Central Division | Odds, Tips & Picks

Cavs continue to dominate the Central

The Cavaliers continue their incredible season, now 25-4 and on another strong winning streak.

Milwaukee, Indiana, Chicago and Detroit are way behind on the standings. But these four other teams are no mugs though. All with very respectable win PCTs

CAVS unstoppable in the Central

Latest NBA Eastern Conference betting odds for Central Division teams:

Cleveland Cavaliers: 7.00
Milwaukee Bucks: 10.00
Indiana: 41.00
Chicago: 501.00
Detroit: 501:00

Cavaliers eight games clear in the Central division and now 5.50 odds for Eastern Conference

Cleveland continue to dominate the Central Division with a 17-2 overall record. The rest of the teams in the Central would look to be doing 'ok' if the Cavaliers weren't around.

There are certainly no Washington Wizards or 76ers in this set.

Cavs dominating the Central

Keep an eye on the Milwaukee Bucks here though. Currently on a five game winning streak and backed into 13.00 to win the Eastern Conference.

Pacers, Bulls and Pistons are no slouches either. This is a tough NBA Division no doubt.

Odds to win the Central Division at the moment? Well you'll struggle to bet the Cavaliers at more than 1.05, that's the best price with the Sportsbooks at the moment. You might get a touch more on Betfair, but don't forget you have to pay commission on winners on the betting exchanges.

Current NBA Central Division betting odds:

Milwaukee Bucks \\

Cleveland Cavaliers \\

Chicago Bulls \\

Indiana Pacers \\

Detroit Pistons \\

Current standings

Here we have a breakdown of all the teams in the running to win the NBA's Central Division in the 2022/’23 NBA season. The winners will be awarded the Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton Trophy

At The Jump Hub, we have assessed their chances as we see them and will update this article regularly to see if we were right. We will post statistical updates and any breaking news or results as they come up.

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Odds are subject to change.

*See foot of article for the key to terms used

General update: 29th Mar 2023

At 7-3 in their last 10 games, the Milwaukee Bucks show no signs of easing up as their Central Division work is done. They secured their NBA Playoff series berth several games ago and it must be challenging to retain focus and motivation when you know you’ve already done enough. But there we go again, mistakenly judging these incredible athletes by our own paltry standards…

An absolutely unbelievable 16-game winning streak was the icing on an already delicious cake for Bucks fans. It was only 3 points against spoilsports the 76ers which prevented it from being 20…

The team will be hoping that their key player is not out for any significant period as Antetokounmpo was kept out of the previous contest with right hip soreness. He looks unlikely to return for Wednesday's road trip to face the Indiana Pacers but keep your eyes on that one for now. 

The Cleveland Cavaliers have put up some decent performances this season and fully deserve their 2nd place finish in the Central Division. Let’s face it, they were only ever competing for second in a Division with a Bucks team this good but the hard work still had to be done. They look likely to hold onto 4th position in the NBA if they can keep their form (9-2 in their last 11 games) 

At The time of writing, they are trailing in the 4th quarter to the Atlanta Hawks (Go Hawks!)

• Couldn't resist popping back to mention that the gallant Hawks prevailed 118:120 over the plucky-but-naïve Cavaliers. As you were.

General update: 16th Mar 2023

• With the race realistically down to just 2 teams in the Central Division, with the best record in the whole NBA and a 10+% lead, nobody is going to catch the Milwaukee Bucks.

• With a 62% winning % at the time of writing, the Cleveland Cavaliers have done a rock-solid job and would actually be leading 3 of the other divisions with that record.

General update: 2nd Feb 2023

• Milwaukee Bucks take their 5th-straight win while all the other teams in the Central Division lose their last game.

A few words on the scourge of deliberate tanking

Before we go any further, it saddens us to have to address the elephant in the room. Deliberate tanking is easily our least favourite aspect of the NBA and one that we wish we didn't have to think about. For those of you unaware of what it means, to put it very briefly, the way that the NBA is structured means that the worst-performing teams have a better chance of picking the best players in the following season's NBA Draft.

