Pistons complete historic turnaround from 14-win season by securing playoff berth

TORONTO (AP) — One year after finishing with the worst record in the NBA, the Detroit Pistons are going to the playoffs for the first time since 2018-19.

The Pistons punched their postseason ticket with a 117-105 victory over Toronto on Friday night.

No NBA team has ever gone from a worse record than Detroit’s 14 wins last season to earning a playoff berth the following year.

“It’s a big deal,” first-year Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “We typically don’t take time to reflect on where we are but this is an opportunity for this group to reflect on where it is, where it’s come from and what it’s been able to accomplish together. To turn it around the way they have and put themselves in this position to play in the postseason, it’s a big deal.”

Detroit’s Jalen Duren, who had 21 points and 18 rebounds Friday, said it felt good to reach the playoffs after not winning more than 17 games in either of his first two NBA seasons. Detroit is 43-34 with five games remaining.

“People doubted us,” Duren said. “They didn’t believe. They thought it would take longer for us to turn this thing around but we’re here.

“We’re not done yet. We’re going to take a moment to enjoy what we’ve accomplished, but it’s only milestones. The real goal, obviously, is to bring championships back to our city.”

The Pistons finished eighth in the Eastern Conference and were swept by Milwaukee in the first round of the 2019 playoffs. Before that, Detroit’s previous two playoff appearances were also eighth-place finishes and first round sweeps, both to Cleveland, in 2016 and 2009.

The Pistons haven’t won a playoff series since finishing second in the East in 2007-08, winning series over Philadelphia and Orlando before losing to Boston in the conference finals.

Duren said the Pistons won’t be satisfied with simply reaching the playoffs.

“We’re happy, but everybody’s mindset is that this isn’t the championship,” Duren said. “We haven’t done anything yet.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley (5) shoots between Toronto Raptors center Jakob Poeltl (19) and Jonathan Mogbo (2) during first-half NBA basketball game action in Toronto, Friday, April 4, 2025. (Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP)

Detroit Pistons forward Ausar Thompson (9) jumps with the ball as Toronto Raptors guard A.J. Lawson (0) defends during second-half NBA basketball game action in Toronto, Friday, April 4, 2025. (Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP)

Detroit Pistons guard Dennis Schroder (17) drives past Toronto Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley (5) during second-half NBA basketball game action in Toronto, Friday, April 4, 2025. (Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP)

Detroit Pistons forward Paul Reed (7) goes up to score as Toronto Raptors guard Jamal Shead (23) defends during second-half NBA basketball game action in Toronto, Friday, April 4, 2025. (Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP)

Detroit Pistons forward Tim Hardaway Jr. (8) prepares to shoot as Toronto Raptors forward Jamison Battle (77) watches during second-half NBA basketball game action in Toronto, Friday, April 4, 2025. (Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP)

Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren (0) drives past Toronto Raptors center Orlando Robinson (21) during second-half NBA basketball game action in Toronto, Friday, April 4, 2025. (Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP)

A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.

A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.

Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.

For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.

The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”

Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.

Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)