The Detroit Pistons delivered a statement win on Sunday night, dominating the Washington Wizards 124-104 at Little Caesars Arena. But their biggest flex came after the final buzzer, when they savagely trolled Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma on social media.
Pistons Get Social Media Revenge on Kuzma
Following the victory, the Pistons’ social media team dug up an old tweet from Kuzma from last December, when Detroit was mired in what would become an NBA-record 28-game losing streak. At the time, Kuzma mocked the Pistons’ ineptitude, tweeting “At this point its like ‘dont be that team’ 🤣” when they improbably led the Celtics at halftime before ultimately losing in overtime to extend their historic skid to 29 games.
The Pistons screenshotted Kuzma’s trash talk and threw it right back in his face after handing the Wizards their eighth straight defeat on Sunday. They tweeted the old Kuzma post with the trolling caption:
“*don’t say it*
*don’t say it*
*don’t say it*
*sighs*
at this point it’s like “dont be that team””
The clap back quickly went viral, racking up over 100,000 likes and 25,000 retweets in a matter of hours. Fans delighted in seeing the now-resurgent Pistons give Kuzma and the slumping Wizards a long-awaited taste of their own medicine.
Cunningham’s Triple-Double Leads the Way
On the court, Cade Cunningham was the star for Detroit, notching an impressive triple-double with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. The young backcourt phenom led a balanced Pistons attack that saw six players score in double figures.
Kuzma put up a valiant effort in the loss, tallying a team-high 22 points to go along with 6 rebounds. But it wasn’t nearly enough to overcome Detroit’s swarming defense and potent offense. The Pistons held Washington to just 42% shooting while knocking down a scorching 52% of their own attempts.
From Record Losing Streak to Early-Season Success
The win improved Detroit’s record to a surprising 7-6 on the young season, a far cry from where they were at this point a year ago. On November 17, 2023, the Pistons were sitting at a hopeless 1-12 on their way to setting the NBA single-season mark for consecutive losses before finally snapping the streak at 28 games in February.
This season, under the leadership of Cunningham and an improving young core, Detroit has flipped the script in the early going. Sunday’s triumph over Washington already marked their seventh victory, a milestone they didn’t reach until game 43 last season.
Pistons Seek Season Sweep in March Rematch
The Pistons and Wizards will meet again in Washington D.C. on March 25, 2025 to wrap up their four-game season series. Detroit will be looking for the sweep after taking the first matchup 129-117 back on December 31, 2023, just two-and-a-half weeks after Kuzma’s initial mockery.
In that New Year’s Eve showdown, Kuzma again scored 21 points but was overshadowed by a 32-point outburst from then-Pistons sniper Bojan Bogdanovic. The sharpshooting forward hit 7 three-pointers to lead Detroit’s 22-made triples, a record for the most threes ever made by a visiting team at Capital One Arena.
Bottom Line
While there’s a long way to go, the young Pistons are showing signs of life and serving notice to the rest of the NBA that their darkest days may be behind them. And as Kyle Kuzma learned the hard way on Sunday, this is no longer a team to be trifled with, on the court or on social media.
