Daniss Jenkins drops career-high 26 points in Motor City Cruise loss
The Motor City Cruise lost to the Greensboro Swarm 92-75 but there was a bright spot as rookie guard Daniss Jenkins displayed his dynamic skillset, dropping a career-high 26 points to go with six assists and three steals on 10/18 shooting from the field at Wayne State Fieldhouse on Tuesday night. The former St. John's Red Storm standout has started his rookie campaign with a series of impressive performances, posting 17.5 points and 6.5 assists this year.
Jenkins signed a two-way contract with the Detroit Pistons prior to the NBA 2K25 Summer League and eventually earned a spot on the roster heading into training camp. The Dallas product finished his college career at St. John's, scoring a team-best 14.9 points en route to earning All-Big East recognition in 2024. Jenkins should be able to continue to make a major impact for Motor City and potentially carve out a role with the Pistons following a potential season-ending leg injury to Detroit guard Jaden Ivey.
Even though Jenkins played one of his best games of the season, it wasn't nearly enough to lead the Cruise to a win over Greensboro. The Swarm jumped out to a double-digit lead in the first quarter and took a 48-31 lead into halftime as duo Keyontae Johnson and Isaiah Wong led the way. Jenkins threw down a ferocious dunk to cut the deficit to 48-38 in the third period but Greensboro responded with a 17-8 run to put the game out of reach going forward.
Johnson finished with a team-high 24 points and eight rebounds, while Wong compiled 12 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the win. In addition to Jenkins having a great showing, Motor City center Tolu Smith racked up 14 points and 10 rebounds, and forward Ron Harper Jr made his team debut but exited with a thigh injury and didn't return. The Cruise suffered a third straight loss and fell to 2-4, while the Swarm improved to 4-1 and will remain atop the Eastern Conference standings.
