The Detroit Pistons have secured the top spot in the Eastern Conference without Cade Cunningham. His late-season injury has not slowed them down in the slightest, giving fans a lot of confidence going into the playoffs. When Cunningham returns, the Pistons’ postseason power will be even more formidable, and they will need him.
Pistons Prove They’re the Best in the East, With or Without Cunningham
At this point, anyone who pays even a remote amount of attention to the NBA knows that Cunningham sustained a collapsed lung. He has been out of action since March 17th, meaning he will have missed the last month of the 2025-26 regular season.
It couldn’t have come at a worse time. These weeks are the final push into the postseason. It’s when teams try to cement their playoff seed position and pick up those late-season wins that will give them home-court advantage or a clutch tiebreaker in the standings. This isn’t the time of year a team can afford to be without their top player for an extended period.
As it turns out, the Pistons were good. Under the leadership of Jalen Duren and the rising Daniss Jenkins, the Pistons have now won nine out of 12 games since Cunningham’s injury. It was the exact performance they needed down the stretch.
Detroit is the No. 1 Seed in the Eastern Conference
The Pistons will face the eighth seed in the first round of the playoffs. Even better, their opponent will be coming off two tough games in the Play-In Tournament. Six teams are still fighting over the final two playoff spots, with the rest heading to the Play-In.
Even without Cunningham, the Pistons have proven to be a dominant force in the league. They have beaten the Lakers, the Wolves, and the Sixers. In the case of the Lakers, that was before they lost both Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves to injuries in the same game.
Keep in mind that there are only three games left in the season. The Pistons will take on the Bucks, the Hornets, and the Pacers to close out their schedule, with the last two games being in Detroit. While first place in the East is a done deal, finishing off the season strong matters, particularly if they are without Cunningham going into the playoffs.
There are No Guarantees for the Pistons
As of now, Cunningham is back on the court for practices with the team. Though he didn’t end up playing against the Magic on April 6th, his status was updated to “doubtful” for that game. That is a huge step forward in his recovery.
The Pistons still hope they’ll get Cunningham back for the regular-season finale. At the same time, they also know they absolutely have to be careful. Putting him in action before he’s ready could do more harm than good. Detroit needs him more for the playoffs than the last three games of the season.
As good as the Pistons have been playing, they don’t want to go into the postseason without Cunningham. Playoff basketball is a completely different gear, and Detroit needs him at his best to survive, let alone thrive.
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