Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Detroit Pistons Prediction, NBA Odds
A shorthanded Cleveland side fell to the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday 118-116. Jarrett Allen had 27 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Cavaliers, who were missing 65 points of offence with leading scorers Donovan Mitchell, James Harden and Evan Mobley all sidelined.
Detroit knocked off Oklahoma City on Wednesday 124-116 for the Pistons’ 6th win in 7 games. Jalen Duren had 29 points and 15 rebounds, while Cade Cunningham had 29 points and 13 assists in a battle of conference leaders – although the Thunder were missing 5 of their top 6 scorers.
These teams split their first two games this season and will play both of their remaining scheduled meetings over the next five days.
Cavaliers vs. Pistons NBA Betting Odds
Cleveland has won 13 of their last 16 to jump back into the Eastern Conference race, and the Cavaliers have won 13 of the previous 15 matchups with Detroit.
The Pistons are 6-1 straight up and 5-2 in their last seven games, but are just 1-4 ATS in their last five at home.
Although the Cavs have played to the over in 4 of their last 5 road contests, these two teams have played to the under in 6 of the last 7 meetings.
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavaliers received a potent blow to their immediate fortunes when James Harden, newly arrived from Los Angeles, broke a finger in Tuesday night’s victory over the New York Knicks.
By all accounts, the injury is more of a minor inconvenience than anything else. Mitchell and Mobley are also not supposed to be out long, but the clock’s ticking.
With only a quarter of the season left, Cleveland needs to solidify its hold on a top-4 spot in the East and move up to maintain home-court advantage as long as possible throughout the playoffs.
Detroit Pistons
Outside of a 13-game winning streak near the start of the season, the Pistons are playing arguably their best stretch of basketball this season. They’ve won 15 of their last 19 and knocked off Boston, Denver (twice), New York (twice) and the Thunder during this current run.
Cunningham and Duren are as exciting a 1-2 duo as there is in the league currently. The franchise suffered for years to get back to this point. They, and their fans, should be enjoying this ride right now.
And the best part? With just 25 regular-season games left, Detroit holds a 5.5-game lead over second-place Boston and has a healthy roster going into the stretch run.
NBA Prediction: Who Will Win Cavaliers vs. Pistons?
At 22-7, the Pistons own the best home record in the East. One of those losses did come to Cleveland, but that was back at the end of October, and Mitchell had a game-high 35 points.
If Mitchell, Mobley, and Harden are again unavailable, forget about it. Even if just 1 or 2 of them suit up, the Pistons aren’t losing this one at home. Take Detroit to win 115-107.
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