Tonight it’s the Detroit Pistons versus the impressive Toronto Raptors as they visit their home away from home, our Little Caesar’s Arena.
Demar Derozan is having himself a career year and his club finds itself currently in first place in the eastern conference… Just four games behind league leading Houston and Golden State.
Needless to say, Toronto is good.
The Pistons enter the game 29-35, 4.5 games behind Miami and the eighth spot in the east. On the outside looking in as they say.
Since the biggest trade in team history brought Blake Griffin to the squad, their record has been 7-9, with one of those wins coming before he even joined the team.
The Griffin/Andre Drummond pairing started off with a bang before Griffin struggled for several games. In that time, the rest of the team played well but roles have reversed. Now we find the stars playing well and the role players struggling.
Reggie Jackson still isn’t back from his grade 3 sprained ankle either and any hope of him saving their playoff hopes dwindles daily.
This matchup frequently favors the Raptors and they’ve had the Pistons’ number for quite a while it seems.
Can the hometown guys pull this one out and keep their slipping playoff hopes alive?
If Griffin and Drummond have the games they should have against their matchups, Jonas Valanciunas and Serge Ibaka, and Stanley Johnson and Reggie Bullock can contain Derozan just a bit, then I think our Detroit Pistons can steal one at home tonight.
Everything will need to go right in their key matchups for it to happen though. The Pistons have some talent, now they need continuity. Especially on the defensive end.
That’s what wins games and our team needs to win a lot of them starting right now.
Tip off at 8 pm from the Little Caeasar’s Arena. Go Pistons!