After losing what could be a future playoff matchup on Tuesday to the Bucks at home, the 76ers are back on the road in Detroit to take on a much easier opponent in the Pistons.

The Pistons come into the matchup with an ugly 20-56 record on the year, and way out of any sort of playoff contention. Detroit is 0-2 against the Sixers so far this season, but haven’t faced the team since all the way back in early November. The Pistons are a much similar team, while the 76ers have obviously made a couple changes.

The 76ers come into tonight’s matchup with a 46-29 record. With the craziness that is the top of the East standings the Sixers are currently the third seed. A tiebreaker over the Celtics is the only thing keeping Philly from the fourth spot.

The 76ers are now a game behind the Bucks for the second seed, and two behind the Heat for the top spot. Luckily for the Sixers their schedule for the rest of the season is among the easiest in the league with two matchups against the Pacers and Pistons over the next eight games.

Injury Report

Pistons:

• Corey Joseph (Probable)
• Jerami Grant (Out)
• Hamidou Diallo (Out)
• Chris Smith (Out)

Sixers:

• None

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Cade Cunningham

With Jerami Grant out for the rest of the season, the Pistons don’t have a ton of options to fill that offensive volume. A couple of games saw recent Kings reject Marvin Bagley III go on a scoring tear, but against Joel Embiid and the 76ers he’s averaging five points a game.

The real talent on this Pistons squad is rookie Cade Cunningham. The former Oklahoma State Cowboy has shown flashes of what made him a #1 overall pick on a few different occasions. Most recently Cunningham dropped 34 points and gave the Nets a real run for their money in a 130-123 loss.

The last time Cade faced off against the 76ers he shot 4-17 from the field in a loss. Like many young guards this season, Matisse Thybulle has been able to shut them down for the most part. That game was closer than expected thanks to Jerami Grant’s 27, but without him on the court there will be even more pressure for Cunningham to perform against Thybulle.

Prediction

This Pistons team has some young guys and outcasts that have caught great teams off balance this season. However, without Jerami Grant the Pistons best two players will match up against two of the best defenders at their positions in the league with Thybulle and Embiid. Pair that with the fact the 76ers are looking to get a big bounce back win after the terrible loss on Tuesday and Philly should win big.

I am going to take the nearly double-digit points because I just don’t see anyone handling Embiid or Harden on the offensive end, combined with the defensive factors we already talked about. Also worth mentioning the 76ers haven’t lost three in a row since mid-December 2021.

Pick: Philadelphia 76ers -9.5 (-110)

Mandatory Credit: Associated Press