Sadly, we live in a cynical world where blatant cheating is tolerated and often even encouraged. If it cannot be proven and will result in an advantage then some teams clearly feel that it is worth the loss of integrity and dignity. That it is worth snubbing their nose to their own fans and admitting that they are too shitty to achieve anything without cheating. That they would rather field weakened sides and lose on purpose than accept the task ahead of them and get those same noses to the grindstone instead. Even with the, clearly inadequate measures that the NBA introduced and the new lottery system that makes it harder to guarantee an advantage, it still exists.

It is too complicated and depressing for us to try and figure out which teams are engaged in this lowest-of-the-low behaviour. It should be pretty obvious. We'll mention it for sure if it's beyond question. But, otherwise, we have decided to write these articles as though tanking didn't exist. As though we live in a world where winning through hard work and dedication is the only goal.

Pleasing the fans and doing your absolute best to represent them with honour at all times should be a given. Tanking is for scumbags and suckers. We hope franchises that deliberately set out to lose games wither and turn to dust.

However, for the purposes of these articles, we will assess the teams in front of us on their merits and pretend that there is still some integrity in professional sports.

The Wayne Embry Trophy

General update: 30th Jan 2023

• Central Division leaders, the Milwaukee Bucks dispatched the 3rd-placed Indiana Pacers 131-141 on Saturday

• Giannis Antetokounmpo scored: 41 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists

• In a shocking result, the Detroit Pistons turned over the 6th team in the NBA, the Brooklyn Nets 122-130. Then they lost 114-117 to the worst team in the NBA, the Houston Rockets, just 2 days later.

General update: 25th Jan 2023

• The loss of Tyrese Haliburton (left elbow sprain, left knee contusion) has annihilated the form of the Indiana Pacers and they find themselves at the sharp end of a 7-game losing streak. 6 of those were without Haliburton and the other was when he was clearly struggling and off his best game. Their NBA Atlantic Division betting odds have changed drastically as a result and they now sit @ 276.00, down from @ 56.00 less than 2 weeks ago.

• The Indiana Pacers bring a dismal 7-straight losing game streak to an end by beating the Chicago Bulls in a tight game 116-110

General update: 18th Jan 2023

• Antetokounmpo remains out of contention with left knee issues. He has already missed 4 matchups and looks certain to miss the next one. It is against the Bucks' closest rivals in the Central Division, the Cleveland Cavaliers, later this week.

• Donovan Mitchell is out for the Cleveland Cavaliers with a groin strain. He missed their last game (a 115-114 loss to Memphis) and looks set to miss at least one more.

Milwaukee Bucks @ 1.01

NBA Central Division betting odds progression:

@ 1.22 — @ 1.36 — @ 1.30 — @ 1.17 — @ 1.36 — @ 1.40 — @ 1.30

Jul 29th — Oct 27th — Nov 1st — Dec 13th — Jan 6th/11th — Jan 16th/23rd — Jan 27th

@ 1.25 — @ 1.11 — @ 1.03 — @ 1.01

Jan 30th — Feb 13th — Feb 27th — Mar 8th/16th

NBA Eastern Conference betting odds: @ 2.50

NBA Championship betting odds: @ 3.75

• Record: 50-19

• Streak: 2 wins

• 28-6 at home

• 22-13 on the road

Current table positions:

• Central Division: 1st

• Eastern Conference: 1st

• NBA: 1st

Update: 18th Jan 2023

Of the 4 matchups that the Bucks have been involved in since Antetokounmpo injured his left knee and was taken out of contention, they have won 2 and lost 2. He looks set to miss at least the next game (on the road vs the Cleveland Cavaliers) and perhaps a few more than that. But they must be desperate to see him return as soon as possible.

