Rhona Wise-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA
Miami Heat vs Detroit Pistons: Are the Pistons in tanking mode yet?
The Miami Heat are visiting the Detroit Pistons on Friday at Little Caesars Arena.
The Heat are in a free fall
The Miami Heat are eighth in the Eastern Conference with a 35-30 record. They have lost the last four games and are coming off a 100-88 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Miami is sixth in the league, allowing 109.8 points per game, and is ranked fifth in the league, shooting 81.5% from the field. Jimmy Butler is leading the Heat with 21.6 points per game, followed by Tyler Herro with 20.8.
The Pistons have the best month of the season
The Detroit Pistons are 14th in the Eastern Conference with a 12-53 record. They have won three of the last four games and are coming off a 113-104 win over the Toronto Raptors. The Pistons are 18th in the league, shooting 47% from the field, and 21st, scoring 112.4 points per game. Cade Cunningham is the best player on the team, averaging 22.5 points and 7.5 assists per game.
Betting Trends
The Pistons are 8-1 ATS in the last 9 games against the Heat. They are 4-1 ATS in the last 5 games overall and 10-5 ATS in the last 15 games played on Friday. The Heat are 1-5 ATS in the last 6 games overall and 1-4 ATS in the last 5 games against teams from the Central Division.
Prediction and Conclusion
The Heat are going through a difficult period of the season, and losing the last four games has seen them drop in the standings. This late in the season can be dangerous, and the Heat are looking to bounce back. They managed to make it all the way to the NBA Finals from the play-in tournament last season, but will push strong to get among the top six teams in the conference. They are starting a four-game road trip with back-to-back games in Detroit. The Pistons had a terrible season, and winning three of the last four games came out of nowhere. However, the Heat are too good of a team to miss an opportunity like this, and they will win the game by covering the -5.5-point spread.
