Pistons injuries, starting lineup and how to watch opening night vs. Pacers

After a long and busy offseason that saw changes in the front office and coaching staff, the Detroit Pistons are finally ready to tip off the 2024-25 regular season tonight at home against the Indiana Pacers. 

The Pistons suffered a four-game sweep at the hands of the Pacers last season as Indiana was one of the surprise teams of the Eastern Conference, unexpectedly making it to the conference finals. 

Detroit was on the other end of the standings, the worst team in the NBA, something they hope to change this year with a revamped roster and a fresh bucket of hope. 

Whether the team is any better won’t be decided tonight, but it would be nice to start the season with a home win, especially with a tough six-game stretch to start things out. 

Here is all of the information you will need. 

Pistons injuries vs. Pacers 

The Pistons will be missing both Ausar Thompson and Bobi Klintman, who were both held out for the entirety of training camp and the preseason. 

Thompson has not been cleared after suffering blood clots last season and there is no timeline for his return. I’m starting to think fans should prepare for the worst-case scenario when it comes to this season and Ausar Thompson. 

Rookie Bobi Klintman is out with a calf contusion, which could mean about anything, as the word “contusion” seems to be a euphemism for just about any injury. 

Isaiah Jackson of the Pacers is still listed as day-to-day on the injury report. 

How to watch Pistons vs. Pacers 

The game tips off in Little Caesar’s Arena at 7:00 PM ET and you can watch on the recently renamed FanDuel Sports Network-Detroit, which was previously known as Bally Sports. 

The game will also be broadcast on 97.1 FM The Ticket. 

You can stream on NBA League Pass if you are out of market, or get a free trial at FUBOtv. 

Here is the full streaming guide to the season with all of your options. 

Detroit Pistons projected starting lineup vs. Pacers 

There is still one question mark in the starting lineup and that is who will get the nod out of Malik Beasley, Tim Hardaway Jr. Aad Simone Fontecchio while Thompson is still out. My guess is that we’ll see Beasley to start things off, as they need more experience in the starting five and THJ was broke in preseason. 

Here’s what we are likely to see in Game 1: 

-Cade Cunningham 

-Jaden Ivey 

-Malik Beasley 

-Tobias Harris 

-Jalen Duren 

We will get a healthy dose of Fontecchio off the bench along with rookie Ron Holland II, Isaiah Stewart and like Hardaway Jr. to round out the early-season rotation. 

Here’s to not being the worst team in the NBA this season and competing for the play-in. LET’S GOOOOOOOOOO!