Pistons vs Wizards preview: Get better during preseason

The NBA preseason is a great time to work out some kinks, give reserves more opportunities to thrive, and for players to get their legs back under them. The Detroit Pistons did most of that in their first preseason win over the Phoenix Suns.

Detroit travels to the nation’s capital in a matchup with 2026 first overall pick AJ Dybantsa and the Washington Wizards. The Detroit key players only played around 20 minutes Monday night. Let’s see if J.B. Bickerstaff ramps that up a bit and gets Jalen Duren out there, or will it be the Ebuka Okorie show.

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GAME VITALS

Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, DC

When: 7:00 PM EST

Watch: TV20 Detroit/DAZN-DET

Odds: Pistons (-4.5)

Bickerstaff said Duren will play in the preseason and could make his debut tonight. Duren said he wants to improve as a rim and pick-and-roll defender. If he does suit up for a bit tonight, he’d have plenty of opportunities to show PnR growth with Trae Young, Anthony Davis, and Deandre Ayton spamming actions. Washington has downhill guards he can sway away from the basket if they manage to get by Detroit’s perimeter defenders.

Ausar Thompson showed growth in his biggest swing skill for this Pistons build to work: creation. His jumper is always at the top of the conversation, but being a legit playmaker next to Cade Cunningham unlocks this team.

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Ausar was aggressive getting to the rack, keeping his options open versus the Suns. He’d rim run to score or to throw dimes to Paul Reed and spot-up shooters. Seeing his midrange jumper drop spoke to his mindset in that outing. The makes were cool, but the attempts were better. Getting them up to gain the defense’s respect will aid his playmaking chops.

Ron Holland attempted the most shots on the squad. Some were good looks, some were out of control, but his game-wrecking defense was there as always. Holland flew around the court terrorizing Phoenix backups. The Wizards have a ton of guards with off-the-bounce juice. Holland will see plenty of Tre Johnson, Tre Mann, and maybe Young tonight.

Okorie was thrown into the fire with 10 minutes to go and did not disappoint. His defensive effort was…

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Publish date : 2026-10-10 17:00:00

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