NBA 2021/22 on Friday, 01.04.2022
The playoff race is still in full swing for the Philadelphia 76ers, while the Detroit Pistons are just longing for the offseason to lick their wounds and prepare their franchise for the upcoming season.
On that basis alone, a win for the visitors could be excellently justified!
But of course, my Pistons 76ers tip goes into a little more detail and unearths an interesting insight that says the Bad Boys’ biggest weakness is also the Sixers’ biggest strength.
If everything stays the same, the 76ers would have to play the Bulls or Raptors in the playoffs as the fourth seed. The prospect of a best-of-five against the Cavs is a much more pleasant alternative, but they would have to move up to third place to do so.
Ahead of the Sixers in the standings are both the Bucks and the Celtics, who are each just one win ahead. This constellation alone shows that the Blue and Whites must be eager to win every remaining game.
Because while other franchises like the Grizzlies are taking it down a notch to avoid the risk of injuries in the postseason, we can be sure that Philadelphia’s matchup against the Pistons is at the top of their priority list.
The 76ers had won five of their last six NBA games before heading into a brutal doubleheader against last year’s two finalists, the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns, earlier this week.
Both games were narrowly lost 116-118 and 104-114, but in view of the much easier task against the Pistons, these defeats suffered at the highest level should not worry any fan.
Especially since the Bad Boys are no longer as “bad” as their nickname first suggests. For Detroit is suffering from the absences of Diallo, Grant and more recently Livers, who suffered a concussion a few days ago.
Bottom line, the Pistons have won only two of their last eleven games. But more importantly for tonight’s matchup, the official NBA stats have Detroit averaging the most fouls committed league-wide during that span (23.4).
This tendency to commit fouls against strong opponents could be the team’s undoing tonight. Because the Sixers are masters at accepting just this kind of gifts!
From the free-throw line, the 76ers put an average of 21.7 points into the opponent’s basket in the eleven games in question – only the Knicks and Timberwolves scored more here on average!
There have already been two duels between the Sixers and Detroit this season, both of which went to Philadelphia. The last of the two, a 109-98 loss in early November, serves as the basis for my Pistons 76ers prediction.
For although the home side was already able to achieve a clear victory then, the circumstances were certainly not ideal. On the other side, the now injured Jeremy Grant still put up a fight and even became the “Man of the Match” with 27 points.
Philadelphia, on the other hand, lacked the important James Harden upgrade that has made the Blue and Whites a genuine title candidate since the trade deadline. His contribution should finally dispel any lingering doubts about a win!
A success of the Pistons, who have no clear goal, except maybe to get through the regular season without further injuries, is traded on the markets at around 5.25.
Summary: The Pistons have already lost nine of their last eleven NBA games – and when they have won, it has only been against franchises currently ranked outside the top nine.
In addition, another important player, Livers, left the stage a few days ago due to a concussion – a team like the Sixers is simply too much for the Bad Boys at the moment.
Even with their superstar Jeremy Grant, who was still fit at the time, they were unable to avoid their second defeat of the season against the Sixers in November. Tonight it will be even more difficult with James Harden on the opposite side!
My Pistons Sixers tip: Philadelphia wins by at least eight points!
