Pistons vs. Knicks Preview: Unbeaten Detroit Visits Winless New York

Three games into the season, the Atlantic and Central divisions look upside down. The Detroit Pistons (3-0) visit the New York Knicks (0-3) at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night, live on NBC.

Game details

Pistons: perfect, but short-handed

Detroit has looked like one of the East’s best teams so far. On Sunday night it beat Philadelphia from start to finish.

Players to watch:

• Cade Cunningham has been strong in points, rebounds and assists. The one worry is 16 turnovers in three games.
• John Collins is averaging 15.0 points and 7.7 rebounds.
• Duncan Robinson is shooting over 53% from three on nearly 10 attempts a game.
• Daniss Jenkins scored 18 points as a starter against Philadelphia.

The bad news is the injury list. Starting center Jalen Duren (hamstring) and forward Ausar Thompson (ankle) are both out, and guard Isaiah Joe (hip) is a game-time decision. Without Duren, Detroit could have trouble on the boards.

Knicks: looking for a first win

New York’s 0-3 start is a surprise for a team with big expectations. The latest loss came against Orlando. Playing at home, against a Detroit team missing two starters, is a good chance to get the first win.

Guard Jose Alvarado (ankle) will miss the game.

Three things to watch

1. Rebounding. With Duren out, can the Knicks control the glass?
2. Cunningham’s turnovers. If he keeps giving the ball away, the Knicks will get easy points.
3. Detroit’s three-point shooting. Robinson’s hot start has stretched defenses. If he stays hot, the Pistons can win even without their big men.

How to watch outside the US

The game starts at 8:00 pm ET, which is 00:00 GMT (Wednesday) and 5:30 am Wednesday in India and Sri Lanka. Outside the US, it’s usually available on NBA League Pass.

For the rest of tonight’s games, see NBA games tonight.

Sources: Yahoo Sports – Knicks vs. Pistons preview, Yahoo Sports – NBA TV schedule.