This story appears in SLAM 255.
There’s a saying about the past…Forget that. We’re not here to focus on what was. And at this moment, neither is Cade Cunningham, as he leads a renaissance in Detroit. Yes, the first few years in the League for the Pistons prodigy were tumultuous. Those losses have been well documented: 192 over three years while tying the NBA’s all-time losing streak last season with 28 straight. But in 2025, Cunningham has the city of Detroit envisioning hoops through late April for the first time in six years. It’s a stark contrast to the feeling that loomed over the Henry Ford Detroit Pistons Performance Center just last season.
“It was hard losing so many games. Always seeing myself as a winner growing up, always having won, basically in all sports, to have a streak like last year and to have a year that was as tough as it was, I definitely learned a lot about myself and my mental fortitude,” Cade says. “Also, just staying in the grind, not leaving it. Trusting the work, trusting the path that I always believed I was on. I think that was the biggest thing that helped me get through it.”
Cunningham didn’t just get through it—he’s evolved in the midst of it. He’s averaging the most points (25.6) by a Piston since the 2000-01 season. He’s averaging a career-high 9.3 dimes a night, which ranks third in the L, on top of pulling down 6.0 boards a game. He’s on pace to become the seventh player in League history to average at least 25/9/6, and his eight triple-doubles this season are the third-most by a Piston since Grant Hill’s 13 in ’96-97 and 10 in ’95-96. Oh yeah, and he’s got the Pistons sitting sixth in the Eastern Conference standings with their sights set on moving up.
Jared ebanks 