OAKLAND, Calif. _ The Detroit Pistons might have taken a small step on Sunday night toward addressing those empty red seats at Little Caesars.
The fan base and the rest of the NBA will have to take notice after the Pistons overcame a 14-point deficit to run away with a 115-107 victory over the defending champion Golden State Warriors.
At Oracle Arena, one of the most imposing arenas in the league, the Pistons (5-2) moved to 2-0 on this early season trip out west.
It was a team effort with contributions up and down the Pistons roster.
But Tobias Harris brought it home.
He was having a nightmarish West Coast trip. That is until the final 3:23.
Harris' three-point play at that moment gave the Pistons a 106-101.
And his clutch 3-pointer with 1:27 left made it 111-105.
And Avery Bradley's steal and layup with 52.5 seconds left gave the Pistons a 113-105 lead, sending fans toward the exits.
Bradley scored 23 points and Reggie Jackson added 22 points, as the Pistons forced 25 turnovers.
Kevin Durant (28 points), Klay Thompson (29 points) and Stephen Curry (27 points) led the Warriors (4-3).
The play-the-kids crowd will be enraged after Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy decided to make rookie Luke Kennard inactive for the second straight game. And he poured gas on the fire by deciding to play veteran Anthony Tolliver in front of second-year power forward Henry Ellenson.
Van Gundy was bemused when asked about the short-turnaround before facing the Warriors.
After handing the Clippers their first defeat of the season, were back on the floor less than 24 hours later against the consensus favorite to win three titles in four season.
"I don't think I've ever had one where the start time was 2 hours earlier than the night before," Van Gundy said in the pregame.
"Occasionally, you get an hour or an hour and a half, but I've never had one this much. Not many people will have one this much. Certain teams will be protected from having that kind of turnaround."
