The Brooklyn Nets travel to Detroit to take on the struggling Pistons. Since the Nets acquired their three-headed monster last season, the defense has always been a struggle. This year they seem to be doing it a little differently with the defense leading the way while the offense figures things out. As for the Pistons, this is a young team still searching for an identity. Which way to lean at BMR’s best sportsbooks?
Detroit Pistons vs. Brooklyn Nets
Friday, November 05, 2021 – 07:00 PM EDT at Little Caesars Arena
Nets Getting It Done Defensively
As long as the Brooklyn Nets have Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving (we’re not discussing off-the-court issues), then championship or bust will always be the mentality. Their combined skill level and age dictate that.
Last season, it was amazing to watch how good they were on offense. At the exact same time, it was hard to imagine them being worse on defense. With a year under his belt, it seems like perhaps head coach Steve Nash, with the help of his staff, might be figuring things out on defense.
The Nets come into this game as 10-point road favorites at the NBA odds which is a massive number. If you’ve watched the Detroit Pistons play at all this season, that number is actually quite sharp. Regardless of the Nets scoring issues, they’re still a significantly better offense than the Pistons.
If they’re going to continue to play defense at their current level, the Nets will go on to have the best record in the regular season.
Pistons Growing Pains Hard to Watch
It’s hard to criticize Pistons head coach Duane Casey. His roster simply isn’t talented enough to compete on a nightly basis in the NBA. Last season, he "unleashed ’’ Jeremi Grant and in return, Grant put up career numbers across the board.
No disrespect to Grant but that’s an indication of how bad the Pistons are right now. On a playoff team, Grant could be a starter but would likely be a fourth or fifth option. On a contender, there’s very little chance he’s even a starter.
So when that’s your best player (or second-best if their rookie lives up to expectations), you have not shot at being good. This season, Grant is struggling, most likely because other teams are gearing up to stop him. As Charles Barkley loves to say "being the man every night is not for everybody". I’ll take that a step further and say very few players can even live up to that standard and it’s unfair to expect that from Grant.
In steps first, overall pick Cade Cunningham. We are going to mention his first two games in the NBA. Not because of how bad he was (13% from the field including 0-14 from three). We’re ignoring it because he stepped onto an NBA court for the first time in his life, just two years removed with very little preparation.
Last night, he gave us a glimpse of what he can be with 18 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists. The field goal percentage was still horrible (24%) but the skills are obvious.
Laying the Points With Brooklyn
For my NBA picks, I really hate double-digit road favorites, but this is the right side here. I can’t even be bothered to name all of the categories where the Pistons rank last in the league because there are so many. What you need to know is on top of that, they’re playing this game in a back-to-back situation.
Nothing about this game lines up for the Pistons who will have a hard time finding anyone that can slow down Kevin Durant or James Harden on their current roster. This one might get really ugly really fast.
NBA Pick: Nets -10.5 (-110) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
