The NBA is live on New Year's Day with a full slate of games as we turn our attention towards this next tilt in the Eastern Conference. The Miami Heat (18-15) will visit the Detroit Pistons (25-8) for their second meeting, Detroit leading the series 1-0. Check our NBA odds series for the Heat-Pistons prediction and pick.
The Miami Heat are seventh in the Eastern Conference rankings, upsetting the Denver Nuggets 147-123 in their last game. They've won three in a row after posting a 2-8 record in the prior 10 games, hoping for their first win in what would be another upset over the Pistons.
The Detroit Pistons are currently leading the Eastern Conference, most recently beating the Los Angeles Lakers 128-106. They're a modest 7-3 over their last 10 games with a chance to take a commanding 2-0 lead over the Miami Heat in the Eastern race.
NBA odds courtesy of DraftKings
Heat vs. Pistons Odds
Miami Heat: +5.5 (-118)
Detroit Pistons: -5.5 (-102)
Over: 239.5 (-110)
Under: 239.5 (-110)
Heat vs. Pistons Key Injuries
Miami: Simone Fontecchio (ankle – Questionable) / Tyler Herro (toe – OUT) / Pelle Larsson (ankle – OUT)
Detroit: Tobias Harris (hip – Doubtful) / Caris LeVert (knee – OUT)
Heat vs. Pistons Betting Trends
- The Detroit Pistons are 13-2 at home this season. The Miami Heat are 6-10 on the road.
- The Pistons are 18-15 ATS overall, 9-6 ATS at home. The Heat are 19-14 ATS overall, 9-7 ATS on the road.
- The Pistons are 20-7 as the betting favorites. The Heat are 8-9 as underdogs.
- The Heat are 6-4 outright in their last 10 games against the Pistons. The Pistons are 8-2 ATS in those games.
- The Heat are 4-1 ATS in their last five games.
- The Pistons are 5-0 in their last five home games.
- The total has gone UNDER in eight of Miami's last 12 games.
- The Pistons are 10-2 at home against Eastern Conference opponents.
Keys to Heat vs. Pistons Matchup
The Heat and Pistons meet once again following a close 138-135 win for Detroit at Miami, fending off a comeback effort from the Heat in the final minutes of the game. The Heat actually own the last 10 games against the Pistons in what has grown into a strong rivalry between the two teams in the Eastern Conference. The Pistons are certainly in the driver's seat in terms of this second matchup and they're playing some of their best basketball of the season at this moment.
Pistons' franchise guard Cade Cunningham is the leader to win Clutch Player of the Year at +225 odds, slightly edging out Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He's done everything and more for his team in terms of scoring the ball, but his 9.7 APG (second in NBA) is the most impressive part of his game as he's getting his entire team involved. During their last win, Cunningham notched 11 assists as four other Pistons score in double figures. Cunningham has three 10+ assist games over his last four starts.
The Miami Heat are dealing with an injury to their own leading scorer in Tyler Herro as he'll be unavailable once again for this game. Norman Powell has done a tremendous job carrying the scoring load in relief with 23.8 PPG, ranking him 20th in the NBA. Bam Adebayo is once again having a strong season on both ends of the floor and the continued growth of Kel'el Ware behind him only adds to their interior depth on defense and on the boards.
Still, it'll be interesting to see if the Miami Heat can keep up with the Detroit Pistons in the scoring without Herro on the floor. Pistons' Jalen Duren has been dominant in the paint their last few games and his matchup against Bam Adebayo will be the one to watch during this game. Duren did a tremendous job of forcing the Lakers' bigs into foul trouble during their last win, so expect a similar approach out of him ahead of this one.
Heat vs. Pistons Prediction and Pick
The Miami Heat gave the Pistons a close game during their first meeting of the season, but they'll be missing Tyler Herro and his 23.2 PPG heavily in this game. The Detroit Pistons are firing on all cylinders with not only their offense playing well, but their defense being particularly dominant over their last few games. If Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart can continue to play hard and force Bam Adebayo into foul trouble, the Pistons could run away with another dominant win.
I expect just that to happen as the Pistons have been playing particularly well at home. Duncan Robinson should have a quick trigger from three against his former team, so expect Cade Cunningham to have a big role in facilitating for his teammates throughout this one. Let's roll with the Detroit Pistons to cover as the total hits over.
Final Heat-Pistons Prediction & Pick: Detroit Pistons -5.5 (-102); OVER 239.5 (-110)
