Predictions
Game 1: Nov. 4 at Capital One Arena
Game 2: Dec. 16 at Little Caesar’s Arena
Game 3: Dec. 26 at Little Caesar’s Arena
Game 4: Jan. 20 at Capital One Arena
The Pistons meet the Wizards four times this season and it would be a big disappointment if Detroit lost any of them. Detroit was a Drummond injury away from getting the sweep last season and Washington figures to be even worse in 2019-20.
It is also very possible that Beal will not be on the Wizards roster for a couple of these games, making Detroit’s job a little easier. I do worry about the Dec. 26th game, as post-holiday games can be wonky with player focus elsewhere. I still think Detroit holds on unless the team eats rancid ham for Christmas or gets into too much of Grandma’s egg nog.
Prediction: Pistons sweep 4-0
If Detroit wants to make the leap into the middle of the Eastern Conference, then they must beat up on the weak teams. The East got better as a whole and the West is a nightmare, so the difference between the eight and the five seed might be how Detroit handles the teams at the bottom of the conference.
Washington’s situation is one Detroit hopes to avoid. They can do that by managing the minutes of their star against lesser opponents, starting with the Wizards.
This is the 29th preview in Piston Powered’s season preview series, taking a look at how the Pistons stack up against all 29 NBA teams. Here are the previews to date.
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Use the sliders to click through all 29 team previews going all the way back to the Hawks.