help the Hawks go 3-1 during that span. He is averaging 20.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and six assists this season.
Young had 33 points and 11 assists in the win over Oklahoma City. In 12 games in January, Young has scored 30-plus four times and 20-plus 11 times. He is averaging 27.1 points and 9.9 assists.
The Clippers shot 58.4 percent from the floor against San Antonio with Paul George scoring 35 on 14-for-19 shooting and Kawhi Leonard scoring 27 on 10-for-16 shooting.
“It’s PG (George) and Kawhi,” Clippers coach Ty Lue said. “They draw so much attention that they create shots for other people. They’ve done a good job scoring the ball and making the right decision. We’re a totally different team when those guys are able to play. We’re able to get the ball in the paint more and that’s made a difference.”
George is averaging 23.5 points, six rebounds and 5.3 assists. Leonard is averaging 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists.
Los Angeles got Luke Kennard back from a calf injury that kept him out three weeks. He got the start, played 16 minutes and scored five points.
The Hawks have been hurt by the absence of De’Andre Hunter for the last two games with asthmatic symptoms. Meanwhile, the Clippers have played for two weeks without John Wall (abdomen). Marcus Morris Sr. missed Thursday’s game with a rib injury.
The leading contenders for the top pick in this year’s draft cross paths in Detroit on Saturday night.
It’s the worst of the worst by NBA standards, as the last place team in the Western Conference visits the bottom feeder in the Eastern Conference. The Houston Rockets have lost 20 of their last 22 games, while the Detroit Pistons have dropped seven of their last nine games.
In the Rockets’ latest defeat, the Cleveland Cavaliers jumped to a 74-48 halftime lead en route to a 113-95 victory on Thursday. Guards Kevin Porter Jr. and Eric Gordon and forward Jae’Sean Tate were sidelined due to injuries. The Cavaliers — who were missing All-Star starter Donovan Mitchell — converted 22 Rockets turnovers into 40 points.
Everyone in the Rockets’ starting five was age 22 or younger. They didn’t hold up well in the second game of a back-to-back. Houston lost to Washington 108-103 on Wednesday.
Second-year guard Josh Christopher made his first start this season and the third of his career. He played a season-high 19 minutes and had seven points and no assists while committing two turnovers.
Jalen Green, who reached the 40-point mark twice in the previous four games, was held to six points.
Silas will miss Saturday’s game. He’ll attend a memorial for his father, former NBA star player and coach Paul Silas, in Charlotte. John Lucas will coach the team in his absence.
The Pistons are coming off a rare victory. They defeated Brooklyn on the road on Thursday, 130-122, as eight players reached double figures.
In their previous outing, Milwaukee scored 150 points against them, including 49 in the first quarter.
Detroit took control against the Nets with a 43-point third quarter, then held off Brooklyn’s late charge.
Casey inserted veteran guard Alec Burks into the starting lineup, and it helped Detroit get off to a better start.
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