A stoppable force meets a moveable object
The Detroit Pistons have simultaneously played excellent, improved ball while also playing horrifically inept in crunch time. There was no greater example than yesteryday’s win against the Miami Heat. The Pistons choked away a 14-point fourth-quarter lead through a combination of veterans not stepping up, careless turnovers, and an inability to stop the one guy on Miami’s offense who had it cooking. It took divine intervention in the form of the NBA’s best coach quite literally costing his team the game by calling a timeout the team didn’t have when the score was tied and there was less than two seconds left.
Needless to say, the Pistons can’t count on that sort of lightning striking twice. Luckily for them, the Milwaukee Bucks are not the Heat. They are playing their own brand of horrific basketball, and with even less of an excuse. Things are ugly in Milwaukee, but that doesn’t mean they can’t use a visit from the Pistons to cure what ails them. This feels like the kind of game where the winning team will coast by 20. Whether that is the Pistons or the Bucks, well, I guess we’ll find out.
Game Vitals
When: 8 p.m. ET
Where: Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Watch: FanDuel Sports Network Detroit
Odds: Pistons +6.5
Projected Lineups
Detroit Pistons (5-7)
Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Malik Beasley, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren
Milwaukee Bucks (3-8)
Ryan Rollins, AJ Green, Taurean Prince, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez