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On Sunday afternoon, the blue and long-suffering New York-based franchise will take part in a playoff game literally years in the making in a Midwestern setting.
I am, of course, referring to Sunday’s showdown between the New York Knicks and the Detroit Pistons.
Admittedly, Sunday’s hosts are far from playoff conversation, but the Knicks are in the middle of an ongoing Eastern Conference postseason hunt, with six automatic Eastern Conference playoffs at a 13-6 mark since December 4. Holds the last spot. A good chunk of New York’s early success… literally one-eighth of their wins came against the Pistons. Let’s see, the win comes with an average margin of 21 points.
While the Knicks are handling business in their search for a playoff spot, Detroit are doing it the other way around as well: Coming into action Sunday, the Pistons are third among the top draft picks in the upcoming NBA Draft. has good odds on 5 games.
what: New York Knicks (24-19) @ Detroit Pistons (12-34)
Where: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
When/Watch: Sunday 1pm MSG/MSG Go
Who do you like: Nippon Yusen -7.5
Keep an eye on: Julius Randle
With 15 double-doubles in his last 16 games, Randall’s revolution may have started with a glorious birthday at Motor City. Randle left Little Caesars his arena for his own Chuck E.-season-best 36 points to celebrate his 28th comeback on November 29.
Much like Friday’s victory over Washington, Randle’s birthday got a bit of a postalization, and Isaiah Stewart fell victim that night. Stewart has already been ruled out of Sunday’s game.
That night in Detroit was Randle’s third 30-point game of the year. Since then, he’s added another 6 and serves as a powerful barometer of the Knicks’ fate. New York is 8-3 with him when Randle hits a plateau in his scoring that box this season.
Featured Piston: Jaden Ivey
Cade Cunningham’s early departure is well established, and Detroit is also missing promising rookie Jalen Duren. Thought Ivy had to grow up fast in Detroit and has mostly embraced the spotlight. , became four Motor City freshmen to score at least 30 points in a single game.
After losing to Utah, Ivey told Rookie Wire: “(I’m) just trying to play with my energy and speed and do what I can to help this team. I feel like we have to stay focused as a team.”
Ivey has been a big part of keeping the Pistons together and sane during this lost season. With Duren and Stewart out and Bojan Bogdanovic’s condition uncertain, Ivy definitely has the potential to get upset with him.
predict
Look, it really isn’t fair to pile on the Pistons, but there’s no denying they’ve been “trustworthy” for the Knicks so far this season. growth may have been defined by its ability to handle business against an unlucky team. Abnormal start times are a bit of an equalizer and should set the stage for sloppy play (especially early on).
Knicks 101, Pistons 88
Jeff Magiochetti Twitter @GeoffJMags
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