Detroit Pistons at San Antonio Spurs (-4, 180 ½)
The Pistons are on the verge of their first three-game losing streak of the season, and they’ll have to beat the defending NBA champs on the road to avoid that.
Detroit is fresh off an 11-game winning streak in which it outscored opponents by an average of 17 points, but it’s all gone wrong this week. The Pistons have shot 39.9 percent from the field in the last two games, failing to score more than 86 points in either contest.
It’s not going to get any easier for the Pistons tonight when they face Spurs star Tim Duncan. He has recorded double-doubles in all 10 regular-season home games against Detroit in his career, leading San Antonio to a 9-1 record.
Pick: Spurs
Memphis Grizzlies at Sacramento Kings (-4, 203)
Three key injuries have contributed to the Kings dropping six of their last eight games overall and four of five at home.
Ron Artest, Mike Bibby and Kevin Martin are all currently sidelined and Sacramento has struggled in their absence. It was outscored by an average of 12 points during its recent four-game home skid, shooting just 41.9 percent from the field.
The Kings snapped their home losing streak with a win over Orlando last night, but the continued absence of those key players should enable the visiting Grizzlies to keep tonight’s score close enough to cover.
Pick: Grizzlies
Phoenix Suns at Utah Jazz (-5, 223)
The Suns arrive in Utah after an exhausting overtime victory over the Indiana Pacers last night. They could also be without Steve Nash, who missed most of yesterday’s game with a stomach flu.
Raja Bell picked up the slack in Nash’s absence. He scored a season-high 27 points, while Amare Stoudemire stole the win by converting five of six free throws in the final few minutes of the contest.
But an overtime outing, followed by a trip from Phoenix to Utah, will take it toll on the Suns – especially if they are without Nash. Look for the Jazz to win, while covering the spread for the fifth time in their last seven games against Phoenix.
Pick: Jazz