There has been very few times in which the Pistons are favored in a game this season. Even though the Wizards have 10 more wins than the Pistons this season, the current iteration of the Washington Wizards is not a better team than the Pistons as they are in the midst of an 8 game road losing streak.
The roster the Wizards started off the season with a hot start has mostly been injured or traded and we are left with a team that will end the season better in the standings than the Pistons, but they have been far worse than the Pistons the last few months.
If the Pistons play how they did against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday, this will be an easy win, but if the Pistons team that played on Monday against Portland shows up, tonight could be a different story.
Where: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, MI
When: Friday, March 25 at 7:00 pm EST
Watch: Bally Sports Detroit
Odds: Pistons (-2.5)
As mentioned above, the Wizards are currently floundering. They are in the midst of an 8 game road losing streak. Their roster has already been gutted by injuries and trades, and now Kyle Kuzma is out for them. He has been their most consistent player this season, so that is a huge loss for a team already struggling.
It is especially helpful that Kuzma will likely be out because he has been a Pistons killer throughout his career, but especially this season. Funnily enough, despite both teams heading in opposite directions since the start the new year, the Pistons are 0-3 against the Wizards this season with two of those losses coming in 2022.
We have gotten the polar opposite of this Pistons team in the two games they have played this week. Against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday, who were missing 6 players due to injury, the Pistons came out sluggish and were run off the court in the 1st half and a 2nd half comeback came up short. Against a desperate Hawks team on Wednesday, the Pistons got their biggest lead of the season and won by 21 points.
The Pistons are really starting to hit their stride with an 8-12 record over their last 20 games. Outsiders may laugh at celebrating an 8-12 record, but it is obvious from watching the games that the Pistons young core is growing and playing a huge part in the turnaround of their fortunes.
Even though the Pistons are probably the better team in this game, they have not been able to figure out the Wizards this season. The Pistons should theoretically have the better players across the board in the starting lineup, with the exception of Kristaps Porzingis at center. Although, Porzingis tends to struggle a bit with more physical players, so Isaiah Stewart could have his number as well.
If Kuzma does not play, I don’t see a way the Pistons lose this game. It is not great for draft positioning purposes, but going 0-4 against a team in any season is not great. Hopefully the Pistons are ready to play and can avoid a repeat of Monday’s disaster against Portland.
Washington Wizards (30-42): Raul Neto, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cory Kispert, Rui Hachimura, Kristaps Porzingis
Detroit Pistons (20-53): Cory Joseph, Cade Cunningham, Saddiq Bey, Jerami Grant, Isaiah Stewart
Who from the Pistons current starting lineup do you see being on the opening day roster next season?