• Giannis Antetokounmpo

NBA MVP betting odds @ 9.00

NBA Defensive Player of the Year betting odds @ 17.00

2022/’23 averages per NBA game:

• G: 35 \ GS:35 \ MP: 33.7 \ PTS: 31.0* \ FG%: 52.4 \ 3P%: 24.5 \ FT%: 65.3 \ TRB: 11.9 \ AST: 5.3 \ STL: 0.8 \ BLK: 0.9 \ TOV: 4.0* \ PF: 3.5*

*Career high

Not many teams can kiss goodbye to 31 points, 12 rebounds, and over 5 assists per game and remain on steady ground...

And the Bucks are not brimming with players that can score anywhere near as frequently as Giannis. Yes, they do have 5 other players that average double-figures. Their next-best scorer is the excellent:

• Jrue Holiday

2022/’23 averages per NBA game:

• G: 33 \ GS:31 \ MP: 32.5 \ PTS: 18.8 \ FG%: 45.9 \ 3P%: 38.2 \ FT%: 86.9* \ TRB: 4.9 \ AST: 7.4 \ STL: 1.4 \ BLK: 0.4 \ TOV: 3.2* \ PF: 1.9

*Career high

Jrue Holiday is now a key player for the Bucks moving forwards. He is their best active scorer and has stepped up his game, taking 35 and 37 points in his last 2 games respectively. He also:

• Leads the Bucks for assists and steals

Holiday has provided 39 total assists in the 4 games that Antetokounmpo has missed.

Bobby Portis and Brook Lopez are providing superb backup, both taking large numbers of rebounds.

• Lopez is smashing it when it comes to blocks as the 2nd best in the whole NBA right now with 2.5 per game

So all is not yet lost. Far from it

But they need Antetokounmpo back stat. Those effortless points and endless rebounds must be so noticeable when they go away.

As the joint-oldest team in the NBA (with the LA Clippers) they have all the experience they need. But youthful legs sure do come in handy once the season really starts to bite. The Bucks have a few contrasting stats that are worthy of mention. These numbers are per-game averages and the comparisons are with the 4 other teams in the Central Division unless otherwise stated:

• Most attempted field goals (89.7)

• Worst field goal conversion rate (45.2%)

• Most attempted 3-pointers per game (39.3)

• Worst 3-point conversion rate (34.8%)

• Most rebounds (48.8)

• Highest turnovers (15.3)

• Lowest fouls in the whole NBA (18.3)

• Lowest points differential (+1.3) of any team in the top 10 of the NBA

Very much a mixed bag then. We are aware that a lot of those stats are skewed by the extraordinary performances of Antetokounmpo and expect to see them change fairly rapidly if he does not return imminently.

Potential problems?

The Bucks much prefer playing in front of their home crowd and their record this season reflects that.

The trouble is that 6 of their next 11 games are on the road. If we believe that their form will continue then we can expect them to win just 3 of those 6 road games. And that was before we took their highest scorer/rebound taker out of the equation.

If we consider the Central Division to effectively be a 2-team competition at this point, then it's a lot closer at the top than we might think. The Cavaliers are red-hot on the heels of the Bucks and will be relishing the thought of them having injury issues. The betting markets reflect this closeness and have the Bucks' NBA Central Division betting odds @ 1.40 and the Cavaliers not far behind @ 2.70

We are beyond excited to see what happens next...

