Cade Cunningham update, injuries and how to watch

The Detroit Pistons face the Indiana Pacers on the road tonight in their third game of the NBA Cup.

The Pistons have yet to lose a cup game. So if they win one of their games against Indiana or Milwaukee, they will advance to the knockout rounds. They still have a chance to play a home game in the knockout rounds, but let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves here because the Pistons still have big work to do.

Here are the top injuries, watching tips and some important numbers for the Pistons vs. Pacers in the NBA Cup.

If the Pistons don’t have Cade Cunningham and Tobias Harris, their chances of winning decrease significantly, as we saw in the unforgettable loss to Memphis.

Both players are listed as questionable tonight with hip injuries. Cade Cunningham came out and did the shootaround before the last game, and he’ll likely do it again tonight, so this is the deciding call for the game.

Bobi Klintman is also out, but according to his Instagram story he’s “coming closer,” with some hoping he’ll be back soon as the Pistons could use more depth, size and shooting ability in their bench unit.

The Pacers will be missing Ben Sheppard, Aaron Nesmith, Andrew Nembhard, Isaiah Jackson and James Wiseman, so they will also be shorthanded.

The 8:00 p.m. ET tipoff in Indiana will be televised on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit or you can listen to it on 97.1 FM The Ticket.

If you don’t have cable, you can find streaming options here.

The Pistons have yet to beat a team in the Central Division and are 0-4 against their rivals, something that needs to change if they ever really want to compete in the Eastern Conference.

The Pacers are 7-2 at home and just 2-8 on the road, so the Pistons will have a challenge against one of the better home teams in the NBA.

In this case, there will be two keys for the Pistons, once again shutting down Tyrese Haliburton and keeping Myles Turner at bay.

The Pistons did a great job with Haliburton last game, keeping him in check on a poor shooting night, but Myles Turner was the difference.

The Pistons have had well-documented issues against stretch centers this season, so this is a tough matchup for Jalen Duren, who doesn’t defend well at the rim.

The Pistons could benefit from bringing Duren in early and taking on Turner, even if he is an excellent rim protector. Duren appears to be more engaged on defense when he gets touches on offense, which is not unusual for a big man. So we’ll see him get some early touches and try to push the transition off rebounds, which is what he’s been doing lately.

Detroit also needs to get something from its bench, which has struggled to score lately. Indiana won the bench battle 46-24 in its last game, so Detroit will have to hold its own when its starters aren’t on the floor.