The Detroit Pistons suffered a critical 99-93 loss Tuesday night to the visiting Miami Heat, dropping them into the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference Playoff standings.
Point guard Reggie Jackson sat out due to an abdominal strain, but says he’s looking forward to the monumental challenge of facing the top-seeded Cavs in the first round of the postseason.
Reggie Jackson on Cavs in 1st round: "I like it… I don't want to fight Goliath's homeboy or little brother. I want to fight Goliath."
— Ethan J. Skolnick (@EthanJSkolnick) April 13, 2016
The Indiana Pacers have secured the No. 7 seed.
Per the Detroit Free Press:
The Pistons will face Cleveland, tonight’s opponent, in the first round of the playoffs. It’ll be Detroit’s first playoff appearance since the 2009 season, when it was swept out of the playoffs by the the LeBron James-led Cavaliers in the first round.
“The world’s not picking us anyway,” Jackson told reporters. “They’re supposed to be the title contenders in the East. If we’re not favored anyway, you might as well get your crack at them, right? Of course, David may not have wanted to fight Goliath, but I don’t want to fight Goliath’s homeboy, or his little brother. I want to go fight Goliath.”
“You play who the schedule says you play,” Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said of the matchup with the top seed in the Eastern Conference. “I don’t worry about it. […] We’re going to have to play a lot better in the playoffs then we played tonight. That’s for sure. We’re not beating Cleveland with that kind of offensive performance. Hopefully we’ll be a lot better.”
