The New York Knicks look to grab a win and send a message to the Eastern Conference leaders tonight when they welcome the Detroit Pistons to Madison Square Garden.
The Pistons have dominated the matchup this season, including a stunning 118-80 blowout victory in their last meeting on February 7, marking one of the Knicks' lowest scoring games of the season. Detroit will be without the suspended Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart as they continue to serve out their punishment for their roles in the brawl prior to the Break. Their absence makes it all the more imperative that New York send a message to Detroit tonight. It is the first game back after the All-Star Break for both teams and will be viewed by many as a critical measuring stick for the Knicks.
The Pistons arrive at the Garden sitting firmly atop the Eastern Conference with a record of 40-13, led by MVP candidate Cade Cunningham. The Pistons are riding a three-game road winning streak and have proven they can bully the Knicks. That said, without the suspended Duren and Stewart, Detroit will probably look to rely more on their shooting from beyond the arc and push the ball in transition consistently.
Tonight is the final regular season meeting between these teams which means it’s the Knicks’ final opportunity before the playoffs to send the Pistons and perhaps themselves a message. Tonight must begin with a concerted effort to slow down Cunningham. The Knicks’ efforts against the All-Star point guard should benefit from the probable return of their Swiss Army knife, OG Anunoby (toe). The defensive stalwart has missed the last four games for New York. As good as they need to be defensively against Cunningham and company, the Knicks go as their All-Stars Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns go on the offensive end. New York has dominated opponents when Brunson and KAT are cooking offensively.
Lets take a closer look at the matchup and take into consideration lineups, injuries, and other factors affecting the line and total.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch tipoff, odds courtesy of DraftKings recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
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Game Details and How to Watch Live: Pistons at Knicks
- Date: Thursday, February 19, 2026
- Time: 7:30PM EST
- Site: Madison Square Garden
- City: New York, NY
- Network/Streaming: Amazon Prime Video, MSG
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Game Odds: Pistons at Knicks
The latest odds as of Thursday courtesy of DraftKings:
- Moneyline: Detroit Pistons (+145), New York Knicks (-175)
- Spread: Knicks -4.5
- Total: 223.5 points
This game opened Knicks -2.5 with the Total set at 222.5.
Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & player props for every matchup this week on the NBA schedule!
Expected Starting Lineups: Pistons at Knicks
Detroit Pistons
- PG Cade Cunningham
- SG Ausar Thompson
- SF Duncan Robinson`
- PF Tobias Harris
- C Paul Reed
New York Knicks
- PG Jalen Brunson
- SG Josh Hart
- SF Mikael Bridges
- PF OG Anunoby
- C Karl-Anthony Towns
Injury Report: Pistons at Knicks
Detroit Pistons
- Isaiah Stewart (suspension) has been declared OUT for tonight’s game
- Jalen Duren (suspension) has been declared OUT for tonight’s game
New York Knicks
- OG Anunoby (toe) is listed as questionable for tonight’s game
- Miles McBride (pelvis) has been ruled OUT of tonight’s game
Important stats, trends and insights: Pistons at Knicks
- The Knicks are 21-7 at home this season
- The Pistons are 18-7 on the road this season
- The Knicks are 29-25-1 ATS this season / 19-9 at home
- The Pistons are 29-23-1 ATS this season / 14-10-1 on the road
- The OVER has cashed in 27 of the Knicks’ 55 games this season (27-28)
- The OVER has cashed in 22 of the Pistons’ 53 games this season (22-31)
- Cade Cunningham’s PRA average over the last 5 games is 40.0
- Kar-Anthony Towns has reached double figures in rebounding in 9 straight gamesand achieved a double-double in 8 of those 9
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NBA calendar based on data points like recent performance, head-to-head player matchups, trends information and projected game totals.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projections next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for tonight’s Knicks and Pistons’ game:
- Moneyline: Rotoworld Bet is recommending a play on the Knicks on the Moneyline
- Spread: Rotoworld Bet is leaning towards a play on the Knicks -4.5 ATS
- Total: Rotoworld Bet is staying away from a play on the Game Total of 223.5
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