Pistons vs. Sixers best bet: Detroit can cover spread on road
By Peter Dewey
The Detroit Pistons have the worst record in the Eastern Conference, and they’re coming off a tough loss to the Utah Jazz on Tuesday night.
Despite that, they may be worth a wager tonight as massive underdogs against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Philly has been playing well since James Harden returned to the lineup, winning five of six games to pull into the No. 5 spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Sixers needed overtime to beat the Toronto Raptors on Monday night, and they’ve been an average offense (16th in offensive rating) all season despite having MVP candidate Joel Embiid.
The Pistons have been brutal on defense this season, but they are covering the spread at a decent rate, going 16-14-3 so far in the 2022-23 campaign.
Does the team add another ATS win to its record against the Sixers?
Pistons vs. Sixers odds, spread and total
Pistons vs. Sixers prediction and pick
Even though the Sixers are clearly the better team, I think this spread is a little too wide, so I’m going to back the Pistons to cover in this game.
Detroit is 9-6-2 against the spread as a road dog this season, losing those games by an average margin of 6.5 points.
Even though Embiid will be a handful for the Pistons, the Sixers still aren’t at full strength with Tyrese Maxey sidelined due to injury.
Detroit has shown that it can score at times this season, ranking 22nd in the league in offensive rating, and the Sixers aren’t the type of team to push the pace and run you out of the gym.
Philly ranks just 26th in the NBA in pace, which means the Pistons could hang around in this game if they play an efficient game on offense.
The Sixers are winning their games as home favorites by an average margin of 5.9 points this season. Detroit can keep this within 11.
[tallysight url=”https://tallysight.com/widget/analyst/peter-dewey/NBA/2022-23-week-of-dec-19/game/detroit-pistons-philadelphia-76-ers/books:1?id=ae7cee9a-67df-483f-873c-c8b6bec24850″
Find Peter Dewey’s full betting record here.
—
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.