{"id":129773,"date":"2025-03-20T18:03:21","date_gmt":"2025-03-20T22:03:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=129773"},"modified":"2025-03-20T18:24:27","modified_gmt":"2025-03-20T22:24:27","slug":"cade-cunninghams-rise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/03\/20\/cade-cunninghams-rise\/","title":{"rendered":"Cade Cunningham’s Rise Powers Pistons to National Spotlight"},"content":{"rendered":"

Despite trailing by 12 in the first quarter and falling behind by eight with 11:32 remaining in the fourth, the Detroit Pistons<\/a> fought back. During that stretch, they outscored the Miami Heat 28-17 to secure a 116-113 victory in front of a national audience, showcasing their brand of basketball. All five starters scored in double figures, while Malik Beasley<\/a> added 16 points, knocking down five three-pointers.<\/p>\n

Leading the charge was Cade Cunningham<\/a>, who delivered yet another statement performance. In 35 minutes, he recorded his ninth triple-double<\/a> of the season, finishing with 25 points, 11 assists, and 12 rebounds. Cunningham shot 11-of-25 from the field and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc, including a clutch game-winner that gave the Pistons their largest lead. Since his rookie max extension, Cunningham has silenced doubts, exceeded expectations, and helped rise the Pistons to becoming a must-see team.<\/p>\n

With the season winding down, has Cunningham cemented himself among the NBA\u2019s elite? Where will his name land when postseason awards and All-NBA teams are announced?<\/p>\n

Cade Cunningham’s Rise Powers Pistons to National Spotlight<\/h2>\n

Cunningham’s Rise Has Proved The Doubters Wrong<\/h3>\n

When Cunningham signed his extension<\/a>, some questioned whether he was worth it. Despite being the No. 1 pick and averaging 22.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 7.5 assists last season, critics wondered if he could be the focal point of a contending team. His struggles in the win column\u2014just 32-106 in his first 138 games<\/a>\u2014combined with an injury history, fueled skepticism.<\/p>\n

One person who never wavered was Pistons president Trajan Langdon, who built a roster to maximize Cunningham\u2019s strengths. He added two knockdown shooters, Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr.<\/a>, along with the veteran presence<\/a> of Tobias Harris<\/a>, giving Cunningham more space to operate offensively. It also helps that he has two elite athletes, Ausar Thompson<\/a> and Jalen Duren<\/a>, who turn even his off-target lobs into highlight-reel finishes.<\/p>\n

End Of Season Awards?<\/h3>\n

Cunningham\u2019s rise this season has cemented his place in the national spotlight. He earned his first All-Star selection and is officially in the mix for postseason awards. While the MVP race is realistically a two-person battle between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a> and Nikola Joki\u0107<\/a>, Cunningham\u2019s name could still appear on some ballots. More importantly, he deserves recognition for the season he\u2019s having.<\/p>\n

An All-NBA selection feels inevitable. The honest debate is which team he\u2019ll land on. First-team consideration is ambitious<\/a>, but second-team honors seem like a lock.<\/p>\n

Cunningham is also the betting favorite<\/a> to win Most Improved Player, especially with Norman Powell<\/a> now ineligible due to a recent injury<\/a>.\u00a0Some may doubt his growth, but his stats prove he\u2019s elevated from great to elite.<\/p>\n

The Last Word<\/h3>\n

Cade Cunningham\u2019s rise isn\u2019t just a personal triumph\u2014it\u2019s a signal that the Detroit Pistons are no longer an afterthought. His leadership, resilience, and elite play have redefined expectations, proving that the franchise has a true cornerstone to build around.<\/p>\n

While this season has been a breakout, it feels like just the beginning. With end-of-season accolades on the horizon and his name now mentioned among the league\u2019s best, Cunningham is shaping the future\u2014not just for himself, but for an entire city hungry for success.<\/p>\n

The question isn\u2019t whether Cunningham belongs among the NBA\u2019s elite. It\u2019s how far he\u2019ll climb. And if this season is any indication, the best is yet to come.<\/p>\n

Photo credit: \u00a9 Sam Navarro-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Despite trailing by 12 in the first quarter and falling behind by eight with 11:32 remaining in the fourth, the Detroit Pistons fought back. During that stretch, they outscored the Miami Heat 28-17 to secure a 116-113 victory in front of a national audience, showcasing their brand of basketball. All five starters scored in double […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5168,"featured_media":129794,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"1","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10,1608,62],"tags":[4704,3965,4432,293,287,343],"class_list":["post-129773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pistons","category-basketball","category-nba","tag-ausar-thompson","tag-cade-cunningham","tag-jalen-duren","tag-malik-beasley","tag-tim-hardaway-jr","tag-tobias-harris"],"modified_by":"Eamon Cassels, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129773","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5168"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=129773"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129773\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":129795,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129773\/revisions\/129795"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/129794"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=129773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=129773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=129773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}