The Toronto Raptors will take on the Detroit Pistons in a battle of Eastern Conference playoff teams at 8 p.m. EST on Tuesday. Wins in three of their last four games have allowed the Raptors to stay in the fight for the fifth seed, but continued success will be necessary to survive a late-season push from the Atlanta Hawks. Meanwhile, the Pistons have all but secured the first seed, a position that should be officially clinched within the next week.
While Toronto has generally avoided the injury bug this season, this game has a handful of important players on the injury report. Three starters, guards Immanuel Quickley and Brandon Ingram, as well as forward RJ Barrett, will all head into the contest with some sort of injury designation, with Quickley already ruled out. With the red-hot Hawks matched up with the Orlando Magic an hour before this contest, there is a realistic chance that the hobbled Raptors fall behind in the standings with a loss to the Pistons on Tuesday.
Even without star guard Cade Cunningham, the Pistons have continued to play quality basketball, as demonstrated by their overtime loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday. Detroit managed to force things down to the wire even without four regular starters, illustrating just how deep this team really is. That depth will need to be on display again on the second night of a back-to-back, as many of the players who sat out Monday’s contest will be in danger of missing this contest, too.
Raptors vs Pistons Betting TrendsToronto has covered in three of its last five games.The Raptors are 11-8 ATS as road underdogs.The under is 3-2 in Toronto’s last five contests.The Pistons have consistently surpassed expectations without Cunningham, covering in six of their last seven games.Detroit is 20-17 ATS when playing on the road.The over has cashed in three of Detroit’s last four games.Raptors vs Pistons Injury ReportsImmanuel Quickley, G – Questionable.Brandon Ingram, G – Questionable.RJ Barrett, F – Probable.Collin Murray-Boyles, F – Questionable.Jamison Battle, F – Out.Cade Cunningham, G – Out.Duncan Robinson, G – Questionable.Tobias Harris, F – Questionable.Jalen Duren, F – Questionable.Isaiah Stewart, C – Out.Raptors vs Pistons Prediction and Pick
Peter Tran of PickDawgz writes, “The Raptors are still missing Jamison Battle and Immanuel Quickley, with Collin Murray-Boyles and Brandon Ingram both questionable. Meanwhile, the Pistons have ruled out Cade Cunningham and Isaiah Stewart again, with Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren, and Duncan Robinson all questionable. These teams last met on Feb. 15, and it was the Raptors who beat the Pistons by 119-108 to square up the season series at 1-1.
The Pistons are still banged up at the moment, and they will be playing their second game of a back-to-back set, which I think opens the door for the Raptors to spring an upset. I get why the Pistons are slight favorites at home, but the Raptors looked great in their last game, and I think they keep the good times going with another win in this spot.”