The sixth-seeded Detroit Pistons host the second-seeded Toronto Raptors in a potential playoff preview on Sunday afternoon. Entering Sunday's games, the Pistons held just a half-game lead over the Brooklyn Nets for the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference, so there's at least a decent chance that they drop back to seventh before all is said and done, which would set up a first round match-up with the Raptors, as they are basically locked into the second spot. 

The meeting between the two teams is the third - and final - of the season, with the Pistons winning each of the first two contests. Considering that fact, it is safe to assume that the Raptors will be motivated to walk away with a win. 

How to watch Raptors at Pistons

  • Date: Sunday, March 17
  • Time: 4:00 p.m. ET
  • Location: Little Caesars Arena -- Detroit, Michigan
  • TV: NBA League Pass  
  • Streaming: fuboTV (try it free)
  • Live stats: GameTracker
  • Odds: Pistons -1

Odds and analysis

Check Sportsline's NBA pick sheet for all your daily odds. 

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Storylines 

Raptors: The Raptors are basically locked into the second spot in the East at this point in the season, so their main objectives are to continue to integrate Marc Gasol into the rotation, and to get to the postseason as healthy as possible. 

Pistons: For the Pistons, every game is a fight for playoff positioning. Entering Sunday, they held just a half-game lead over the Nets for the sixth spot in the East and were only three games ahead of the eighth-place Heat. With only a few weeks of regular season action left, Detroit has to pull out every win that they can, and a season sweep of the Raptors would be helpful; both in the standings and morale-wise. 

Game prediction, pick

The line [slightly] favors the Pistons in this one, but I would go the other way. It's true that the Pistons are at home, but the Raptors are a very solid road team (21-13 on the season), and they should be adequately motivated to get a win after losing to the Pistons twice already on the season.