Pistons vs. Trail Blazers Prediction, Odds and Best NBA Prop Bets for Sunday, March 9

The Pistons are 8-3 against the spread as road favorites this season.

The Pistons are 8-3 against the spread as road favorites this season. / David Gonzales-Imagn Images

The Portland Trail Blazers suffered a brutal loss on Friday night, losing by double-digits to the Oklahoma City Thunder, who were sitting all five of their starters in the matchup.

Now, the Blazers are looking to get back on track – and snap a two-game skid – at home against Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.

Detroit is playing the second night of a back-to-back after losing by five to the Golden State Warriors on Saturday. The No. 6 seed in the East, the Pistons are looking more and more like a lock for the playoffs in the Eastern Conference, an unreal turnaround after they won just 14 games last season.

Meanwhile, the Blazers’ chances of making the play-in tournament in the Western Conference are getting slimmer with every loss.

Let’s break down this matchup, including the latest odds, players to watch in the prop market and my prediction. 

Pistons vs. Trail Blazers Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Spread

• Pistons -2.5 (-112)
• Trail Blazers +2.5 (-108)

Moneyline

• Pistons: -135
• Trail Blazers: +114

Total

• 232.5 (Over -108/Under -112)

Pistons vs. Trail Blazers How to Watch

• Date: Sunday, March 9
• Time: 9:00 p.m. EST
• Venue: Moda Center
• How to Watch (TV): BlazerVision, Bally Sports Detroit
• Pistons record: 35-29
• Trail Blazers record: 28-36

Pistons vs. Trail Blazers Injury Reports

Pistons Injury Report

• Not submitted yet

Trail Blazers Injury Report

• Deni Avdija – questionable
• Deandre Ayton – out
• Sidy Cissoko – out
• Matisse Thybulle – out
• Jabari Walker – questionable
• Robert Williams III – out

Pistons vs. Trail Blazers Best NBA Prop Bets

Detroit Pistons Best NBA Prop Bet

• Cade Cunningham OVER 8.5 Assists (-110)

This season, Cunningham is averaging 9.3 assists per game, and he’s picked up at least nine dimes in 10 of his 15 games since Feb. 1, averaging 9.6 dimes per game over that stretch.

The key with this prop is the number of opportunities that Cade has to pick up dimes, as he’s averaging 15.4 potential assists per game this season. After a down game on Saturday (five assists), I’ll bet on Cade to bounce back with this line set below his season average. 

Portland Trail Blazers Best NBA Prop Bet

• Donovan Clingan UNDER 8.5 Points (-135)

This season, Detroit ranks fifth in the NBA in opponent points in the paint per game, a bad sign for rookie center Donovan Clingan.

Clingan’s offensive game is a work in progress, and he’s averaging just 5.9 points per game overall for the Blazers. Since entering the starting lineup on Feb. 12, Clingan has had three games with over 8.5 points, averaging 8.1 points per game over that 10-game stretch. He’s only taking 5.9 shots per game over that stretch, so it’s hard to buy him in this prop when he may need to make five shots just to clear 8.5 points.

Pistons vs. Trail Blazers Prediction and Pick

It’ll be important to check Detroit’s injury report before this game, but I’m buying the Pistons as slight favorites on the road against Portland.

The Pistons hung tough with Golden State on Saturday night, and they are an impressive 7-3 over their last 10 games. In addition to that, the Pistons are elite as road favorites this season, going 8-3 against the spread.

Now, Portland is an impressive 17-9 against the spread as a home underdog, but it has come back to earth as of late, losing by double digits to Boston and getting blown out by a shorthanded OKC team on Friday night. 

Over their last 10 games, the Pistons are fifth in the NBA in net rating, and they’ve done a great job beating bad teams this season (24-10 against teams under .500). As long as Cade Cunningham and other key rotation players suit up, I think the Pistons can win this game outright. 

Portland has played great basketball since the start of the new year, but it has shown some cracks as of late – especially against playoff-caliber teams. 

Pick: Pistons Moneyline (-135 at DraftKings)

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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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Find Peter Dewey's NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on  BetStamp here.

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