New York Knicks vs Detroit Pistons: Predictions, Odds and Roster Notes

Where: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, MI

When: Friday, February 8th at 7:00 PM EST

How (TV/Radio): MSGN, Fox Sports Detroit | 97.1 FM The Ticket

New York Knicks (Away)

Head Coach: David Fizdale {All-Time 60-94 | MEM, NYK}

The New York Knicks are in the basement of the Eastern Conference and the NBA. With a record of 10-43 the Knicks are last in the league and seem more interested in who will be a buy-out candidate, rather than winning games.

The New York Knicks are on a fourteen game losing streak. While they’ve faced tough competition, the fact that nine of those fourteen losses were by more than ten points is a basketball travesty.

The Knicks face the Detroit Pistons who will be eyeing an easy win to propel them up the ranks of the Eastern Conference. Considering the Knicks will be on the first leg of a back-to-back, they will surely look to expend the brunt of their effort and go deep into their bench before they head home to face the Toronto Raptors

Detroit Pistons (Home)

Head Coach: Dwane Casey {All-Time 397-336 | MIN, TOR, DET}

The Detroit Pistons are a small run away from taking the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. With a record of 24-29 the Pistons are just 1.5 games back from the Miami Heat and a playoff berth.

The Pistons need to put on a consistent streak if they want to make noise in the East. With a record of 5-5 in their last ten matches, the Pistons actually maintain a -1.9 point differential in that span of time.

The Pistons will face the Knicks, Wizards, and Celtics before the All-Star Break. While that’s not the easiest road to the break, it will be a good test to see how the Pistons cope with increased levels of competition in a pressure environment. The Knicks are an awful squad, but they certainly have weapons in Smith Jr and Jordan that should be a cause for concern.

What’s At Stake?

The Detroit Pistons and the New York Knicks are two of the older Eastern Conference franchises in the NBA. Over the course of their history the teams have met 315 times. The New York Knicks lead the all-time series 206-173.

A win for the Knicks would bring them even with the Cleveland Cavaliers and have them tied for fourteenth in the East.

A win for the Pistons would bring them level in wins with the Heat in eighth place, but a game behind them in the standings due to loss differential.

Questions to answer

What did the Pistons gain this deadline?

Who will the Knicks part ways with?

We are going to compare the New York Knicks and the Detroit Pistons in an attempt to see who has the advantage in this matchup.

The Pistons Shipped Out Reggie Bullock and Stanley Johnson

In a rather surprising move by the Detroit Pistons, GM Ed Stefanski chose to offload the contracts of Reggie Bullock and Stanley Johnson in exchange for Thon Maker and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk.

While there is the matter of some cap space being made by acquiring Maker and Mykhailiuk, neither are particularly players of any consequence at this point in their career. Bullock, on the other hand, was the Pistons fourth leading scorer and one of their incredibly few reliable options from three.

The acquisition is interesting, no doubt. It doesn’t free up enough room for a massive acquisition and the Pistons are in the hunt for a playoff spot, why shake things up now? Perhaps neither fit what coach Dwane Casey wanted to see from his players, but time will tell if their new assets can show their worth.

The Knicks Seem Primed to Buy-Out Assets

Earlier in the week we saw the Knicks give up Porzingis, Hardaway Jr, Lee, and Burke in exchange for Matthews, Jordan, and Smith Jr. While the haul looks relatively even – barring the fact that Porzingis is yet to return to the lineup – dropping three role players from your roster for two expiring contracts and a promising guard sends a clear message.

The Knicks are likely to put many of their more valuable pieces on the buy-out market. Jordan and Matthews are too skilled and too valuable to waste on a team with the ambition of the Knicks. Center Enes Kanter, who was once one of their key players, is in a similar situation as he’s racked up six “Did Not Play – Coach’s Decision” in the last eight matches.

It is clear that the Knicks are trying for the top pick while simultaneously opening up cap space for impending free agents this summer. It will be interesting to see if the Knicks ransom of players will be valuable or if the league will have to put up with watching the Knicks lose in even worse fashion for 29 more games this year.

New York Knicks Roster Notes

G Emmanuel Mudiay – 25 Jan 2019 – Out (Left shoulder) – The Knicks announced that Mudiay is dealing with a left shoulder strain. He will miss at least the next two weeks and will be re-evaluated after that time.

G Frank Ntilikina – 5 Feb 2019 – Day To Day (Groin) – The Knicks have listed Ntilikina as OUT for Tuesday’s game (Feb. 5) against the Pistons.

Detroit Pistons Roster Notes

The Detroit Pistons have no roster injuries to note.

Head-to-Head: DeAndre Jordan vs Andre Drummond

DeAndre Jordan

Center | 6-11, 265lb (211cm, 120kg) | Texas A&M | Exp. 10 Years

11.0 PPG | 2.0 APG | 13.6 RPG | 0.7 SPG | 1.0 BPG | 2.2 TOV | .646 FG% | – 3P%

Andre Drummond

Center | 6-11, 279lb (211cm, 126kg) | UConn | Exp. 6 Years

16.8 PPG | 1.2 APG | 14.8 RPG | 1.5 SPG | 1.7 BPG | 2.4 TOV | .517 FG% | .125 3P%

The last of what seems to be a dying breed, DeAndre Jordan and Andre Drummond face off in a battle of two old-school defensive centers. While neither has conformed to the sharpshooting standard by which GM’s value their big men, both are fantastic interior defenders and rebounders who can change the game without scoring a basket.

It was surely a shock for Jordan when he heard that he had been traded to New York from Dallas. It seemed Dallas had coveted his services for many years, but was forsaken entirely at the prospect of acquiring Porzingis. That doesn’t mean Jordan has nothing to contribute though. In two games with the Knicks Jordan has logged less than 30 minutes, but contributed 20 points and 20 rebounds combined. Jordan is still an efficient force inside.

Andre Drummond has been fantastic since he returned from a three-game inactive stint. In that time he’s been averaging 20.5 points, 14.5 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game; all on 67% shooting from the floor. Unfortunately for the Pistons they are also 3-3 in that stretch, hardly worthy of Drummond’s performances. He will not get the same opportunities inside with Jordan guarding him, so expect more pick-and-roll action for Drummond to stay involved.

New York Knicks at Detroit Pistons Predictions and Odds

The odds makers have the Detroit Pistons favoured over the New York Knicks by 8.5, with an over/under of 110.