The Detroit Pistons will host the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night in an Eastern Conference showdown. The Pacers sit in seventh place in the East, as they aim to pick up some wins and avoid the play-in tournament. For Detroit, they sit in 14th place and even though the playoffs are out of reach, this is still a great opportunity for them to build their confidence at the end of the year. In three meetings this season, the Pacers have won all three, including two by double digits. The Pacers will expect to come away victorious in the rematch, even on the road, although it’s a matchup fans will want to check out for themselves.
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Pacers playing .500 basketball
As mentioned, Indiana sits in seventh place in the Eastern Conference standings and is just 5-5 in its last ten games. Knowing how critical it is to avoid the play-in tournament, it’s even more important for the Pacers to make sure they can get things back in the right direction. Losses in two of their last three home games are far from ideal, but they have won three straight away from home, giving them a .500 record on the season in away games. Against a Detroit team that has been one of the worst in the league this season, the Pacers will want to pull off a four-game sweep, especially with the trio of road games they have coming up.
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Indiana has a few injuries as they head into this one, both related to key depth pieces. Longtime NBA journeyman Doug McDermott expects to miss at least one more week. Unfortunately, Benoît Mathurin is also out for the season. Averaging just under 15 points per game. Mathurin’s offensive production has certainly been missed in recent games.
The offense is one of the most explosive in the league, ranking first in field goal percentage, field goals made and second in field goals attempted. Against a defense like Detroit’s, it’s a great opportunity for them to turn the corner and find success again. It all starts with Tyrese Haliburton (20.4 ppg, 11.2 ppg) but the addition of Pascal Siakam gave this team the second scorer it needed, especially with his ability to play on the perimeter and in the painting. Add in the game development of Myles Turner and this team has the offense to make things difficult for most opponents, but especially for Detroit in this one.
The pistons fight against the misfortunes of the house
Detroit has a lot of young talent, but so far they have failed to see it translate into wins. They have one of the worst records not only in the Eastern Conference but also in the NBA as a whole, with just 12 wins and an astonishing 56 losses. They have seven home wins, which also makes home-field advantage almost non-existent. Injuries haven’t helped matters, but the overall inability to find consistency seems to be the most pressing issue to address. They lost three straight before this one and have just three wins in their last ten games, even though only three of those games came on the road. As eyes turn to the offseason and where they will fall in the draft.
The injury report has been getting longer and longer for Detroit over the last few games. Cade Cunningham, Simone Fontecchio, Isaiah Stewart and Quentin Grimes are all questionable, already in their first two rotations. With the addition of Ausar Thompson ruled out indefinitely, it’s hard to see where production will come from, especially if several of these questionable actors can’t go.
Detroit’s inability to break out of the bottom third in most defensive and offensive categories is something that will need to change next season. Since Indiana is first in the league in getting shooters from the three-point line, Detroit won’t be able to find hot shooting to keep them in this one. Cunningham leads the way on the offensive end but without him, Jaden Ivey (15.3 points per game) could see a lot more of the ball in his hands. However, with no other 10+ point per game scorers available, keeping up with the offensive scoring pace Indiana is expected to do will likely be too much to ask of this group.
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The Pacers will come out on top in this one and easily cover the spread against one of the worst teams in the league. For the Pistons, the injuries are starting to be too much for this team to overcome, as they could find themselves without a handful of starters in this one, including their best player in Cunningham. For the Pacers, they have one of the fastest and highest scoring offenses in the league and given Detroit’s defensive issues on the other end, the Pistons won’t have the scoring to match Indiana. The Pacers have covered the spread in all three meetings this season, as they make it their fourth straight in the series on Wednesday night.
Prediction: Pacers (-9.5)
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Defense is optional when these two teams take the field and now that they face off, the offense will certainly set the tone. The Pacers play at one of the fastest paces in the NBA and will have their ups and downs. It helps that they come into this one relatively healthy and with Haliburton leading the way, the offense will receive plenty of open looks. On the other hand, their defense has been one of the worst in the league and even with injuries on the other side, Detroit will find points through the defense on the other side. The under has hit in two of three meetings this season and in three of the last four overall between these two, as that trend continues in this one.
Prediction: Over 233
