Atlanta Dream star Angel Reese has a vested interest in the first-round NBA playoff series between the Orlando Magic and the Detroit Pistons, pitting her current boyfriend, Wendell Carter Jr., against her ex, Jalen Duren.
Through the first four games, there’s no doubt that Carter Jr. has outplayed Duren.
Carter Jr: 11.5 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, 53% FG, +4.0
Duren: 9.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.8 blocks, 46% FG, -2.8
With the Magic leading the series 3-1, Angel Reese has utilized every single opportunity to shade her ex. When Carter Jr. dropped 14 points and 17 rebounds against Duren in Game 3, she sent out the following message on social media.
On Monday, she took it up a notch by sharing a clip of Jalen Duren getting posterized by Jamal Cain in the fourth quarter.
Jalen Duren Struggles for Pistons
Duren, who made his first All-Star team this year, has been a huge letdown for the Pistons in the playoffs. After averaging a career-high tally of 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in the regular season, his playoff numbers have dipped drastically. The 22-year-old has also seen his FG% plummet from 65% to 46%.
After the Pistons went down 3-1 on Monday, Duren didn’t make any excuses.
“Too many turnovers, bro,” Duren said of the Pistons’ 20 turnovers that led to 23 Magic points, via ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk.. “They are scoring off of our mistakes. The whole series, we just been shooting ourselves in the foot. We got to clean that up, man.
“I still think we’re the better team, top to bottom. But we just got to … we can’t keep digging ourselves in the hole. Then, we are fighting ourselves, that team, the refs … we just got to be better.”
Pistons On Brink of Elimination
According to ESPN Research, the Pistons are on the verge of becoming just the third 60-team team in NBA history to lose in the first round of the playoffs, joining the 2011 San Antonio Spurs and the 2007 Dallas Mavericks in the infamous list.
Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, though, believes his team still has fight left in it.
“We’re going to come out punching,” he said ahead of Game 5. “That I promise you. We’re not going to lay down for anybody. It’s one game at home and that’s what your focus is on, is you got to go home and win one game. And that’s where our mindset is.”
Pistons point guard Cade Cunningham had an interesting reaction when asked if he’s “shocked” at the Magic taking a commanding 3-1 lead.
“I mean, going into [this series I’d be] shocked,” he responded.
“But with the way that we’ve been playing, that stuff’s not good enough to win games, and this league’s too good.
“They’re a good team, so they’re outrebounding, turning me over. We haven’t hit enough shots. Our defense hasn’t caught its footing, so it’s not shocking that we’re losing the games playing like that.”
Cunningham has committed 24 turnovers over his last three games — the most in a three-game span in the playoffs since turnovers were tracked in 1977-78.
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