New York @ Detroit preview

Last Meeting ( Apr 10, 2019 ) Detroit 115, New York 89

The Detroit Pistons hope to have some of their injured stars back Wednesday when they host the New York Knicks. The Pistons fell 115-99 at Washington on Monday with guards Derrick Rose (hamstring) and Reggie Jackson (back) on the sidelines, and with star forward Blake Griffin (hamstring) still waiting to make his season debut.

"It's the NBA. There are no excuses," coach Dwane Casey told reporters after his depleted team scored just 38 second-half points. "We got enough guys in that room to compete, to fight." While Jackson will miss several more weeks, Rose is day-to-day and Griffin has indicated he is close to playing his first game. The Knicks could provide a soft landing spot for Griffin as they enter the contest with the worst record in the Eastern Conference and an 0-4 mark on the road. New York fell behind by 26 points after three quarters at home against Sacramento on Sunday before falling 113-92.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG (New York), FS Detroit

ABOUT THE KNICKS (1-6): Rookie guard RJ Barrett scored 22 points in the loss to the Kings, but he is 17-for-48 from the floor over the last three games and 3-for-15 from 3-point range over the last four. Forward Julius Randle has also hit a bit of a wall with just eight points in each of his last two games after averaging 15.6 through his first five. New York remains uncertain at point guard with Elfrid Payton (hamstring), Dennis Smith Jr. (personal) and Kadeem Allen (knee) still out, and Frank Ntilikina providing a total of only 12 points and five assists in his two starts at the position.

ABOUT THE PISTONS (3-5): The makeshift backcourt of Luke Kennard and Bruce Brown has been a bright spot for Detroit, as the pair is averaging a combined 42 points and 11.5 assists over the last two contests. Kennard has back-to-back 24-point efforts and is shooting 46 percent from beyond the arc overall. Center Andre Drummond saw his 20-20 streak come to an end at three games in Monday's loss, but he still managed his NBA-leading eighth straight double-double out of the gate.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Drummond is averaging 21.3 points and a league-leading 19.4 rebounds.

2. Knicks F/C Bobby Portis is averaging 7.5 points on 36.4 percent shooting in his team's six losses and had 28 points on 10-of-14 from the floor in its one win.

3. Detroit has claimed seven straight matchups with New York and six in a row at home.

PREDICTION: Pistons 104, Knicks 97