The Detroit Pistons host the Atlanta Hawks at the Little Caesars Arena on Wednesday, March 25, at 7:00 p.m. ET.
The Pistons are 52-19 and first in the East with a 27-8 home record, while the Hawks are 40-32 and sixth in the East with a 19-16 road record.
The Pistons are coming off a close 113-110 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, while the Hawks picked off the Memphis Grizzlies in a dominant 146-107 win on Monday. Wednesday’s game will be the fourth contest between the franchises this season, with the Pistons having won all prior matchups so far. Their last matchup came on December 12, 2025, as Detroit won 142-115 against a very different-looking Hawks squad.
The Pistons are led by Cade Cunningham, who’s averaging 24.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 9.9 assists, but will miss this game after suffering a collapsed lung last week. Jalen Duren is averaging 19.2 points and 10.5 rebounds this season and will look to be a game-changer as he’s vying to be named an All-NBA player.
The Hawks are led by breakout forward Jalen Johnson, who’s averaging 22.7 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 8.0 assists this season. He’s been a huge reason for the Hawks going 9-1 over their last 10 games, but he is listed as questionable for this game. Thankfully, he has help from the likes of Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who’s averaging 20.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.3 steals per game this season.
This promises to be an exciting Eastern Conference clash between two teams looking to secure a win. The Pistons haven’t lost in their last two games without Cunningham, while the Hawks have gone 13-2 in their last 15 games. The Pistons doused the fiery Lakers without Cunningham, but can they do that against the Hawks?
Injury Report
Pistons
Javonte Green: Questionable: (Ankle)
Marcus Sasser: Doubtful (hip)
Cade Cunningham: Out (chest)
Isaiah Stewart: Out (calf)
Wendell Moore Jr.: Out (two-way)
Hawks
Jalen Johnson: Questionable (shoulder)
Why The Pistons Have The Advantage
The Pistons have an advantage over almost every NBA team this season, given how well they’ve performed all year. This goes beyond the contributions of Cunningham, as J.B. Bickerstaff has put together a team that leads the NBA in blocks (6.3 BPG), steals (10.5 SPG), deflections (21.0), loose balls recovered (5.7), points in the paint (57.8 PPG), and clutch wins (26). They also rank eighth in pulling down rebounds this season with 45.7 per game.
The franchise has the second-best defensive rating (108.9) in the NBA this season. They have a commendable 116.9 offensive rating, which is eighth-best in the NBA this season. As a result, the Pistons have the second-best net rating at +8.0 this season. They’re fifth in fast-break points (18.0) and fourth in second-chance points (17.0) as well, showing that there might be no team in the league that can outhustle the Pistons.
The Pistons’ success is based on how their perimeter defenders make it impossible for teams to find a comfortable rhythm on the court. They’re either getting swatted at the rim with the multiple shot-blockers the Pistons have or being constantly harassed on-ball until they’re forced to commit turnovers. It’s hard to keep a team with this defensive activity at bay, and that’s the reason why most teams have failed to beat the Pistons.
Their offense also offers some unpredictability without Cunningham, as he ran the show entirely for the franchise. In his absence, Daniss Jenkins will look to orchestrate chaos and make the Hawks rely on themselves to have a solid enough foundation that the Pistons, without their MVP candidate, can’t crack.
Why The Hawks Have The Advantage
The Hawks are easily the hottest team in the Eastern Conference, as coach Quin Snyder finally got a versatile roster he can push into the Playoffs with. While the emergence of Jalen Johnson as an All-NBA caliber do-it-all forward surely helped, they have found a new gear in the last month, primarily because of how Snyder has put the pieces at his disposal to work despite multiple midseason trades.
The Hawls have a 106.1 defensive rating and a 122.3 offensive rating since February 23, 2026. This would give them a +16.2 net rating over this span, which would be the best in the NBA. Through this span, they averaged 123.6 points, 47.4 rebounds, 10.9 steals, and 6.9 blocks per game. If you contextualize it to overall season numbers, the Hawks would rank as a top-five franchise across most metrics. They’ve caught fire at the right time.
The biggest differentiator that Atlanta can rely on is that they’re far superior to the Pistons as a shooting unit. The Hawks attempt 39.2 three-pointers a game and convert at a 36.9% clip, much better than Detroit’s 33.1 attempts and 34.8% efficiency on those shots. The Hawks are shooting 39.8 threes per game on 36.4% since February 23, so they’ll hope to catch fire once again and deal a big blow to the No. 1 seed in the East.
The biggest advantage for the Hawks is that they have to subdue an unremarkable offensive unit that is without their key orchestrator, Cunningham. Jenkins is capable of big nights, but he might struggle against perimeter defenders like Alexander-Walker and Dyson Daniels, who definitely will come in having done their homework on the Cunningham-less Pistons.
X-Factors
Daniss Jenkins emerged out of nowhere this season. He’s averaged an unremarkable 8.3 points on 40.4% from the field over the season, but he’s the Pistons’ trump card when Cunningham is out of the rotation. Jenkins averages 16.4 points and 7.9 assists in 10 games without Cunningham, showing that his best utility on this roster might be being a stand-in for Cunningham rather than just a rotational player. He’ll get big minutes, and based on his track record, he’ll be likely to impress in those minutes.
Ausar Thompson is one of the key reasons the Pistons’ defense works as soundly as it does. He’s everywhere on the court, capable of picking up the best guards from half-court while also being an excellent help defender. Thompson is a defensive star in an era of switch-heavy basketball, as he impacts a game on that end regardless of the situation. He’s averaging 9.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.9 steals this season.
Onyeka Okongwu has thrived as the Hawks’ sole center since the Kristaps Porzingis trade. He’s averaging 15.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.1 steals, and 1.1 blocks per game this season, with his increased shooting production making the Hawks’ offense more unpredictable. His defense is as solid as they come, having the mobility to switch onto other forwards if needed while also being a vertical threat on both ends of the court.
CJ McCollum hasn’t had the smoothest adjustment to the Hawks, but the 34-year-old guard is looking more impactful by the day. He’s averaging 18.4 points and 3.9 assists in 32 games since joining the team in December and serves as one of their key offensive options. The Hawks do not have many on-ball creators on the roster, so McCollum is the perfect glue guard to tie all the impressive pieces on this roster together and have success.
Prediction
It might be recency bias, but our pick to win this game is the Hawks. The Pistons barely managed to beat the Lakers without Cunningham and were also helped by key absences in LA, such as Marcus Smart and Rui Hachimura. The Hawks will have a full-strength lineup at their disposal if Johnson ends up playing like he’s expected to. They have momentum on their side and the defensive acumen to shut down a relatively unimaginative Pistons offense, especially without Cunningham’s on-ball prowess.
Prediction: Pistons 106, Hawks 111
