Detroit Pistons vs Toronto Raptors Prediction: Raptors to put up a fight

Dwane Casey has become something of an expert on his former team after his dismissal from Toronto. With Casey at the helm, the Pistons have beaten the Raptors six straight times – can Detroit extend that streak?

The Pistons might have had some thoughts about a possible playoff contention before the start of the season, but after 14 games they are sitting in their usual last place in the Eastern Conference with only 3 wins. Their losing streak now stands at 3 games with Cade Cunningham making only one appearance on the floor. The young guard has a problem with his shin and won't play for the next week. Killian Hayes got more playing time and a lot of minutes for Alec Burks who just returned from injury.

On an unsuccessful three-game stretch for Detroit, Bojan Bogdanovic continued to be the leader of the offense. His long-range shots struggled, but he still averaged 58.5% turnovers and 23.3 points. In their recent game against Boston (108-117) Bojan and Jaden Ivey combined for half of the team's points, but the rest were disappointing: nearly all of them shot under 50% from the field, not counting Cory Joseph (2-of-4) and Jalen Duren (1-of-1). The defense struggled again as the Pistons forced their opponent to commit only 7 turnovers, and there is a reason why the team is in last place in the NBA Defensive Rating.

Pascal Siakam was out more than a week ago due to injury, and the consequences were not long in coming. Toronto dropped to 11th in offensive rating and 13th in defensive rating with only 2 wins in 5 previous games. Seven of the team's players were under 40% shooting during that stretch, with Fred VanVleet and OG Anunoby averaging 20+ points. Scottie Barnes and Gary Trent, Jr. didn't make any long-range shots, and the only other role player to note is Otto Porter, who recently returned from injury. Precious Achiuwa is also out, while Fred VanVleet missed the previous game due to illness – his participation in the game against Detroit is questionable.

Nick Nurse's team has only beaten Houston over the past week, losing to Chicago, Oklahoma and Indiana. Toronto led by as many as 15 points heading into the game against the Pacers, but made only 3 of 23 three-pointers in the second half and lost their lead. The result was a 104-111 loss to the Raptors. Barnes and Trent Jr. both blew the game, hitting just 5-of-29 field-goal attempts, and it's hard to count on anything with that kind of realization when you don't have your two biggest stars on the roster. There's nothing bad to say of OG Anunoby: he has contributed 26 points and that's Toronto's best.

The absence of two key players is a big problem for Toronto because of their short bench. Maybe VanVleet will have time to recover, and then the chances of success will improve. But if Fred is gone, at least two of the remaining three players in the starting five – Anunoby, Barnes and Trent Jr. Plus, Detroit is missing Cade Cunningham, without him it's much harder to get big men on offense. Jaden Ivey is a playmaker, and the Pistons' rookie offensive arsenal is very limited and the Raptors can defend. Our prediction:

• H2 (-4.5) for 1.90;
• TO (225.5) for 2.37;
• W2 by 21+ Points for 7.00.

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