Well, the regular season is almost over, but tonight, we have a preview of what will likely be the third vs. sixth matchup in the East as Detroit hosts the Knicks. We’ve seen these teams square off several times this year, with the series going back and forth. Unfortunately, we won’t see New York at full strength tonight as several players are down for the count. However, this will still be a great matchup between two of the best teams in the East!
Cade Cunningham Probable
Isaiah Stewart Questionable
Tobias Harris Probable
Mitchell Robinson Out
OG Anunoby Out
Josh Hart Out
This game doesn’t matter for the postseason as both Detroit and New York are locked in their playoff spot. Even though nothing is on the line in terms of playoff standings, this game will still be very important for these teams. This will be the last look they get at each other before they’re playing their first playoff game in a week against each other. With Detroit currently ahead in the season series against them 2-1, this should be an interesting game to see if the weakened Knicks can steal one in Detroit.
The Pistons will definitely have the advantage tonight. Playing at home, going against the Knicks without two starters should give them the edge, but the Knicks are still dangerous. The Towns Brunson combo is still very much on the table and has been devastating all season. Luckily for Detroit, they have Duren available tonight, which will make a world of difference protecting the paint. He’s been elite this year at snagging rebounds and pressuring shooters inside. Pairing his presence on the inside with Cade defending on the perimeter should make for a lethal combo.
The X-factor for the Knicks has to be Bridges. He’s had his ups and downs all season, but we know what this guy is capable of. As the third or fourth scoring option most nights, he normally doesn’t get the number of attempts he needs, but tonight he will. With Hart and OG out tonight, we’ll see a ton of Bridges, which could be an issue for Detroit.
We’ll have to see the wings on Detroit setup tonight to slow down Bridges. Luckily for the Pistons, their entire roster is huge. With Hardaway, Thompson, and either Holland or Fontecchio starting tonight, they’ll have the size to matchup well across the board tonight. That’s why Detroit is my pick for this game.
Detroit just has the better team tonight with the Knicks banged up. Between Cade and Beasley, the Pistons should be able to keep the scoring pressure up while having the better defense. Considering they’ve also beaten the Knicks twice at full strength this year gives them even more credibility. They’re the easy pick.
Money line: NYK (+136) / DET (-162)
Total Points: 229
Spread: +3.5 NYK (-108) / -3.5 DET (-112)
Detroit is just the stronger team tonight, pair that with the fact that the Knicks are down a few players, and it makes this line look easy. Of course, Towns and Brunson can be deadly, but Detroit has the defenders to make life hard for them.
So late into the season, we’ve seen a scoring slump for both of these teams. Detroit has been slightly less affected, with a few high-scoring games against Cleveland and New Orleans, but they’ve generally trended down on their points total. With the Knicks short-handed, and the defense on Detroit, I don’t expect this to be high high-scoring game for both sides.
Detroit is the safe pick at -3.5. In both of their wins over New York this year, they’ve had a margin of victory of over 3.5. So looking at this Knicks team walking into Detroit, I feel fairly confident the Pistons can get this done. I might even take this line over the money line tonight for a little extra juice.
We’ve seen Bridges all over the map scoring this year. He’s been the only piece on this Knicks team that never quite settled this year, but tonight could be a plus scoring night for him. With Hart and OG out tonight, this should open up the floor a bit against a tough, physical Detroit group. Considering he had 20 and 27 the last two times they’ve played each other, the 17.5 point line seems achievable for him today.
Even though Cade has been the leader of Detroit on offense, he’s been a solid rebounder lately too. This line does feel a little low at 5.5. Cade has been over this for five of the last ten games. With even odds on what looks like a coin flip of a line, I like it.
Beasley has continued his streak of being an absolute deadeye from deep this year. Shooting 41% from three and averaging 3.9 makes on 9.3 attempts has made him one of the most lethal shooter around. Looking at his last couple of games against the Knicks, when they even had OG and Hart playing, Beasley still managed to hit 6 threes in one, and 7 in the other. He’s been a little less reliable lately, but he’s still getting his attempts, which is all you can ask for.
Brunson has been a killer moving the ball this year, especially against Detroit, averaging 8.7 assists against them. Considering OG and Hart are out tonight, we’ll probably see a ton of Brunson Towns pick-and-roll, which should snag Brunson at least a few assists.