Mavericks vs Pistons Picks, Predictions & Odds Tonight

Covers

09 March 2024

Mavericks vs Pistons Picks, Predictions & Odds Tonight

With Luka Doncic firing on all cylinders for Dallas, we expect the star point guard to light up a lowly Detroit roster in a Saturday night showcase at Little Caesars Arena. Read more in our Mavericks vs. Pistons betting picks.

Luka Doncic will look to lead his Dallas Mavericks to a second straight win in the NBA odds when they head to Motown to take on the Detroit Pistons.

Doncic has recorded eight straight 30+ point outings and will likely need to put up another big showing to help his Mavs get out of a 2-5 slide.

Keep reading to find out how the Dallas star figures into tonight’s best bet in my NBA picks and predictions for Mavericks vs. Pistons on Saturday, March 9.

Mavericks vs Pistons odds

Mavericks vs Pistons predictions

It was another dominant performance for Luka Doncic on Thursday as he scored a game-high 35 points on 12-for-24 shooting to help the Dallas Mavericks defeat the Heat 114-108 and snap a three-game losing skid. The performance also marked the fifth straight 30-point triple-double for the Mavs star point guard.

Doncic’s incredible run of eight straight 30+ point games also includes four consecutive 35+ point outings, while he’s hit that mark in six of his last eight contests. The Mavericks star has been shooting the ball at a season-high rate this month, averaging 26.5 field goal attempts per game over his last four outings.

A major reason for his uptick in shooting — and scoring — is his work at the 3-point line. Doncic is taking more than 11 shots from deep per game — one more than his season average — while converting on 40% of his attempts.

The Detroit Pistons, who own the fourth-worst defense in the NBA (120.8 points per game), have been susceptible to long-range shooting. Opponents are shooting 37.8% from deep against Detroit — the seventh-highest mark in the league — while the Pistons have given up at least 14 threes in three of their last four games.

If Doncic keeps up his high-volume approach from beyond the arc, he should cruise to another 35-point outing.

My best bet: Luka Doncic Over 34.5 points (-115 at PROLINE+)

Mavericks vs Pistons same-game parlay

I’ll look for the Mavs to cover the 9.5-point spread to open tonight’s same-game parlay as Dallas has won by at least 10 points in seven of its last nine victories. Meanwhile, Detroit owns the third-worst average scoring margin this season at -8.6.

I’ll close out my parlay by taking the Over on 237.5 points as I don’t have much confidence in either of these teams defensively. The Mavericks have allowed at least 120 points in six of their last seven games but should have the offense to bail themselves out, with Doncic and Kyrie Irving combining for 60 ppg this season.

Ontario-owned and operated, PROLINE+ has a robust market offering at its disposal and reinvests 100% of its profits back into the province — join today!

Mavericks vs Pistons spread and Over/Under analysis

The Mavericks opened as the 7-point favorite on the road with most books sliding them up to 7.5 or 8 by Saturday morning. Regardless, I still like a red-hot Doncic to help Dallas break out of its slump and cover the spread.

The lowly Pistons are arguably playing their best basketball of the season with four wins in their last 13 contests, but they’ve still lost by seven points or more in 13 of their last 16 defeats.

Dallas has been on fire offensively since the start of February, averaging 119.9 ppg — the fourth-best mark in the NBA over that stretch. Coming up against one of the league’s worst defenses, Doncic and the Mavericks should have no trouble running up the score tonight.

Tonight’s total opened at 235 points and I’ll take the Over in a matchup between two of the league’s weaker defenses.

The Pistons (120.8 points against per game) and Mavericks (118.1 PAPG) both rank in the bottom seven this season in team defense. While Detroit doesn’t necessarily have the offensive pieces to punish Dallas’ defense outside of Cade Cunningham, Doncic and Irving should be able to do most of the heavy lifting to bring up tonight’s total.

The Mavs duo is combining for more than 60 ppg through four games this month and could easily surpass that number against a lackluster Pistons team. The Over is also 4-2 in Dallas’ last six games and 4-1 in the Mavericks’ last six five contests.