Detroit Pistons vs Dallas Mavericks Prediction, 12/18/2025 Preview and Pick

Game: Detroit Pistons vs Dallas Mavericks

Date: Thursday, December 18, 2025

Location: American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX

TV: KFAA

Odds/Point Spread: Detroit (-5.5)

The Detroit Pistons (21-5) are hitting the road to American Airlines Center on Thursday where they will play the Dallas Mavericks (10-17). Detroit opens this game as 5.5-point favorites. The over/under has been set at 230.

The Pistons stepped onto the hardwood against the Celtics and earned the victory with a final of 112-105 in their last game. Detroit walked away from the game having earned a 46.1% field goal percentage (41 out of 89) and knocked down 13 of their 36 shots from 3-point land. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Pistons made 17 of 25 attempts for a rate of 68.0%. In the matter of getting rebounds, they compiled 39 with 12 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 21 assists in this contest in addition to forcing the other team into 13 turnovers and having 9 steals. In terms of defending, Detroit allowed the other team to go 46.3% from the floor on 38 of 82 shooting. Boston earned 16 dimes and had 7 steals for the matchup. Moreover, Boston had 37 rebounds (7 offensive, 30 defensive) and got 3 blocks. Boston walked away from this one shooting 70.4% from the charity stripe by burying 19 of their 27 shots. They converted 10 out of their 39 tries from three-point range. With respect to fouls, the Pistons finished with 20 and the Celtics totaled 20 fouls.

Cade Cunningham is one player who was a factor in the matchup. He ended up with 32 points on 11 of 21 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 36 mins played and also totaled 4 boards. Cunningham ended up going 52.4% from the field and earned 10 assists.

Get all of our NBA Picks Tonight

Detroit will take the court with a win-loss record of 21-5 this year. They are giving up possession 15.8 times per game and as a unit they commit 22.8 personal fouls per game. As a unit, Detroit is pulling down 46.2 boards per game and has 682 assists so far this year, which ranks 13th in the NBA in terms of passing the ball. The Pistons are connecting on 35.6% on 3-pointers (294 of 825) and 74.8% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 119.3 pts per contest (8th in the NBA) while going 48.5% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Pistons are forcing 16.8 turnovers per contest and they draw 23.2 personal fouls. They currently rank 2nd in the NBA in giving up assists to their opponents with 605 relinquished on the season. The Pistons defense is giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 44.7% (999 of 2,236) and they surrender 41.2 rebounds per contest as a basketball team. They are relinquishing 35.7% on shots from downtown and they are 5th in the league in opponents points per game (113.0).

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Mavericks took a loss by a final score of 140-133 against the Jazz. When talking about rebounding, Dallas permitted Utah to pull down 47 overall (8 on the offensive side). They went 36.1% from beyond the perimeter by going 13 of 36 and finished the contest at 27 of 33 from the charity stripe (81.8%). The Mavericks permitted the Jazz to convert 50 of 97 attempts from the field which gave them a rate of 51.5% for the game. Overall, the Mavericks ended up shooting 48 for 98 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 49.0%. Regarding shooting from 3-point land, Dallas knocked down 9 of their 27 tries (33.3%). They were able to knock down 28 of them for a rate of 68.3%. The Jazz earned 32 fouls for this contest which took the Mavericks to the charity stripe for a total of 41 tries. They also gave up possession of the ball 15 times, while recording 6 steals in this game. The Mavericks pulled down 40 defensive boards and 14 offensive boards totaling 54 in the game.

Cooper Flagg ended up having an impact for the Mavericks in the matchup. He knocked down 13 of 27 for the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 48.1%, and added 7 rebounds. Flagg recorded 42 points in his 42 mins of playing time and earned 6 assists for this game.

Dallas has a win-loss mark of 10-17 this year. The Mavericks commit 20.7 fouls every game and they go 75.2% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 25.0 times per game (25th in basketball) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 15.5 times per game. Dallas has tallied 3,048 pts on the campaign (112.9 per game) and they grab 44.2 rebounds per game. As an offensive team, the Mavericks are shooting 46.1% from the floor, which is 21st in the NBA.

The Dallas defense gives up 33.5% on shots from beyond the perimeter (307 of 917) and their opponents are converting on 77.6% of their free throw attempts. They concede 25.9 assists and 47.4 rebounds per contest, which has them ranked 11th and 27th in the league. The Mavericks on defense are ranked 18th in the NBA in PPG given up with 116.8. They have forced 14.2 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 46.3% from the floor (11th in the league).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Dallas (+5.5)

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Get NBA picks on every single game, or if you want our very best bets by the experts, sign up for your free $60 account with a guarantee.