Keagan Smith dives into his pick and prediction for the Portland Trail Blazers vs. Detroit Pistons matchup on Friday as part of the 12-game NBA schedule.

Just as we all expected, the Detroit Pistons are still atop the NBA’s Eastern Conference. Okay, maybe we didn’t see this coming, but Cade Cunningham and his teammates continue to provide top-notch hoops night in and night out. On Friday evening, they face off with a Portland Trail Blazers squad that started the season hot but has cooled off significantly in recent outings as they try and climb back up in a difficult Western Conference. This should be a fun matchup between young teams, so get ready for the action and prep your betting cards here!

Here’s a Pistons vs. Trail Blazers prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Friday night’s game.

Pistons vs. Trail Blazers prediction, preview

Improbably, the Pistons hold a 2.5-game lead on the top spot in their conference at 17-5, going 7-3 across their last 10 games in particular. What’s driven the surge to the top? An MVP-caliber season from star Cade Cunningham is the primary factor with the guard averaging 27.6 PPG along with 9.2 assists and 6.5 rebounds, but he’s not the only story. Center Jalen Duren has taken a noticeable leap thanks to 19.0 PPG and 11.5 boards a night, finishing efficiently at the rim while shooting 65.7%. He’s one of the leaders to win Most Improved Player and is the closest thing to a second star alongside Cunningham. However, Tobias Harris (15.1 PPG) and Duncan Robinson (12.6 PPG) operate as reliable scoring options as well, and Isaiah Stewart and Ausar Thompson’s defensive excellence cannot be undersold.

The Pistons’ identity of a hard-nosed team that plays tough defense shines with the fifth-fewest opponent PPG allowed and second-best DEFRTG in the league, while the offense falls 14th in both scoring and OFFRTG. That creates a NETRTG of +5.1, eighth-best in the NBA. The philosophy feels much like that of the Houston Rockets — hitting the boards hard and scoring second-chance points while largely eschewing the three-pointer at 28th in attempts from distance. Clearly, the strategy is working.

As for the Trail Blazers, some highlight nights in the first few weeks of the campaign have largely been forgotten in recent days. At 9-13, the team sits barely ahead of the lowly Jazz and Mavericks, so the company near the bottom of the Western Conference isn’t favorable. With a 3-7 record across their last 10 though, there’s work to be done to pull things together. The good news is that Portland has a true star in Deni Avdija, whose 25.8 PPG, 7.1 rebounds and 6.2 assists are all new career-bests to this point. Young talents Shaedon Sharpe and Donovan Clingan have each played well too with the former averaging 20.9 PPG and the latter posting a 10-point, 10.2-board double-double as well.

Savvy veterans like Jrue Holiday and Jerami Grant are also key pieces who helped fuel the Trail Blazers’ early excellence. However, the former remains sidelined due to injury and the struggles without the team’s two-way floor general are noticeable. Portland comes in at 19th in NETRTG with a mark of -2.2. The offense sits 13th in PPG but the defense falls all the way to 25th in opponent scoring allowed, so it’s easy to see where the issues are.

Trail Blazers vs. Pistons pick, best bet

DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Pistons as -7.5 favorites at home tonight with -305 odds on the Moneyline. The Trail Blazers are +245 underdogs to win outright with the game total set at 235.5. As for betting splits, 86% of straight bets are in Detroit’s favor while 59% of wagers favor the over.

The Pistons have a pretty clean injury report with Robinson (ankle) and Marcus Sasser (hip) the only key players listed as questionable or out. The situation for Portland is less than ideal though as Clingan (leg), Kris Murray (hip) and Robert Williams (knee) are all questionable while Holiday (calf) remains out. It’s largely depth for both teams, but those players do make a big difference.

If Clingan doesn’t go for the Trail Blazers, watch for an absolutely dominant game from Duren. The center matchup will prove quite entertaining if both bigs are on the floor, but Portland doesn’t have the depth to truly stack up if the former lottery pick doesn’t play — in which case Duren could have a field day with little resistance in the paint. It’s most likely that Toumani Camara draws the matchup with Cunningham, and while the defender is quite good himself, stopping the Pistons’ top star is never easy. Even if teams key on him as a scorer, the former No. 1 selection just keeps improving as a playmaker to make the right read and set up teammates as well. With a tough defense and respectable offense led by the best player in the game, I expect Detroit to win this matchup handily. The Pistons are also 13-9 against the spread this season while the Trail Blazers are 6-7 as the road team, so I’m going with the chalk pick tonight.

Top pick: DET Pistons -7.5 (-112)