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Cleveland Cavaliers @ 26.00

NBA Central Division betting odds progression:

@ 4.80 — @ 3.25 — @ 2.65 — @ 4.80 — @ 2.80 — @ 2.70

Sep 1st — Oct 31st — Nov 26th — Dec 15th — Jan 4th/11th — Jan 16th/23rd

@ 2.88 — @ 3.30 — @ 3.75 — @ 5.00 — @ 9.50 — @ 21.00

Jan 27th — Jan 30th — Feb 2nd — Feb 13th — Feb 27th — Mar 8th

@ 26.00

Mar 16th

NBA Eastern Conference betting odds: @ 15.00

NBA Championship betting odds: @ 31.00

• Record: 44-27

• Streak: 2 wins

• 28-7 at home

• 16-20 on the road

Current table positions:

• Central Division: 2nd

• Eastern Conference: 4th

• NBA: 5th

Update: 19th Jan 2023

It's hard to say where the Cleveland Cavaliers are performing best. They are yet another team that is solid right across the board and does not shine too hard in any one category. But consistency and constant decent performances will win you games in the NBA. They have a reasonably young team (25.5 average) with 5 players getting double-figures in points.

The Cleveland Cavaliers' high-scorer/steals leader this season is:

• Donovan Mitchell

2022/’23 averages per NBA game:

• G: 40 \ GS:40 \ MP: 36.1* \ PTS: 28.4* \ FG%: 48.4* \ 3P%: 39.5* \ FT%: 86.9* \ TRB: 3.9 \ AST: 4.8 \ STL: 1.4 \ BLK: 0.4 \ TOV: 3.0* \ PF: 2.5

*Career high

Just look at how many career highs Donovan Mitchell is hitting right now. You cannot ask any more of your players than that and we love to see it.

Sadly for Mitchell and his Cavaliers, he has strained his groin and missed the last game. He looks set to miss at least one more and we hope he can recover quickly and return. Cleveland will miss his points and playmaking desperately. The Cavaliers fans are probably already rueing his absence, after losing by a solitary point (115-114) against Memphis in their last game.

What are they getting right?

Cleveland are restricting their opponents from scoring heavily against them very effectively. So effectively, in fact, that they are currently the team that:

• Concedes the fewest points in the NBA

They do not hammer the fact home by scoring a huge amount themselves. They are the lowest-scoring team in the Central Division with an average of 111.5 per game. But that just goes to prove that you don't have to score big if you're not letting your opponents in.

It's hard to pinpoint exactly why Cleveland are so good at restricting points against them. They don't fly particularly high in any defensive stats that we can find and are straight through the middle of the pack in any category we have studied. Herein lies the story behind a fundamental truth about NBA betting and, perhaps, sports betting in general:

Stats are fascinating and fun to compare and study but they cannot tell the whole story of how a team is performing, nor ever truly help to predict what will happen next...

What's next for Cleveland?

At +4.5, the Cavaliers have the 3rd best points differential in the NBA right now, significantly higher than that of the only team above them in the Central Division, the Milwaukee Bucks who have +1.3

The Cavaliers have 2 home games up next. A challenging but fascinating matchup against the Golden State Warriors and then they welcome the Milwaukee Bucks. We can't wait to see how the game between the top 2 teams in the Central Division pans out.

Home games are a plus for Cleveland as they are far superior in front of their home crowd. In fact they need to consolidate their position with some good wins in those 2 games before 3 road games.

Potential issues?

Here we have another team that lacks a little depth in terms of playmaking. In fact, if we take Mitchell, Garland, and LeVert out of the equation, things begin to look decidedly barren in the creativity/chance provider realm.

If we were Cleveland fans then we think that being 2nd in the Central Division, 5th in the Eastern Conference, and 7th in the NBA overall is a rather splendid place to be right now.

Indiana Pacers @ 1001.00

NBA Central Division betting odds progression:

@ 301.00 — @ 501.00 — @ 121.00 — @ 251.00 — @ 56.00

Jul 29th — 2Oct 29th — Nov 26th — Dec 20th — Jan 7th/11th

@ 101.00 — @ 276.00 — @ 501.00 — @ 1001.00

Jan 16th/18th — Jan 23rd/Feb 13th — Feb 27th/Mar 8th — 16th Mar

NBA Eastern Conference betting odds: @ 501.00

NBA Championship betting odds: @ 501.00

• Record: 31-38

• Streak: 1 loss

• 19-16 at home

• 12-22 on the road

Current table positions:

• Central Division: 4th

• Eastern Conference: 12th

• NBA: 24th

Update: 20th Jan 2023

So far this season, Indiana have fared much better in games at home than when on the road.

