Indiana Pacers Travels to Detroit to Face the Pistons

Although they sit towards the bottom of the Eastern Conference, the Indiana Pacers are working hard. They’ve taken a few losses recently but have also put together a few surprising wins. One of these wins was against the Boston Celtics, a team that they beat 128-107. It’s clear the Pacers have a talented group of players. The question is, can these talented players take down Detroit?

The Detroit Pistons are the other team at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. It’s been tough sledding for the Pistons this season, but there’s a promising future there. Although playoff hopes are out of the question, they can grab a few wins as the season winds down. On Friday, they’ll have a chance to beat the Pacers. It won’t do much for positioning, but quite a bit for morale.

Can the Indiana Pacers Avoid Playing Down to the Competition of the Detroit Pistons? 

The Pacers have a surprisingly good offense for being one of the worst teams in the NBA. Currently, they have the 15th best scoring offense in the NBA, averaging 109.85 points per game. However, you have to consider a few things when looking at their point averages. Some of this was when Domantas Sabonis was still with the Indiana Pacers.

With Sabonis gone, the Pacers will look to players like Buddy Hield to lead them against Detroit. Detroit has a strong young group, led by Cade Cunningham, but there are a lot of holes in Detroit. For starters, Detroit has one of the worst defenses in the NBA, allowing an average of 112.67 points per game. They’re also the second-worst three-point shooting team in the NBA.

Indiana Pacers Take Down Struggling Detroit Pistons

Taking a few things into consideration, the Pistons’ scoring and defense, the pick becomes clear. You also have to take into account how easily the Pacers beat the Celtics. They hosted Boston and scored 128 points against one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. The Pacers shouldn’t have much trouble against the awful scoring and even worse defense of the Pistons.

The last time these two played was in December of 2021, the Pacers were -10.5. Keep in mind this is still when Domantas Sabonis was still on the team. The spread will be much lower this time around. However, the Pacers won the game 122-113 but failed to cover the spread. Over their last ten games, the Pacers have a 6-4 record against the Detroit Pistons.

When betting on the total, you have to look at the history of these teams. Throughout their last three games, they’ve hit the under twice. There are also some key injuries on both sides of the ball, hurting the chances of the over. With that being said, we’d rather take the under here, especially because of the injuries. 

• All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds are subject to change.
• All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.

* All odds provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.