The picture is an AI-generated illustration, not a photograph from the match
The Lakers were missing the league's hottest player on Sunday night, so Austin Reaves answered with 43 points on 14-of-27 shooting, all 11 free throws and a one-legged three with the shot clock dying to finish a 121-116 win over Detroit.
45, nine and eight going into the night
The absence was the story going in: Doncic came into Sunday averaging 45 points over a four-game winning run that had left the Lakers at 8-2.
Reaves finished with 43 points on 14-of-27 shooting, 4-of-6 from three and a perfect 11-of-11 from the free-throw line, adding five rebounds, four assists and one turnover in 36 minutes.
He came into the game averaging 23.0 points during that stretch, so the request was not a miracle, only that the second option become the first for one night.
In the wider picture, Reaves played two seasons at Wichita State and one at Oklahoma before declaring for the 2021 draft, where the Pistons planned to take him 42nd; he declined so he could sign as a free agent with the Lakers, and Detroit moved on to Isaiah Livers, who played 130 NBA games and now plays in Japan.
Walker Kessler, who finished with 12 points and 16 rebounds, said Reaves sometimes accepts a secondary role when Doncic plays and that this performance showed how capable he is.
A lead the Pistons never held
The Lakers led by as many as 26 points in the second quarter, held the advantage for 97 percent of the game and never trailed, with no lead changes recorded.
The Pistons drew within five at 109-104 in the last minute, forcing the ball to Reaves with the shot clock running out.
Reaves rose for a one-legged, off-balance three that went in, then called it a terrible shot that looked like one of the ridiculous attempts Doncic makes.
Detroit's answer came from elsewhere: Jenkins with 31 points on eight made threes, Huerter with 24 and five blocks, neither enough to change who held the lead.
The Pistons outshot Los Angeles from the arc, 19 makes to 11, and still spent the entire evening behind.
Kessler's 16 boards and 58 points in the paint
Kessler collected seven offensive rebounds among his 16 boards and blocked three shots, while Jarred Vanderbilt grabbed 10 rebounds in 14 minutes.
In addition, two 17-point nights from Williams and Sexton, both arriving off the bench, were the next scoring lines after Reaves' 43.
Cunningham's night was crowded out: 14 points on 6-of-15 shooting, eight assists, four turnovers and a minus-15 rating.
Both teams were back on the floor on Monday night: the Lakers in Atlanta at 9-2, the Pistons at home against Washington at 6-3.
Paul Reed had 10 rebounds with eight of them offensive and Ausar Thompson pulled 11 boards, yet Detroit finished one rebound behind.
Editor's take: A team that never trailed and still needed a dying-clock three has a closing problem worth watching at 9-2.
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