Detroit Pistons Host The Miami Heat

The Detroit Pistons will be meeting the Miami Heat at the Little Caesars Arena tonight at 7:30 pm Eastern time. This will be their first matchup this season, and both have been bitten by the injury bug.

The Detroit Pistons travel to South Beach to take on the Miami Heat tonight, and both teams have been hobbled by the injury bug this season.

The Detroit Pistons (20-15) will be without Jon Leuer (ankle), Reggie Jackson (ankle), and Stanley Johnson (hip), but have Avery Bradley (groin) back in the lineup.

The Miami Heat (19-17) will be without Rodney McGruder (tibia), Okaro White (foot), Justise Winslow (knee), and Dion Waiters (ankle). James Johnson is questionable for tonight’s game.

Both the Heat and Pistons will need to tap into their reserves to be competitive for the full 48 minutes. While both teams have been depleted, both have remained quite successful in spite of these injuries.

Miami has won three of their last five, with Tyler Johnson scoring 31 points to lead them past the Orlando Magic. Detroit has also won three of five with big performances from both Reggie Bullock and Luke Kennard to defeat the San Antonio Spurs earlier this week.

The key matchup will of course be in the paint, with Miami big man, Hassan Whiteside, going toe-to-toe with Andre Drummond.

Both Whiteside and Drummond are elite rebounders and generally dominant big men. Since this is the first meeting between the teams this season, Whiteside will need to learn how to defend te new-and-improved Andre Drummond. Whiteside is an elite rim protector, but defending the dribble hand-off action will be a challenge for Whiteside – especially with Drummond being a more capable passer and improved free throw shooter.

Prediction: Detroit-109 Miami-104