Boston Celtics vs. Detroit Pistons, Preview, Picks and Prediction, Sunday, October 26, 2025
The Celtics are in desperate need of a win this Sunday as they travel to the Motor City to face the Pistons in Detroit's home opener. Get the inside track on this matchup with our Celtics vs. Pistons prediction and picks. Tip-off is scheduled for 3.30pm CT (4.30pm ET) at the Little Caesars Arena, home of the Pistons.
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Celtics hurting after losses
The Boston Celtics (0-2) have yet to get going in the 2025-26 NBA season. Boston opened up its campaign with an ugly loss to the 76ers, giving up 42 points in the fourth quarter to go down 117-116. Then, the Knicks ran wild at Madison Square Garden on Friday to win out ... leaving the Celtics with two division reverses in their opening two games - the same number they recorded in the whole of the 2024-25 season.
Jayson Tatum has left a big hole in this roster. The guard is a long-term injury absentee after rupturing his Achilles tendon during last season's playoff loss to the Knicks, and the Celtics now expect him to miss the entire year. Tatum put up a team-best 26.7 ppg in 2024-25 with 8.7 rebounds and 6.0 assists, finishing fourth in MVP voting and getting his sixth straight All-Star call-up. Boston will hope that this poor start is just early-season rust rather than anything more serious: the team managed to go 8-2 in games without Tatum last season (61-21) to finish top of the Atlantic Division.
As well as Tatum, Boston could be without Luka Garza on Sunday, as well as star wing Jaylen Brown, who is dealing with a hamstring issue. The center left the season opener against the 76ers and entered concussion protocol, ruling him out of the Knicks' loss. He is marked as questionable this weekend.
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Pistons off the mark after nailbiter
The Detroit Pistons had to dig deep on Friday to see off a strong Houston team, but held on to win 114-111 on the back of a strong showing from Cade Cunningham. The guard put up 19 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists for Detroit, though he caused some concern with eight turnovers out of a total of 17 for the Pistons. Cunningham averaged a team-high 26.1 points per game in a breakout year last season, while ranking fourth amongst NBA players with 9.1 assists.
Friday's win was more than welcome for the Pistons, having started the year with a four-point loss on the road to the Bulls. They shut down a dangerous Houston offense, forcing them to shoot just 38.1% from the field while pulling off 11 blocks. Three of those came from Duncan Robinson, who capped a great game on both sides of the ball with 17 points and shot 4-8 from behind the 3-point line.
On Sunday, Detroit will be without Marcus Sasser (hip) and Jaden Ivey (knee). Caris LeVert (hamstring) sat out against Houston and is marked as questionable.
Celtics vs. Pistons Pick
Celtics vs. Pistons Spread Pick
- Celtics to cover (4 Units)
The Celtics are almost in uncharted territory here with two big losses to start the year. I have to imagine that a strong reaction is coming from this talented lineup and that Detroit will be the victim this weekend. The Boston defense is still looking strong, averaging 5.0 steals per game so far (1st in NBA) and 17.0 turnovers, encouraging numbers given Cunnigham and Detroit's sloppy ball-handling vs. Houston. The Celtics have dominated this matchup in recent years, taking three of four against the Pistons in 2024-25 and going 12 games without defeat before Detroit recorded its first win over Boston in more than three years back in February.
Take the Celtics.
Celtics vs. Pistons Over/Under Pick
- Under (5 Units)
The Celtics have had trouble scoring without Tatum early on this season, averaging 105.5 points per game so far to rank 29th in the NBA. That plus their solid defense should keep the total down on Sunday against a Pistons team struggling to make their shots, with an effective FG% of 51.6% (20th in NBA) and an accuracy rate of only 67.3% from the free-throw line (26th). Detroit has also been formidable without the ball, holding opponents to a 47.6% effective FG% (3rd in NBA). Back this to be a defense-first game and stay on the low side.
Take the under.
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