Every team needs a little bit of magic now and again and it was the Detroit Pistons that had Jaden Ivey to thank for their special moment.
The Pistons were down by 10 points with just under three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and a win looked out of the realms of possibility.
However, with just 3.1 seconds on the clock, Jaden Ivey knocked down a 3-pointer as De’Aaron Fox fouled him. The made three-throw secured a last-gasp 113-114 win against a Sacramento Kings side that can’t buy a win.
Cade Cunningham shone for the Pistons top-scoring with 33 points, once again highlighting his All-Star potential.
The latest Pistons triumph takes their winning streak to three and has now helped them climb the Eastern Conference to sit ninth with a 14-17 record.
Despite his game-winning heroics, Ivey explained why this wasn’t the best shot of his career.
While it may have been Cunningham who top-scored for the Pistons, Ivey certainly added his fair share to the total with 19 points.
Ivey most importantly scored all six of the Pistons’ final points helping them close the game with a 17-6 run in the final three minutes.
Speaking on the shot straight after the game Ivey explained how he remained ‘poised’ when getting his chance.
He said: “Man I just stay poised, obviously my three shot wasn’t falling all game and I just had to go out their and play with effort on defence.
“Beasley [Malik Beasley] started the momentum in the fourth quarter and we got closer and closer. Beasley found me in the corner and he jumped, I pump-faked, got him and I hit the shot.”
Ivey made seven of his 13 field goals as well as shooting 42.8% from behind the arc, including his game-winning moment.
While many 22-year-olds, who have only played in the NBA since 2022, would struggle to argue that a match-winning 4-point shot wasn’t their best, this wasn’t the case for Ivey.
Speaking to the media after the game the point guard explained one moment that was more special to him.
He said: “I mean, I’ve only hit two [game-winners], and I can’t put it passed the first one. We won, 3-0 (on the) West Coast right now. It’s an amazing opportunity to go 4-0.”
Ivey’s first game-winner came in a 102-110 win over the Toronto Raptors where with the score tied at 100 and the clock sitting at 22 seconds, he hit an off-ballance baseline push shot over Ochai Agbaji to secure the win.
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