ESPN's basketball daily cheat sheet is your pregame destination before you lock in daily fantasy and betting decisions for that night's games. Here you'll find our top insights for the slate, including players to target for your daily fantasy rosters, along with game-by-game injury reports.
What you need to know for Sunday
In series-based sports, Game 7 is the holy grail of competition. The Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons have each played 13 games this postseason. Tonight's matchup, which tips at 8 PM ET, marks 14 games for each.
The once-dominant historical edge for home teams in Game 7s (74% win rate all-time) has noticeably faded in the modern era. Over the past decade, home-court advantage has shrunk to a near coin flip, with road teams regularly pulling off upsets. In fact, visiting teams have won at least one Game 7 in every postseason over the last 11 years, confirming elimination games are far less dependent on venue than in prior eras.
Cleveland's offense is driven by its two primary guard creators. Detroit's key advantage has been its improved ability to disrupt Cleveland's pick-and-roll actions, forcing more difficult possessions and turning the game into a physical grind where bench shooting and role players are likely to matter more than star production.
With Detroit positioned as modest favorites and the total hovering near 205, the betting markets align with expectations of a slower, physical Game 7 -- one defined by tightened defenses, lower efficiency and possessions that grind down into half-court execution rather than pace or scoring runs. This setup favors a possession-by-possession battle where execution under fatigue matters more than offensive rhythm, especially with a trip to face a well-rested, recently dominant Knicks team on the line.
With an eye toward uncovering compelling betting angles and daily fantasy decisions, let's take a look at the day ahead.
McCormick's bets for Sunday
Donovan Mitchell to lead game in 3-pointers made (+281)
With the Pistons working to get the ball out of Mitchell's hands as early as possible in possessions, this elite perimeter scorer has begun to pull the string whenever there is even a sliver of space and time to get a clean look. With his shot diet getting pushed deeper beyond the arc, Mitchell has the usage and skill set to deliver on this fun prop. A play on Duncan Robinson at +499 is also intriguing, given he's the highest-volume catch-and-shoot threat on the floor.
Paul Reed over 4.5 rebounds (-151)
This one comes at a cost, but the juice is potentially worth the squeeze. "B-Ball Paul" and his recent stretch of closing games for the Pistons speaks to the team's need for his offensive rebounding and chaos creation on defense. The real selling point is growing trust and the premise that the Pistons' bench doesn't have any time left to let Jalen Duren figure out his late-game utility, lending Reed more minutes and rebounding chances.
Top Daily Fantasy Values of the Day
$14,000+ Salaries
Cade Cunningham, PG, Detroit Pistons ($17,400)
While Cleveland has two high-ceiling guards, Cunningham is the lone offensive engine in Motown. The ball will be in Cade's hands throughout the game. Yes, the turnovers and fatigue could prove problematic, but there just isn't any other player in this game with the blend of floor and upside Cunningham brings to the court.
$11,000-$13,900 Salaries
Tobias Harris, SF, Detroit Pistons ($12,900)
Game 6 saw Harris take just seven shots from the floor after having lofted at least 14 shots in each of the 12 prior playoff games. This screams positive regression for Harris in the scoring column. A more active Harris is needed as the Cavaliers enter with the more versatile offensive roster.
$1,500-$10,900 Salaries
Paul Reed, PF, Detroit Pistons ($7,200)
A trio of Pistons have emerged as DFS building blocks. The cool kids call this "stacking" a lineup. Detroit's role players are simply more projectable in regards to minutes and touches. Building on his rebounding upside, Reed also brings enough defense and clean-up scoring to profile as a value in DFS competition today. After all, he's delivered at least 25 DraftKings points in three straight games. The workload is only growing for Reed.
Projections and Injury Reports
Basketball Power Index by ESPN Analytics. Injury aggregation by Rotowire.com. Odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook
Cleveland Cavaliers at Detroit Pistons
8 p.m. ET on Prime Video
Line: Cavaliers +4.5 (-110) | Pistons -4.5 (-110)
Money line: Cavaliers +154 | Pistons -185
Total: 205.5 (-110 O, -110 U)
BPI Projection: Pistons by 6.7, straight up 70%, 219.8 total points.
Injury Report:
Cavaliers: Larry Nance Jr., (GTD - Illness)
Pistons: Caris LeVert, (GTD - Heel)
