The Washington Wizards (30-42) head to the Motor City Friday for a 7 p.m. ET game with the Detroit Pistons (20-53) at Little Caesars Arena. Below, we look at the Wizards vs. Pistons odds and lines, and make our expert NBA picks, predictions and bets.
The Wizards just 1-8 straight up (SU) and 3-6 against the spread (ATS) in their last nine games. Washington’s most recent outing was a 114-102 loss Thursday to the Bucks in Milwaukee but it covered as an 8-point road underdog.
Detroit snapped a two-game losing skid Wednesday after upsetting the Atlanta Hawks 122-101 at home. The Pistons are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games.
Washington is 3-0 SU but just 1-2 ATS versus Detroit this season and the total is 2-1 Over/Under in their three meetings.
Wizards at Pistons odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 11 a.m. ET.
- Money line (ML): Wizards +135 (bet $100 to win $135) | Pistons -170 (bet $170 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Wizards +3.5 (-107) | Pistons -3.5 (-115)
- Over/Under (O/U): 221.5 (O: -108 | U: -112)
Wizards at Pistons key injuries
Wizards (not officially submitted)
- SF Kyle Kuzma (knee) questionable
Pistons
- None
[tipico]
Wizards at Pistons odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Pistons 115, Wizards 109
Money line
PASS.
Detroit’s ML was the best option when Tipico opened it as a -140 favorite but the Pistons (-170) is a little too rich for my blood.
However, Detroit is just 2-2 as a home favorite, which includes an embarrassing loss to a tanking Portland Trail Blazers team earlier this week.
The Pistons are a young team that’ll be in playoff contention next season but they’re still very capable of losing games they should win.
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Against the spread
BET the PISTONS -3.5 (-115) because they are playing better recently than their record indicates and this is an awful spot for the Wizards.
Washington has the fourth-worst non-garbage time net rating versus teams in the bottom-10 of net efficiency (minus-1.4) and the worst ATS margin (minus-5.0), according to CleaningTheGlass.com (CTG).
The Wizards are also 2-14-1 ATS on the road versus teams with a losing record and 3-6 ATS as 3-to-4.5-point underdogs.
Detroit has a significant edge in the backcourt and Pistons’ dynamic rookie PG Cade Cunningham is by far the best player on the floor. It also has a couple of wings to throw at Washington’s current leading scorer, Kuzma, who might not even play Friday.
I’d BET the PISTONS -3.5 (-115) all the way up to -4.5.
Over/Under
LEAN to the OVER 221.5 (-108) only because we are getting the worst of the number and the whole market is also on the Over here. The Wizards-Pistons opened with a 218-point total before all the pro-Over money steamed it up to the current price.
However, both defenses are trash, Washington is 9-2 O/U in the second of a back-to-back (plus-6.7 total margin), Detroit is 10-7 O/U when playing with a rest advantage and these teams have a combined 40-25 O/U versus teams with a losing record.
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