Los Angeles Lakers vs Detroit Pistons live stream: Watch NBA live on TV, preview, start time

The Los Angeles Lakers (15-29) will host the Detroit Pistons (18-29) at the Staples Center Sunday just a day after suffering a blowout defeat against inter-city rivals the Los Angeles Clippers (28-14).

Both Lakers and Pistons, who will face each other for the first time in the 2016-17 NBA season, are on three-game losing streaks and are quickly losing traction for a possible berth in the postseason.

The young Lakers team has lost its last three games by an average margin of 25.7 points, with point guard D'Angelo Russell scoring in single digits during the hat-trick of defeats. Russell, a former No. 2 overall pick, is shooting a mediocre 37 percent from the field in his last five games and a subpar 20 percent from deep. It's been a steady fall for Russell, who began 2017 on a high with a 28-point game against the Toronto Raptors.

On Saturday, Russell was held to just 5 points by Chris Paul and the Clippers, propelling coach Luke Walton to ask his young guard to step up his aggression. “I told him (Russell) he’s been magnificent for us this whole month. Tonight, I didn’t think he had that same bounce in his step. … We need him to be more aggressive and be the player that we all know he is, that he’s capable of being. We’ve seen it for most of this month," Walton said of Russell, via the Los Angeles Times.

Los Angeles Lakers vs Detroit Pistons: LA's second unit playing pivotal role

As has been the trend for most of the season, the Lakers' second unit outscored the starting unit, which produced only 41 points. "We need to see sharper execution (from the starters). The way we started the game tonight, our bigs weren't rolling (on pick-and-roll) and we weren't setting screens. Our spacing was bad. When we did get open, there was nothing to do with the ball there," added Walton.

Meanwhile, the Pistons, too, are facing a plethora of problems. For starters, they are allowing opponents to score 49.6 percent from the three-point line during the first four games of their ongoing five-game West Coast trip. While getting blown out by the Utah Jazz on Friday during a 110-77 defeat, they allowed the home team to sink 16 out of 31 shots from deep, a statistic that didn't please coach Stan Van Gundy.

"We can't stop anybody (on defence). We just can't. I mean for the first 21 games we were the second-best defensive team in the league and now we are one of the worst. I'm frustrated. Not with our players, I'm frustrated with myself that I can't figure this out. I mean, we literally can't stop anyone, ever," the Pistons coach lamented, via ESPN.

For the Lakers, veteran forward Luol Deng is expected to re-join the team after sitting out Saturday's game. The Purple & Gold will stay at home to host the Denver Nuggets (on Tuesday) and the Indiana Pacers (on Friday) before beginning a three-game road trip next weekend.

Los Angeles Lakers vs Detroit Pistons live stream: How to watch

Start time: 9:30 PM (ET), 6:30 PM (PT), 12:30 PM on Monday (AEST), 1:30 PM (AEDT)
On TV: Time Warner Sports Net, Fox Sports Detroit (USA)
Live Stream: NBA League Pass (Global)