Philadelphia 76ers at Detroit Pistons 12/23/19: Starting Lineups, Matchup Preview, Daily Fantasy
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Philadelphia 76ers at Detroit Pistons Preview
Tonight, the Detroit Pistons host the Philadelphia 76ers as they try to end their skid. This will be the second game of the regular season series between the 76ers and Pistons.
Detroit is currently in 11th place in the Eastern Conference with an 11-19 record. They have lost their last four games, are 4-6 in their last 10 games, and are 7-9 at home. The 76ers have fallen to fifth place in a very competitive Eastern Conference. They are 21-10 on the year, enter tonight’s game winning their previous game, are 6-4 in their last 10 and are 6-8 at home.
In their first game, back on October 26, Tobias Harris led the 76ers with 29 points in a 117-111 win. Derrick Rose paced the Pistons with 31 points.
TV Schedule
Date: 12/23/19
Time: 7 PM ET
Arena: Little Caesar’s Arena, Detroit, MI
Channel: NBCSP+, FSD
Injuries
76ers: Matisse Thybulle (O)
Pistons: Blake Griffin, Derrick Rose (Q), Christian Wood, Reggie Jackson, Khyri Thomas (O)
Philadelphia 76ers Starting Lineup
PG: Ben Simmons
SG: Josh Richardson
SF: Tobias Harris
PF: Al Horford
C: Joel Embiid
76ers Analysis
After dropping three straight games, the Philadelphia 76ers finally got back on the right side of the win column with a 125-108 thrashing of the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.
“It was important to (end the losing streak),” forward Tobias Harris said. “You never want to drop three in a row. Our motto should really be not to drop one when it happens. I think it was just a learning lesson for us in a lot of things. Obviously, teams are rolling with the zone. We just kind of have to get them out of it.”
All five of the 76ers starters and one reserve finished in double digits. Joel Embiid had 21 points and 13 rebounds in the win, Josh Richardson added another 21 and Ben Simmons had a near triple-double with 14 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds.
The 76ers seem to always have someone that can make an impact off the bench, whether it’s Furkan Korkmaz, James Ennis, Mike Scott, or in the case of Saturday, Trey Burke, who had 12 points in 15 minutes.
76ers Quick Links: 76ers Starting Lineup, 76ers Roster, 76ers Depth Chart, 76ers Injuries, 76ers News, 76ers Schedule
Detroit Pistons Starting Lineup
PG: Bruce Brown
SG: Luke Kennard
SF: Tony Snell
PF: Markieff Morris
C: Andre Drummond
Pistons Analysis
The Detroit Pistons have had a laundry list of injuries lately. That’s been largely to blame for their struggles lately. After they surprisingly beat the Houston Rockets on December 14, they lost four straight to the Washington Wizards, Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics and most recently on Saturday night against Chicago.
However, the Pistons are hoping to get point guard Derrick Rose back, who is listed as questionable for tonight.
“We missed him a lot,” coach Dwane Casey said of Rose. “We missed his scoring off the bench. (The knee injury) is nothing permanent but it was sore. Hopefully, he’ll be ready to go for Monday night.”
In their 119-107 loss to the Chicago Bulls, the Pistons were led by Andre Drummond, who finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Veteran big man Markieff Morris had 23 points and sharpshooter Luke Kennard had 16 points.
The Pistons struggled to defend Bulls guard Zach LaVine, who went up for 33 points, and rookie point guard Coby White added 19 off the bench.
Pistons Quick Links: Pistons Starting Lineup, Pistons Roster, Pistons Depth Chart, Pistons Injuries, Pistons News, Pistons Schedule
Key Player Matchups
Joel Embiid vs. Andre Drummond
It always seems to get interesting when Embiid and Drummond are matched up. The two big men had some beef last year and a social media war. They are two of the Eastern Conference’s best centers and really best centers in the NBA. Drummond usually outrebounds his opposition every night, so Embiid will likely try to get him away from the post on defense using his range.
Josh Richardson vs. Luke Kennard
The two sharpshooters on both teams, Philadelphia’s Josh Richardson and Detroit’s Luke Kennard will square off tonight. Kennard is probably the more gifted shooter, but Richardson is the more complete offensive player. Both are coming off of solid performances so this is one to keep an eye on.
Daily Fantasy
Joel Embiid and Andre Drummond are fantasy standouts for tonight’s game. Embiid is available on FanDuel for $9.7k and he has a projection tonight of 47.5 fantasy points. Drummond has a salary of $9.4k and is expected to finish with 47.07 points.
If Derrick Rose plays, he could be quite a value for your time with a salary of $5.5k and a 30.7 point projection. Josh Richardson is in that same range at $5.6k and a 25.92 point projection.
Bet on Matchup
If you’re in Pennsylvania, you can bet on this matchup. Sports betting is legal in PA. Our top-rated online sportsbook bonus offers can be found in our articles: Fanduel Sportsbook promo code, DraftKings Sportsbook promo code & Pointsbet promo code.
