The Detroit Pistons 129-107 drubbing at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks ended with more fire than the game itself. With a few seconds left Jaden Ivey aggressively drove the lane for a layup just before the final buzzer. It seemed to upset a few Hawks players, especially John Collins who began yelling at Ivey along with Trae Young.

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John Collins and Jaden Ivey exchange words at the end of Hawks v Pistons#Pistons #NBA pic.twitter.com/0wupNZnlYV

— Brandon Dent | @WoodwardSports #DetroitKoolAid (@DetroitKoolAid) March 22, 2023

It’s the fire we’ve come to expect from Ivey, but losing is something no true competitor is ever comfortable with. Ivey had a balanced performance with seventeen points, five assists and 4 rebounds before the late game yell-off. It was good to see some sign of life after the Hawks overpowered the shorthanded Pistons all night.

Former Detroit Piston Saddiq Bey had fifteen points, eleven rebounds and one Killian Hayes jersey after the game. The jersey swap, facing his old teammates and getting the win overshadowed the sour note at the final buzzer.

“It’s crazy this is my first time doing this,” Saddiq Bey told Bally Sports. “They’re my guys, friendships last a lifetime so it was good to see them.” He appreciated receiving a Hayes jersey and considered it a special moment.

“He asked for mine and I’ll get his too,” Bey exclaimed. ” That’s my guy. We came in together, so it was good to see him.”

Marvin Bagley led the team with a game-high 31 points, and eight rebounds while making scoring look easy. Well, a least easy for himself as the rest of the team struggled to shoot over 41% for the game.

The Hawks were led by Young’s thirty points and twelve assists while big man John Collins finished with fifteen points on 50% shooting. He also had eight rebounds to go with menacing defense, and paint dominance.

The Pistons were out-rebounded 61 to 35 in what seemed like an even wider margin at times. They also lost the points in the paint battle to the Hawks 50-38. Missing Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart didn’t help, but Troy Weaver is hoping lineups featuring at least two bigs can make a difference. Wiseman and Bagley combined for 13 total rebounds which is too low to depend on regularly.

It would be good to see the Pistons take steps forward defensively before the end of season, but they need a talent upgrade to fully achieve.

What current changes, or future moves would like the see the Pistons make to improve defensively?