Jerami Grant haunts old team as Blazers down Pistons

On Monday night, Jerami Grant scored 36 points in 28 minutes against his former team, the Detroit Pistons, as the host Portland Trail Blazers defeated them 135-106.

Grant faced the Pistons for the first time since being moved from them in the summer, and he did it by making 12 of 17 field goal attempts. To go along with 30 points from Anfernee Simons, 19 points and 10 assists from Damian Lillard helped propel the Blazers to victory.

The Blazers, led by Drew Eubanks’s 10 points and 10 rebounds before halftime, ultimately won.

New to the Portland roster, Gary Payton II contributed seven points and four assists in his debut. Payton, a free agency signing, had surgery on his abdominal muscles before the season began.

The Pistons were led by Bojan Bogdanovic’s 21 points. A total of 19 points came from Alec Burks, with 16 coming from Hamidou Diallo.

Killian Hayes, a guard with the Pistons, was suspended for three games by the NBA after he hit Orlando’s Moritz Wagner from behind. In the first half, Marvin Bagley III hurt his hand and had to leave the game.

With three minutes left in the first half, the Pistons held a six-point lead. However, the Trail Blazers completed the half on a 15-0 run to take a 61-52 advantage into the locker room. Simons got things going with a layup and then helped set up Eubanks and Grant for dunks.