Rod Beard breaks down 2017-18 Pistons' schedule
With the release of the NBA schedule on Monday, the Pistons found out their road to getting back to the playoffs, after missing with a 37-45 record last season.
Besides the obvious headline that they’ll be opening Little Caesars Arena in downtown Detroit on Oct. 18 against the Charlotte Hornets, there are some tough stretches that could pose some obstacles to their playoff quest.
The good news is the league initiative to help player safety with more rest days between games by stretching the schedule a week. Teams will have fewer sets of games on back-to-back nights — the Pistons have 14; just below the league average of 14.4 — with just a few cases of three games in four nights and no instances of four games in five nights.
They’ll have some ups and downs, but the goals clearly will be getting a good start and returning to the playoffs before their finale on April 11 at Chicago. Here are some quick observations at the Pistons’ 2017-18 schedule.
More: Pistons to open season Oct. 18 at LCA; full schedule here
■ BACK-TO-BACK BASICS
The Pistons will have fewer back-to-backs, but they almost start out of the gate with a road pair at the Wizards and the Knicks. The Wizards are projected to be one of the top three or four teams in the Eastern Conference, so they’ll provide an early test of where the Pistons stand. They have another set of three games in four nights on a west-coast trip, with the Clippers, Warriors and Lakers. The Pistons get a two-game break before the trip, but it’ll be a challenge to get more than one in that sequence.
■ THE STRETCHES
Some of the schedule is broken into some tougher stretches, beginning in November. They have nine of 11 games on the road — the two home games are Cleveland and Phoenix — and the next two are home against Golden state and Boston.
Between Jan. 19 and Feb. 23, they have a span of 12 games in 14 at home — the road games are at Cleveland and Atlanta — with some challenging games in the mix. If they can make it through the road gauntlet in November, they could make a move up the standings ahead of the All-Star break.
■ NATIONAL TREASURES
In their inaugural season at Little Caesars Arena, the Pistons will get plenty of chances to show off their new digs to a national audience. They get eight national TV games: Dec. 8 vs. the defending-champion Warriors, Jan. 19 vs. Washington and March 7 vs. Toronto, all on ESPN; Jan. 30 vs. Cleveland on TNT; Oct. 31 at the Lakers, Jan. 15 vs. Charlotte, March 5 at Cleveland and April 8 at Memphis are on NBA TV.
Given the caliber of their opponents, it might be a tough task to try to come out ahead in those matchups; all but the Lakers and Hornets made the playoffs last season.
■ ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Their longest road trip of the season comes in March, when they’ll be away from Little Caesars Arena for six games in 10 days, hitting Utah, Denver, Portland, Sacramento, Phoenix and Houston.
The Pistons’ 13-28 road record last season was tied for the third-worst in the East last year, which was a big reason they missed the playoffs.
■ THE FINAL KICK
The Pistons could have an opportunity for a strong finish in the final 10 games, coming off the big road trip. They’ll host Chicago, the Lakers and Washington, which could help push them toward the postseason. Of the last 10, only three games come against teams that made the playoffs last season.
Rod.Beard@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @detnewsRodBeard