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Wizards vs. Pistons preview: Washington face Detroit for the first time in the regular season

The Wizards should beat the worst team in the Eastern Conference, right?

Detroit Pistons v Washington Wizards Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images

Game Info

When: Saturday, March 27 at 8 p.m. ET

Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, D.C.

How to watch: NBC Sports Washington

Injury Report

Wizards: Davis Bertans (Calf, Out); Ish Smith (Quad, Out); Thomas Bryant (Knee, Out)

Pistons: Sekou Doumbouya (Thumb, Day-to-day); Rodney McGruder (Elbow, Day-to-day); Hamidou Diallo (Groin, Out); Jahlil Okafor (Knee, Out); Killian Hayes (Hip, Out)

Pregame notes

The Washington Wizards (15-28) will return home to face the Detroit Pistons (12-31) for the first time in the regular season. Both teams did play each other twice in mid-December during pre-season, which resulted in a split. Back then, Derrick Rose was a Piston.

The Wizards, who will play their next three games in D.C., are coming off a disappointing loss 106-102 loss to the Knicks Thursday evening. The Wizards started the game strong, outscoring the Knicks in the first two quarters and holding the Knicks to 3-of-14 from the field and scoreless from the three-point line.

Offensively, Bradley Beal and Rui Hachimura led with 26 and 21 points respectively. Russell Westbrook followed with another double-double, scoring 13 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. He was just one assist shy of a triple-double. The Wizards weren’t able to keep the same momentum in the second half of the game, allowing the Knicks to battle back.

Washington has struggled to be consistent this season. Both the Wizards and Pistons are going into Saturday’s game with close losses behind them. Additionally, the Pistons are ranked last in the Eastern Conference while the Wizards aren’t too far away as the third-worst record.

Jerami Grant is flourishing in Detroit. He’s having the best season of his career, averaging 23.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game. His second-best scoring average was in the 2018-2019 season in Oklahoma where he put up 13.6 points per game. Grant is the one player the Wizards will have their eye on in the backcourt.

Let’s just say, it will take a lot for the Wizards to blow this game.