Pistons vs. Bucks GameThread: Game Time, TV, Odds, and More

We did it, everyone! The Detroit Pistons are mathematically assured of finishing with a bottom-three record in the NBA. This means they will, statistically, have the best odds of landing the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft. Granted, the best odds are still not good odds, but it the worse they are, and there is currently nobody worse, the higher they will land in even a worst-case-scenario. A team not spending a second worrying about lottery odds is the Milwaukee Bucks, who face the Pistons at Little Caesars Arena tonight. Instead, they are only concerned with making a return trip to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2021. Must be nice.

The only interesting thing, and I use that term pretty liberally, about the Pistons is how Detroit’s continued deployment of two bigs fairs. Marvin Bagley and James Wiseman have been intermittently effective on offense, but they’ve been a disaster on defense, especially together. They’ve also been murdered on the boards. Adding Jalen Duren to the mix doesn’t seem to have done much to alleviate these deficiencies. The Pistons are trying to figure out what to do going into next season, and I’m not sure what they are learning other than that this doesn’t seem be working at all.

Game Vitals

When: 7:00 p.m. EST
Where: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
Watch: Bally Sports
Odds: Pistons +17.5

Projected Lineups

Detroit Pistons (16-58)

Killian Hayes, Jaden Ivey, Isaiah Livers, Marvin Bagley III, James Wiseman

Milwaukee Bucks (53-21)

Jrue Holiday, Grayson Allen, Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis, Brook Lopez