NBA 2018-19: 3 Talking points from Detroit Pistons vs Atlanta Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks hosted a surging Detroit Pistons team in the hopes that the comfort of their home could help steady the ship. However, they came up just short, losing out to a spirited Pistons side 122-125 in a great game.

Frankly, with how the season had gone so far for the Hawks, nobody expected them to put up such a good fight against the Pistons but they made the game way closer than it ought to have been and the visitors were lucky to come away with the win, their 3rd quarter surge enough to get them over the line.

Let's take a look at the three biggest talking points from this game.

#3 The Pistons take a step closer towards playoffs

Detroit Pistons have been struggling most of the season

The Detroit Pistons' win over the Atlanta Hawks improved their record this season, bumping them up to 27-30 and closer to .500. The playoff spots in the Eastern Conference are very much up for grabs still.

The current standings feature the Brooklyn Nets, who are 30-30, Charlotte Hornets, who are 28-30 and the Detroit Pistons who boast a 27-30 record.

The Miami Heat are just below at the 9th spot, with a 26-31 record. The Orlando Magic have a 27-33 record in the 10th spot and rounding off the teams still in contention are the Washington Wizards, with a 24-35 record in the 11th spot.

If the Pistons want to keep their playoff hopes alive, they really need to step into another gear and keep the other teams at bay.

#2 The Pistons seem to be okay without Griffin too

Detroit Pistons this season are being powered by some superb performances from their star player, Blake Griffin. Griffin has been so good that he returned to the All-Star scene once again this year, wowing not just the fans in Detroit, but people all over the world.

He is averaging a career-high 26.1 points per game, along with 8 rebounds and 5.3 assists too. He's also shooting the 3-point shot really well and that has changed the teams have had to defend Griffin this season.

Against the Hawks, though, he was ejected after just 23 minutes. The duo of Reggie Jackson, who scored 32 points, and Andre Drummond, who had 26 tonight, showed that the Pistons are still a capable team without Griffin, powering their side to a victory.

#1 The Atlanta Hawks' rebuild might be ending soon

Atlanta Hawks look like they are finally done rebuilding

The Atlanta Hawks are finally entering the final phase of their rebuild. They have been struggling for a long time now, ever since their 60-win team imploded. They have been in transition ever since, but that now looks set to end.

They have a superb point guard in Trae Young, who has been impressive with both his distribution and ability to score.

They also managed to nab a young star in Kevin Huerter, who has been really good at scoring this season. The Small Forward position has been ably filled by Taurean Prince and DeAndre Bembry, both of whom have been really good role players this season.

John Collins has been one of the best scorers in Atlanta Hawks in a long time and his rebounding and ability to stretch the floor while remaining a force in the paint has earned comparisons to Chris Bosh.

Lastly, Dewayne Dedmon and Alex Len have served as great role players in the Center position with both the veteran Dedmon and youngster Len giving a lot to this Hawks team. Maybe next season, with a great veteran star, they will be able to take the next step and make the playoffs once more.

Edited by Arvind Sriram