Their next games are Denver and Phoenix on the road, followed by Chicago at home.

So, what do the Pacers get right?

Well, they:

• Attempt more field goals per game than any other team in the Central Division (89.8)

• Score the most 3-pointers per game in the Central Division (14.1) That puts them 4th in the whole NBA in that stat.

• Give the most assists in the Central Division (26.8) Over 2 more than their nearest rivals in that category (Milwaukee Bucks with 24.5) That puts them level per game with NBA leaders, the Boston Celtics.

• Most points per game in the Central Division (115.5)

On paper then, the Indiana Pacers are having a better season than at least a couple of the 14 teams above them in the NBA. More proof, if it were needed that when it comes to the business of analysing sports stats and using them to make predictions about the future, there often seems to be no rhyme nor reason to it.

Any problems on the horizon?

Depth in scoring and playmaking, to put it bluntly.

Yes, the Pacers are currently outscoring any other team in the Central Division but they only have 4 players getting double-figures on their whole roster. And, wouldn't you know it, chief among them is currently out injured for at least 2 more weeks with a left elbow sprain and a left knee bone contusion. We're talking about the excellent:

• Tyrese Haliburton

2022/’23 averages per NBA game:

• G: 40 \ GS:40 \ MP: 33.4 \ PTS: 20.2* \ FG%: 48.0 \ 3P%: 39.9 \ FT%: 88.0* \ TRB: 4.0 \ AST: 10.2* \ STL: 1.8* \ BLK: 0.4 \ TOV: 2.6 \ PF: 1.1

*Career high

So, the loss of +20 points per game is a blow but they do have some other players that can score reasonably big. What they do not have is anybody to replace his 10.2 assists per game. Well. There is nobody in the NBA who could replace that many. Given that he's the NBA assists leader right now.

But the Indiana Pacers haven't got anybody who can even get close. Their next-best player when it comes to making creative opportunities for teammates is:

• T.J. McConnell with 4.6.

But he only gets around 18 minutes per game. Now what? They've got:

• Andrew Nembhard getting 4.0 and Buddy Hield with 2.7.

And that's it!

Seriously. They have no other players that can make even the slightest contribution in terms of assists. And the fact is that since Haliburton played last (a 119-113 loss to the New York Knickerbockers on January 12th) the Pacers have lost a further 4 straight games. And, apart from a close, 2-point loss to the Atlanta Hawks (Go Hawks!) they've been getting hammered.

• They have lost by a combined 51 points in their last 3 games alone.

Now we do not like to exaggerate

Who are we kidding? We LOVE it!

But of all the teams in the NBA, there can't be many that could be so easily derailed by the loss of one player. Yes there are some. But most have some depth to fall back on.

We're still expecting Indiana to rally, especially with the likes of NBA Rookie of the Year and NBA 6th Man contender:

• Bennedict Mathurin

2022/’23 averages per NBA game:

• G: 46 \ GS:6 \ MP: 28.0 \ PTS: 17.1 \ FG%: 42.2 \ 3P%: 33.5 \ FT%: 81.5 \ TRB: 4.0 \ AST: 1.4 \ STL: 0.6 \ BLK: 0.1 \ TOV: 1.9 \ PF: 2.0

Chicago Bulls @ 1001.00

NBA Central Division betting odds progression:

@ 6.00 — @ 16.00 — @ 46.00 — @ 91.00 — @ 301.00

Sep 1st — Oct 24th — Nov 19th — Dec 1st — Dec 27th — Jan 4th/6th

@ 251.00 — @ 176.00 — @ 201.00 — @ 501.00 — @ 1001.00

Jan 9th/11th —Jan 16th/20th — Jan 23rd/Feb 13th — Feb 27th/Mar 8th — Mar 16th

NBA Eastern Conference betting odds: @ 501.00

NBA Championship betting odds: @ 501.00

• Record: 31-37

• Streak: 1 loss

• 18-16 at home

• 13-21 on the road

Current table positions:

