Charlotte Hornets vs. Detroit Pistons: Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 2/3/2023

Time: 7 p.m. ET

Venue: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI

Where to watch: BSDET, BSSE-CHA

DraftKings: Pistons -1.5

FanDuel: Pistons -1

BetMGM: Pistons -1.5

Caesars: Pistons -1.5

Hornets: 15-38

Pistons: 13-39

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Hornets: lost 114-98 at Bulls

Pistons: lost 111-105 at Mavericks

The Charlotte Hornets will try for their third win in four games on Friday when they traveled to Detroit to take on a Pistons team that has been dealing with weather and travel issues for the last 48 hours and now return home to possibly being completely exhausted.

 

Due to the weather and snowing conditions in Dallas, the Pistons were not able to leave the city following their 111-105 loss to the Mavericks on Monday and were stuck in Dallas for the better part of a day and a half. So all exhaustion aside, Detroit is not really looking forward to this game I can almost be certain.

 

The Pistons lost for the sixth time in seven games in Dallas on Monday despite Bojan Bogdanovic scoring 29 points in what could be his final week as a member of the Pistons should he get traded before the trade deadline. Saadiq Bey added 18 points, and the worst team in the Eastern Conference was able to hang on despite giving up 53 points to Luka Doncic.

 

“We thought Bojan got fouled,” Detroit coach Dwane Casey said. “You still have to play in all those situations and close out the game, because we put ourselves in a situation to win.”

 

Overall, the Pistons are 3-7 in their last 10 and have failed to cover in five of the last seven. The two covers were against Dallas and Brooklyn, and the Pistons beating the Nets on January 26th was an outright win as eight point underdogs. Detroit is at a go this entire year without Cade Cunningham and it has been a grind. But the likes of jade and Ivy, Bogdanovic, and Bey have been able to make this season somewhat bearable.

 

But Detroit will be taking on a Charlotte team that although has been struggling for the better part of this season, has been playing some decent basketball as of late. But the Hornets are playing the second game of a back-to-back after losing 114-98 in Chicago on Thursday.

 

Terry Rozier scored a team high 23 points on 8 of 21 shooting, and LaMelo Ball was held to 19 points on 18 shot attempts while grabbing 8 rebounds and dishing out six assists. Mason Plumlee was a perfect seven of seven shooting with 16 points and 11 rebounds, but the Hornets overall shot 42% from the field and seven of 35 from 3 point range, which is the equivalent of 20%.

 

The Hornets failed to cover for the first time in four games. They were on a three-game run of covering during a 2-1 stretch that included wins over Chicago and Miami. Even the 124-115 loss at Milwaukee on Tuesday was a cover thanks to being 11 point underdogs. Going into this game, the Pistons are laying 1.5 points and that almost seems crazy given the situation over the last few days but at least Charlotte is getting some respect with the spread being so low.

 

I really don't think there is an even playing field with a team that was in another city for two days tacked on with Charlotte being on a back-to-back. I think in a crazy way, the Hornets are the more rested team and it will show in this game when the Hornets beat the Pistons convincingly. Hornets 118, Pistons 102

Hornets are 14-14 ATS on the road this season.

Hornets are 17-23 ATS as an underdog this season.

Pistons are 1-9 ATS on Friday this season.

Pistons are 7-18 ATS this season after losing 2 of 3 games.

PG: LaMelo Ball

SG: Terry Rozier

SF: Gordon Hayward

PF: P.J. Washington

C: Mason Plumlee

PG: Jaden Ivey

SG: Alec Burks

SF: Saddiq Bey

PF: Bojan Bogdanovic

C: Jalen Duren

Injury report

Hornets: Kelly Oubre Jr. (hand, out), Cody Martin (knee, out)

Pistons: Cade Cunningham (leg, out), Marvin Bagley III (hand, out), Cory Joseph (back, out)

Points: LaMelo Ball -- 23.1

Rebounds: Mason Plumlee -- 9.8

Assists: LaMelo Ball -- 8.3

Points: Bojan Bogdanovic -- 21.4

Rebounds: Jalen Duren -- 8.5

Assists: Killian Hayes -- 5.8