The Dallas Mavericks injury report is about the same number as the Pistons current magic number for clinching a non-play-in spot
The Pistons entered this road trip with losses to the Washington Wizards and Oklahoma City Thunder. They needed to re-engage and string together some wins against inferior opponents before a very tough April schedule. So far, the Pistons have done that and now have a chance to go for the road trip sweep against the likely-cursed, Dallas Mavericks .
It hasn’t been as easy as it should have been after a 46 point win against the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday, it took a last-second three by Cade Cunningham to complete a comeback win against the Miami Heat. The Pistons were never really getting blown out in that game, but they did not lead for most of the game, so it took locking in to steal a much-needed victory.
Now, they have an opportunity against a Dallas Mavericks team that due to injuries to basically half of their roster, are not anywhere near as good as their 33-37 record would have you believe. But, as the last game on a road trip, this has “trap game” written all over it against a team playing a bunch of players with nothing to lose.
Game Vitals
Where: American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX
When: Friday, March 21 at 8:30 pm EST
Watch: Fan Duel Sports Network Detroit
Odds: Detroit (-9.5)
Analysis
There isn’t a whole lot to be said about this game. The Pistons are facing a Dallas Mavericks team that could only have 7 or 8 healthy players to play. The players that are healthy to play are not the guys they were expecting to be starting at this point in the season. But, they are all still NBA players and if the Pistons do not take this game seriously, they could be ending the night with a very disappointing loss.
The Mavericks are coming off a heart-breaking loss to the Indiana Pacers, a game in which they looked like they had things locked up before the Pacers recent bout with black magic once again let them steal a victory.
It just goes to show that even though the Mavericks are not that good on paper and are relying on a shortened rotation just to get through games, they will still put up a fight and will take you to the wire if you do not take them seriously.
The Mavericks will also be more healthy than they have been the last couple weeks, as they will have Klay Thompson back and PJ Washington has been back for a few games after dealing with an injury. Obviously, a team led by Thompson and Washington in 2025 is not an extremely scary team, but they are both solid NBA players and they are playing with some other guys that have been playing well with the increased playing time, like Brandon Williams and Kai Jones.
The worst part about this season for the Mavericks is that they are too far along to just give up and tank. They do not have enough healthy talent left to win a ton of games, but they have the same record as the Phoenix Suns , who hold the 10th spot in the Play-In Tournament in the West. I am not sure whether they would want to be in the Play-In Tournament with the current state of their roster, but I don’t see them rolling over and dying because they still do have something to play for.
It allows them to play spoiler to teams that overlook them just like the Pistons dealt with last week against the Washington Wizards.
The Pistons didn’t really play bad against the Miami Heat on Wednesday, they just dealt with some very good shooting luck by the Heat as both Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro were shooting very well. It is why it took a last-second shot to win the game despite the Heat being on a 9 game losing streak. So, at least the Pistons just dealt with a team that is desperate and trying to keep their ship from completely sinking.
I am not sure if this current iteration of the Dallas Mavericks is a better team than the Miami Heat despite the better record, but they at least have some players that could get hot shooting just like the Miami Heat did and make this a long night.
Lineups
Dallas Mavericks (33-37): Brandon Williams, Klay Thompson, Naji Marshall, PJ Washington, Kai Jones
Detroit Pistons (39-31): Cade Cunningham, Tim Hardaway Jr, Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren
Question of the Day
Do you think Jaden Ivey plays again this season?