Former San Diego State standout Malachi Flynn had a career night in Atlanta Wednesday for the Detroit Pistons.
Flynn had 50 points, a career high, off the bench in a 121-113 loss to the Hawks.
According to ESPN, a reserve has scored 50 or more points just three times since the 1970 season. Jamal Crawford last did so, scoring 51 for the Phoenix Suns in 2019.
With the effort, Flynn, 25, almost doubled his pervious career high, 27 points. He added six rebounds, five assists and five steals in 34 minutes on the court.
“It does feel good to kind of take in the moment,” the guard told NBA.com. “I’m sure a couple of days from now, it will feel really good.”
Flynn’s mark also set a record for the Pistons franchise. Detroit is having a woeful season, at 13-63. The former Aztec, drafted by the Toronto Raptors in 2020, was traded to the New York Knicks in December and was quickly dealt again, in February, to the Pistons.
In a single season with SDSU, following his transfer from Washington State, Flynn led the Aztecs to the 2019-20 Mountain West regular-season championship. He averaged 17.6 points, 5.1 assists and 4.5 rebounds in 33.5 minutes in 32 games in a campaign in which he was named the conference Player of the Year.
