Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images The Pistons will be looking to cool off the Heat, who enter on a 4-game winning streak. It isn’t often that you get to go a full week during the NBA season with only one game, but due to the NBA Cup, that is exactly what the Pistons and many other teams in the NBA are dealing with. The Pistons last played Thursday against the Celtics and they looked like a team that hadn’t played basketball in five days. The Pistons couldn’t hit a shot in that game and after a cold start, the Celtics played like the Celtics and ran the Pistons off the court. After a game like that, you want to turn around quick and play again, but three days later is finally the Pistons chance to bounce back. The Miami Heat enter this game on a four game winning streak, so it will be no easy task to bounce back. Game Vitals Where: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, MIWhen: Monday, December 16 at 7 pm ESTWatch: Fan Duel Sports Network DetroitOdds: Heat (-4.5) Analysis The Pistons will be without Tobias Harris, which combined with the waiving of Paul Reed on Saturday, leaves the Pistons very thin in the frontcourt. It appears Jalen Duren will be playing after missing Thursday’s game against Boston, but if him or Isaiah Stewart get into foul trouble we will probably see Ausar Thompson at center. There really isn’t a great time to release a player with how fast-paced the NBA season is, but I feel like releasing a frontcourt player when you already knew Tobias Harris was out and signing a G-League guard to fill the spot isn’t exactly the best strategy, but what do I know? In the last matchup between these two teams, it looked like the Pistons were going to cruise to a win before Tyler Herro went nuclear in the 4th quarter and sent the game to overtime. Then, Eric Spoelstra called a timeout that the Heat did not have in a tie game in Overtime to put the Pistons in position to make a free throw to win, which they did. An important note of that game is that Jimmy Butler was not playing and he will be tonight. The Heat are a different team when Butler plays, as we saw when the Pistons lost to the Heat back in October. The Heat are in the middle of their best stretch of basketball all season, so this will not be an easy game for the Pistons. The Heat are not a significantly more talented team than the Pistons like the Boston Celtics are, but with how they are playing right now, this is a game that could get out of hand quick if the Pistons do not start to get back on track defensively. Their 3-point defense the last few weeks has left a lot to be desired as they have plummeted out of the top 10 in the league on defense, which they were through the first month of the season. The Heat are not a notable 3-point shooting team, but they do have a few guys on their roster that can get hot, especially if they are left open. Just look at Tyler Herro last game. Many of the Pistons issues on defense the last few weeks can be tied to how many shooters they are leaving open, which pretty much any team in the NBA can take advantage of. But, when you are doing it against the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, you are going to have a bad night. One positive for the Pistons is that the Heat are not a team with a ton of size, so the Pistons being short-handed in the frontcourt shouldn’t hurt them as much. This will be a tough game, but one that is very winnable at home against a team that will probably be in Play-In Tournament range just like the Pistons hope to be. Lineups Detroit Pistons (10-16): Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Tim Hardaway Jr, Ausar Thompson, Jalen Duren Miami Heat (13-10): Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, Jimmy Butler, Haywood Highsmith, Bam Adebayo Question of the Day Do you think a break like the Pistons have had the last week is beneficial or hurts momentum?