Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (2) drives to the basket as Detroit Pistons guard Killian Hayes (7) defends. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Something has to give tonight in Little Caesar’s Arena when the Detroit Pistons take on the Charlotte Hornets.
Both teams enter the tonight on a six-game losing streak, with the Pistons getting destroyed in their last two games.
The Hornets are at the end of a tough stretch that saw them playing six playoff teams in a row and they have dropped to .500 on the season and will be desperate to get a win.
Detroit hopes to get Cade Cunningham back, though it is looking unlikely that we see him before the All-Star break, as they are being cautious with the number one pick.
Pistons’ fans also hope to see the debut of recently acquired Marvin Bagley III, who should add some much-needed depth to the front court and hopes to change his fortunes in a new setting.
Bagley has been out since the end of January with an ankle injury, but it’s unclear if he is really injured or if the Kings were holding him out because they knew they were going to trade him at the deadline.
So what will the Pistons’ lineup and depth chart look like tonight?
I’m going to assume that Bagley III and Cade Cunningham will be playing tonight so that we can get an idea of what the depth chart will look like when they are at full strength.
If I had to guess, I would say that neither of these two play against the Hornets, but it will be a game time decision.
Even though the Pistons didn’t make the big blockbuster some fans were hoping for, they definitely solidified their depth chart by adding Bagley, who has a much higher ceiling than Trey Lyles and can hopefully add the pick-and-roll/lob threat they’ve been missing.
That second unit is now pretty interesting, and it will be much more fun to watch Bagley for the rest of the season than pump-fake machine Trey Lyles.
According to WynnBET, the Pistons are six point underdogs against the Hornets tonight at home. Even though Charlotte is also on a six-game losing streak, this seems awfully low considering how badly Detroit was eviscerated in their last two games.
This could be an indication that the books expect Cade to come back, though he is still listed as questionable on official injury report.
The money lines are set at +210 for the Pistons and -260 for the Hornets, another sign that Cade and Bagley might play, as this seems low.
The over/under is 226.5, even higher than last game. Even though Detroit has been scoring fewer than 100 points per game without Cunningham, the books are counting the other team to run it up on their poor defense.
I still like the under in this one, as the Pistons are on the second game of a back-to-back and could still be missing key players.
I don’t bet on the other team, but if I did, I’d probably take Charlotte to cover and the under, hoping the Pistons will at least not get completely dominated again.
The game vs. Charlotte will tip off at 7:00 PM CT and you can watch on Bally Sports Detroit or listen on 97.1 FM the Ticket.
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