Detroit Pistons return home for the first time in 10 days to face streaking Miami Heat

It's a brand new year and the rest of the league is still adjusting to the surprise story of 2025, the Detroit Pistons.

The Pistons came out of their five-game road trip with three wins and two losses. The two losses came against the Utah Jazz and the Los Angeles Clippers. Jazz guard Keyonte George hit a game-winning floater over multiple Pistons and Kawhi Leonard scored 55 points en route to a dominant win over Detroit.

Pistons head coach JB Bickerstaff did lead his team to wins against LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on James' birthday, the Sacramento Kings, and the Portland Trailblazers. Detroit's game against Miami will be the first of four straight Eastern conference opponents. Miami is also the first of three consecutive Eastern conference opponents with winning records.

The Heat are on a three-game win streak and hope it continues as they try to play themselves out of a play-in tournament spot.

Bam Adebayo and Jalen Dure — Nov 12, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (13) dribbles defended by Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren (0) in the first half at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

How to watch, betting odds, predictions

Watch the Detroit Pistons play Bam Adebayo and the Miami Heat tonight at 7:00 p.m. Eastern on NBA League Pass and FanDuel Sports Network. DraftKings Sportsbook gives the Pistons a -4.5 point spread. Betting on the Pistons spread means Detroit would have to win the game by more than four points for the bet to be successful.

ESPN Analytics gives the Pistons a 59.8% chance to win the game. The 18-15 Miami Heat currently sit at No. 7 in the Eastern conference. The Pistons are still the No. 1 seed in the East with a win-loss record of 25-8.

Who isn't available?

Guards Tyler Herro and Pelle Larson are slated to miss tonight's game. Norman Powell and forward Andrew Wiggins will handle a lot of the scoring responsibilities on the perimeter. Heat forward Simone Fontecchio is also listed as questionable with an ankle injury.

Caris LeVert will miss his second consecutive game due to a knee injury. Tobias Harris has also been ruled out due to a hip injury. LeVert has provided a spark off the bench when healthy and Harris has been a consistently reliable scoring option alongside Cade Cunningham.

What happened last time and what to expect

This will be the second time Miami meets Detroit this season. When these two teams last met November 29, it was a close matchup for all four quarters. Detroit won the game away from home 138 to 135. Cunningham led his team in scoring with 29 and also dished out eight assists to teammates. Tyler Herro was available for this game and played 32 minutes. The Heat will be without Herro this time around.

The Miami Heat lead the entire NBA in pace. The NBA is the fastest it’s ever been, and leading the league in pace means the Heat are an extremely fast team. The young and tenacious Pistons should be able to match their energy, especially at home. The Pistons sit at No. 15 in pace, placing them right in the middle of the league. The Heat also just two spots behind the Pistons in defensive rating and two spots behind the Pistons in points in the paint as well. Detroit ranks No. 2 in defensive rating and No. 1 in points in the paint.

Both of these teams play similarly and are coached similarly. Expect another close matchup between these two teams. Miami and Detroit meet one more time after this game on March 8.