The Detroit Pistons finished the 2024 season as the worst team in the NBA, despite booking a key win against the Philadelphia 76ers in October. However, the Pistons look competitively different less than a year after their historic losing streak and hope to sneak into the play-off this season.
During the summer, Detroit made several changes to improve the team’s trajectory at different levels. They hope these improvements will help them beat the Philadelphia 76ers at home in
February. But can J.B Bickerstaff’s side leverage their improvements to seek revenge against Philadelphia after losing their last showdown 96-111 at the Little Ceasars Arena in December?
Here is a preview of how the Pistons are expected to perform against the 76ers in February 2025 as they attempt to qualify for the NBA play-in tournament.
Can a weak Philadelphia beat the Pistons?
The Philadelphia 76ers has been among the biggest disappointments in the first few months of the 2024-2025 NBA season as in-fighting and injuries have led to a poor start. Pennsylvania’s favorite basketball team has a mediocre offense this season, despite featuring three All-Star Scorers. However, their fans are still optimistic the team will bounce back in January and book another impressive victory on the road against the Detroit Pistons.
So far, the 76ers have proven they are capable of anything after losing to the Toronto Raptors squad down four rotation players and beating the Celtics in a primetime fixture. Their biggest determining factor has been the health of their players as the big three of Paul George, Tyrese Maxey, and Joel Embiid have only started six games, winning five of them. That shows they have a strong chance of beating the Pistons with their trio of stars and punters in Pennsylvania can wager on this fixture with legal sportsbooks on SportyTrader. However, the 76ers still need another ball-handler to make it to the play-in tournament as Reggie Jackson and Kyle Lowry are aging.
How the Pistons can defeat the Philadelphia 76ers
While the Detroit Pistons were the worst NBA team last season, they recorded their first win against the Philadelphia 76ers in October. During this matchup, the Pistons received key contributions from former Philadelphia players Tobias Harris, Tim Hardaway Jr, Isaiah Stewart, and Malik Beasley. However, the 76ers managed to exert their revenge against the Pistons with a 111-96 scoreline on 1st December.
Since their last showdown, the Pistons have significantly improved their performance and have recorded crucial wins against heavy hitters like the Orlando Magic and Minnesota Timberwolves. Motown’s favorite basketball team is currently in the race to the Eastern Conference Play-In tournament, thanks to strong plays from Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey.
Cade Cunningham is the most dangerous player in the squad and the engine behind their surprise wins this season. Cunningham was crucial during the Pistons victory over LeBron James’ LA Lakers and went toe-to-toe with NBA star guard Anthony Edwards with the Timberwolves. As such, the Pistons hope to leverage Cunningham’s offensive aggression alongside other talents like Jaden Ivey to take an early lead over the 76ers and book a win.
Image by Keith Johnston from Pixabay
