Who is playing
Toronto Raptors @ Detroit Pistons
Current records: Toronto 8-30, Detroit 19-19
How to watch
- When: Saturday, January 11, 2025 at 7 pm Eastern Time
- Where: Little Caesars Arena – Detroit, Michigan
- TV: The Sports Network
- Continue: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try it for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket cost: $17.00
What to know
The Raptors and Pistons are 5-5 against each other since March 2022, but not for long. The Toronto Raptors will remain on the road on Saturday to face the Detroit Pistons at 7:00 pm ET at Little Caesars Arena. The Raptors are expected to lose this game by 4.5 points, so we’ll see if that gives them some motivation.
The Raptors will likely head into the contest with a focus on the second half, which is when things went downhill against the Cavaliers on Thursday. The Raptors took a 132-126 hit in the loss column at the hands of the Cavaliers. The loss hurts even more as Toronto was up 93-81 with 4:41 left in the third.
The defeat does not tell the whole story, since several players played good games. One of the most active was Chris Boucher, who was 5 of 8 from beyond the arc and had a double-double with 23 points and 12 rebounds. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in three-pointers made (five). Jakob Poeltl was another key player, shooting 8 of 10 and adding 17 points plus seven rebounds and six assists.
Although they lost, the Raptors worked as a unit and finished the game with 34 assists. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they have now recorded at least 25 assists in five consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, after a five-game winning streak, the Pistons’ good luck finally ran out on Thursday. They fell just short of the Warriors by a score of 107-104. The close game was even more heartbreaking for Detroit, which nearly overcame an 18-point deficit.
Cade Cunningham had a good effort for the losing team, as he went 12-for-21 en route to 32 points plus eight assists and six rebounds. He’s becoming a predictor of the Pistons’ success: When he scores at least 20 points, the team is 8-3 (and 11-16 when he doesn’t).
Toronto has been on a rough road recently, having lost 15 of its last 16 games, making a notable dent in its 8-30 record this season. As for Detroit, their loss ended a four-game winning streak at home and left them with a 19-19 record.
The Raptors were unable to finish off the Pistons in their previous meeting in November 2024 and fell 102-100. Can the Raptors avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We will know very soon.
Odd
Detroit is a 4.5-point favorite against Toronto, according to latest report NBA Odds.
Oddsmakers have moved slightly against the Pistons, as the game began with the Pistons as 6-point favorites.
The over/under is 229.5 points.
See NBA selections for every game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get Picks Now.
History of the series
Detroit and Toronto have 5 wins in their last 10 games.
- November 25, 2024: Detroit 102 vs. Toronto 100
- November 15, 2024: Detroit 99 vs. Toronto 95
- March 13, 2024: Detroit 113 vs. Toronto 104
- December 30, 2023: Detroit 129 vs. Toronto 127
- November 19, 2023: Toronto 142 vs. Detroit 113
- March 24, 2023: Toronto 118 vs. Detroit 97
- February 25, 2023: Toronto 95 vs. Detroit 91
- February 12, 2023: Toronto 119 vs. Detroit 118
- November 14, 2022: Toronto 115 vs. Detroit 111
- March 3, 2022: Detroit 108 vs. Toronto 106