• Central Division: 3rd

• Eastern Conference: 11th

• NBA: 23rd

Update: 23rd Jan 2023

The Chicago Bulls face the Atlanta Hawks (Go Hawks!) at home in their next game then have 3 games on the road. They have been blitzing their scoring averages and have won their last 2 games convincingly, putting a halt to an ominous run of 3 losses over 5 bad days for them in the middle of January.

Stat-breakdown

The Chicago Bulls are hitting more field goals per game (42.6) than any other team in the Central Division right now even though they attempt the second-fewest (87.4).

Most of those are 2-pointers as they are also the lowest 3-point scorers in the Central with 10.9 per game. For reference, Indiana are getting 14.1 at the time of writing. They attempt a full 10 fewer long-range shots than Milwaukee each game but make up for it in the paint. This doesn't make a great deal of sense to us as they are more accurate from the free-throw line than their Divisional rivals (81.7%) Milwaukee average 73.7%...

• TOV 13.7 per game

They turn the ball over to the opposite team less than other teams in the Central and also take:

• Least rebounds in the Division (8.5)

So, a mixed bag then. Perhaps indicative of the fact that they are 4th in the Division and 22/30 in the whole NBA. But, seriously, those numbers are misleading once again. Best in the Division at getting field goals but 8th from the bottom of the whole NBA? Go figure as they say

Notable players

The Chicago Bulls' highest scoring player is currently:

• DeMar DeRozan

2022/’23 averages per NBA game:

• G: 42 \ GS:42 \ MP: 36.1 \ PTS: 26.1 \ FG%: 50.6 \ 3P%: 26.7 \ FT%: 89.0* \ TRB: 5.1 \ AST: 4.9 \ STL: 1.0 \ BLK: 0.5 \ TOV: 2.0 \ PF: 2.6

*Career high

DeRozen is displaying the exact same trait as the team overall. Useless when shooting from a distance but very accurate from the free-throw line. If someone would like to explain that to us then drop us a line using the Twitter details at the bottom of the article, please!

He is the points leader for the Bulls and, perhaps more tellingly, is also the assists leader.

With 4.9 per game.

LaVine and Vucevic get close to that figure but it's not exactly the stuff of dream teams is it? A combined total of 12.4 assists per game between them...

Haliburton gets 10.2 for the Pacers by himself.

• Nikola Vucevic

2022/’23 averages per NBA game:

• G: 45 \ GS:45 \ MP: 43.7 \ PTS: 17.5 \ FG%: 52.1 \ 3P%: 37.4 \ FT%: 83.3 \ TRB: 11.0 \ AST: 3.2 \ STL: 0.7 \ BLK: 0.9 \ TOV: 1.8 \ PF: 2.1

While Nikola Vucevic is not ripping up trees and smashing any of his own career highs just yet, he is getting a superb 11 assists per game for the Bulls and boy do they need them. He also adds a crucial 17.5 points per game and grabbed a sensational 43 points in the Bulls' demolition of the Golden Strate Warriors 132-118 on January 16th. He took 13 rebounds in that game too, for good measure.

What next?

Here in the Jump Hub office, we have made it pretty clear how we feel about tanking. It disgusts us. But we're allowing ourselves to have hope in our hearts that the Bulls won't take this cowardly option this season. Those recent back-to-back wins give us even more hope that they are giving it their all. As does the fact that their best players continue to get heavy minutes. Rightly so.

• They're only 2 wins behind the Indiana Pacers and have 3 games-in-hand to catch and overtake them.

