Pistons are making a Tim Hardaway Jr. realization that Mavericks fans know too well

When the Dallas Mavericks traded Tim Hardaway Jr. to the Detroit Pistons over the summer following their five-game defeat to the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals, it was a bittersweet moment whether Mavs fans like to admit it or not.

While the end of his Mavs tenure was far from ideal considering that he was unplayable at some points last season, he had plenty of great moments as a Maverick that got overlooked as time went on. Hardaway Jr. was one of the longest-tenured players on the team before being traded for Quentin Grimes, and he was one of the team's most reliable scorers for multiple seasons.

Hardaway Jr.'s time in Dallas had plenty of highs and lows, including breaking a Mavericks NBA Finals record by drilling five threes in one quarter after scoring zero points in 19 minutes in the previous game, and you truly never knew what you were going to get from him. The up-and-down play of Hardaway Jr. became customary for Mavs fans to see over the five and a half seasons he spent in Dallas, and the Pistons are starting to realize that too.

Hardaway Jr. is showing the Pistons his streaky scoring magic

After shooting 1-8 over the previous two games, Hardaway Jr. erupted for 16 points while shooting 5-10 from downtown against the Miami Heat last night. While 16 points isn't too out of the ordinary for Hardaway Jr. considering he averaged 14.4 points per game last night, the way he ended the game against Miami was unbelievable.

After leading by 16 points at the start of the fourth quarter, the Heat battled all the way back into the game and forced overtime. The Pistons were outscored 33-17 in this final quarter, and it looked like they were about to choke away the win.

But then Hardaway Jr. showed Pistons fans how great he can be when he's hot.

Hardaway Jr. drilled back-to-back-to-back threes in overtime and helped lead the Pistons to a 125-124 win. The Heat led by eight points before Hardaway Jr. drained his first three in overtime, and the rest of the game was history. Many of these threes that Hardaway Jr. hit were extremely tough shots, and he displayed his ability to hit some of the most difficult shots in the league that most players would be afraid to take to begin with.

This type of performance from Hardaway Jr. showed the Pistons that he can get uncontrollably hot when he is shooting with confidence and rhythm, but this same confidence has led Hardaway Jr. to shoot teams out of games as well. Hardaway Jr. is always going to let it fly, as most shooters do, and the Pistons got the good side of the Hardaway Jr. experience on Monday night.

After Hardaway Jr.'s overtime masterclass on Monday night, Hardaway Jr. is averaging 9.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game while shooting 41.3 percent from the field and 35.4 percent from downtown, and this type of game shows the type of player he can be when he is at his best.

Mavericks fans saw these types of stretches from Hardaway Jr. plenty of times, but they also saw plenty of performances that weren't worth remembering.