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The Detroit Pistons will look to get their first road win of the season against the Houston Rockets Friday.

The Pistons are 0-1 and dropped their season opener to the Chicago Bulls, 115-111. Detroit was down 16 at the end of the first quarter and slowly chipped away at the deficit, but still fell short. Field goal percentage was even, and the Pistons made four more baskets than the Bulls. The Pistons lost by eight at the free throw line and Chicago made four more threes. Detroit did well in fast break points and was decent at limiting turnovers. Cade Cunningham led the way on offense with 23 points.

The Rockets are 0-1 and dropped their season opener to the Oklahoma City Thunder, 125-124, in double overtime. It was close from start to finish and Houston just couldn't get the last clutch moment. Field goal percentage was even and OKC made three more field goals and two more three pointers than the Rockets did. Houston made seven more free throws and did well in rebounds. The game was really lost on turnovers, as the Rockets turned it over 25 times compared to the Thunder's 12 turnovers. Points off turnovers were 28-12, in favor of OKC. Alperen Sengun led the way on offense with 39 points.

Spread

Pistons +6.5 (-105)
Rockets -6.5 (+101)

Money line

Pistons +218
Rockets -232

Total

OVER 225 (-107)
UNDER 225 (-102)

Note: The above data was collected on Oct. 24, 2025, and may have changed since writing.

Pistons vs Rockets Betting Trends

Detroit is 1-4 ATS in its last five games.
The total has gone UNDER in four of Detroit's last six games.
Detroit is 1-4 SU in its last five games.
Houston is 4-1 ATS in its last five games.
The total has gone OVER in four of Houston's last five games.
Houston is 3-8 SU in its last 11 games.

Pistons vs Rockets Injury Reports

Detroit Pistons

Marcus Sasser, G - Out
Caris LeVert, G - Day-to-day
Jaden Ivey, G - Out

Houston Rockets

Isaiah Crawford, F - Out
Jae'Sean Tate, F - Out
Dorian Finney-Smith, F - Out
Fred VanVleet, G - Out

Pistons vs Rockets Predictions and Picks

Detroit is currently 27th in points, seventh in points allowed, and 22nd in point differential. The Pistons will look to play better on both sides of the ball. The scoring started off slowly, and the defense gave up 94 points in the first three quarters of that last game. The team's young core is learning that last season's success won't carry over without consistent defensive effort and attention to detail. Ausar Thompson will be a key defender for the Pistons and Jaden Ivey will look to carry the offense. Detroit will look to set the tone on offense and capitalize on some bad Rocket turnovers.

Houston is currently ninth in points, 25th in points allowed, and 17th in point differential. The Rockets are embracing a new type of lineup. In that last game, they didn't have a traditional point guard, and it led to 25 turnovers. So there might be some growing pains with that, but at least they have a veteran presence in Kevin Durant. Without Fred VanVleet, the Rockets really need to take care of the ball more and find consistency in their offense. They will try to be more efficient against the Pistons' perimeter defenders.

Best Bet: Rockets Spread

This will be the Rockets home opener, and they played pretty well in that double overtime game, against the defending champs, on the road. They will be extra pumped to play in front of their fans and clean up those turnovers. The Pistons should get off to a better start and try to play tighter defense.

Detroit Pistons