Long may it continue

Detroit Pistons @ 1001.00

NBA Central Division betting odds progression:

@ 251.00 — @ 401.00 — @ 801.00 — @ 501.00 — @ 1001.00

Oct 23rd — Nov 17th — Dec 1st/6th — Jan 9th/Mar 8th — Mar 16th

NBA Eastern Conference betting odds: @ 1001.00

NBA Championship betting odds: @ 501.00

• Record: 16-54

• Streak: 1 loss

• 9-27 at home

• 7-27 on the road

Current table positions:

• Central Division: 5th

• Eastern Conference: 15th

• NBA: 30th

Update: 24th Jan 2023

The Detroit Pistons have 7 players making double-figures in scoring. That's more than any team we've mentioned so far during these Divisional breakdowns. All of the Atlantic and Central Division teams we've covered, and Detroit have the most scoring strength in depth?

This sport never ceased to amaze and confuse us. Is it any wonder that we struggle to win any decent money by poring over the stats and trying to draw conclusions? It is the stuff of madness. Their highest scorer at the moment is:

• Bojan Bogdanovic

2022/’23 averages per NBA game:

• G: 45 \ GS:45 \ MP: 31.5 \ PTS: 21.3* \ FG%: 48.6 \ 3P%: 41.2 \ FT%: 88.0 \ TRB: 3.6 \ AST: 2.8* \ STL: 0.6 \ BLK: 0.1 \ TOV: 2.2 \ PF: 1.7

*Career high

Certainly, they are not hurting for points in games. In fact they:

• Score as many points as the top team in their division, the Milwaukee Bucks (112.2)

So, what's going so horribly wrong?

We stated at the top of this article that we intend to give all teams the benefit of the doubt and believe that they are not deliberately tanking games in order to get better NBA Draft picks later. if the Pistons are tanking, they hide it well.

The major, glaring issue that the Detroit Pistons have is that they concede so many points per game. Currently 119.5, second most in the NBA after the San Antonio Spurs. There are other contributing factors but if you regularly score 7 points fewer than your opponent then there's only going to be one natural outcome.

• Current points differential: -7.6

Statistically, per game they:

• Attempt the fewest field goals in the Central Division (39.7) 4th worst in the NBA

• Take the least defensive rebounds (31.5)

• Give the fewest assists (22.5)

• Most fouls per game in the whole NBA (22.2)

if you look at the NBA's official website and look at the team stats, you will not find the Detroit Pistons at the bottom of any category except that one (fouls). In fact, they're not even close to the bottom in most of them.

They're not near the top either but that should come as no great surprise

Yet more evidence that studying the stats can only get you so far when it comes to betting on the NBA. There are other factors at play which clearly have a much greater influence on the outcome of games than anybody can comprehend. If we took those stats and tried to predict their position in the NBA, we might put them around the 20-22 mark. Certainly not 29th of 30

The Pistons are equally dire at home and on the road.

They have not won a single game against any of the other teams in the Central Division. Making them a dismal 0-7 in that regard and 4-22 against other Eastern Conference teams.

What next?

It would be disingenuous to say that we think the Detroit Pistons can salvage anything decent from this season. They will finish outside the NBA Playoff places and have very little to play for except pride at this point. But this is professional sports and pride (combined with huge salaries) should still be enough to motivate them to give their all.

We hope that they do

Here at The Jump Hub we love to make mistakes and talk a lot of nonsense at times.

Hit us up and give us your views:

Follow Andrew D on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AndrewDNBA

The Jump Hub tip: (6th Jan '23)

Milwaukee Bucks @ 1.36

Best value odds bet:

Indiana Pacers @ 101.00

*Key to terms:

G: Games \ PTS: Points \ FG%: Field goal percentage \ 

3P%: 3-point percentage \ FT%: Free throw percentage \ 

TRB: Total rebounds \ AST: Assists \ STL: Steals \ BLK: Blocks \ 

TOV: Turnovers \ PF: Personal fouls \