Cade Cunningham
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Cade Cunningham drew praise from Pistons legend Isiah Thomas
Detroit Pistons legend Isiah Thomas, the pioneer of the Bad Boys era, believes the next generation of Detroit basketball is in safe hands with Cade Cunningham.
Thomas led the Pistons to back-to-back NBA championships and won Finals MVP in 1990. He believes that, with the former No. 1 pick Cunningham at the helm, the Pistons are on the cusp of another championship.
Some believe that a lack of playoff experience among the Pistons’ young core hinders their championship odds.
Thomas believes it’s a non-factor.
“That’s not a concern at all,” Thomas told DJ Siddiqi with R.org. “They have know how and what I mean by know how, they know how to win. Cade Cunningham is possibly MVP of the league. They got (Jalen) Duren, who’s an All Star. They got (Isaiah) Stewart, who could be the defensive player of the year also. They’re covered in every area they got. They got great coaching.”
“I just don’t think that lack of playoff experience will be a problem,” Thomas continued. “I think that the playoff experience that they got last year playing against the Knicks, they’re ready, and they’re primed to do big things.”
Thomas Believes Cade is Cut From “Old School” Cloth
Cade Cunningham
GettyCade Cunningham leads the Pistons in points and assists this season
Isiah Thomas knows a thing or two about running a fluid offense.
The Pistons legend led the NBA in assists during the 1984-85 season. During that stellar season, he averaged 13.9 assists per game, which set an NBA record at the time for the highest single-season assist average.
He consistently got his teammates involved, averaging over 10 assists per game for four consecutive seasons.
Now, Thomas is impressed by the Pistons’ new-age playmaker Cunningham, who is developing into a phenomenal playmaker in Detroit.
Unlike modern point guards who seek to score first, Thomas admires Cunningham for consistently involving his teammates.
“He was a big guard, a great mid-range player, but then he also would feed his big man. What sets Cade apart in this generation of players at the point guard position, Cade is willing to share the basketball with his big men, so Stewart and Duren as centers, they get a chance to really play. They get a chance to really touch the basketball and really affect the game offensively.
“Most point guards right now, they don’t share the ball with their big man,” said Thomas. “They only use their big men as screeners and lob threats, where Cade is actually feeding those guys underneath the basket, giving them an opportunity to touch and play post basketball.”
Thomas praised the Pistons star’s mentality, referring to a Cunningham as an “old-school” player.
“Cade is an old school player,” said Thomas. “He’s a guy that can eat, he can eat his food without eating yours. Most players today want to eat their food and eat yours too. Not Cade. Cade eats what’s on his plate, and then he has the ability to share sometimes also.”
Cade Cunningham Should Be MVP Frontrunner
Cade Cunningham
GettyCade Cunningham has led the Pistons the No. 1 seed in East
Thomas’ high praise for Cunningham goes beyond their Pistons allegiance.
The two-time All-Star guard has genuinely played at an elite level this season.
Cade has led the Pistons to the East’s best record at 40-13. The Pistons’ defense has been rock solid this season, but Cunningham has been the engine of the offense.
The 24-year-old guard is averaging 25.3 points, 9.6 assists 5.6 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game.
His stellar play earned him his second All-Star nod and his first as an Eastern Conference starter.
“It’s a bigger stage, and that’s the beauty of the game,” Cunningham recently told Andscape. “I didn’t fall in love with the game because of the stage that it was. But eventually, I learned to love being on the biggest stage possible and playing in the highest stake games. That’s what I loved doing.
“Being in an All-Star game in L.A., it ain’t no bigger stage than that. You can’t replicate that anywhere else. It’s like you practice, you have quizzes throughout the year and then this is the big test that passes the grade. Those are the big ones that mean something, that just mean more.”
Already an All-Star starter, Cunningham could be in line for MVP hardware and All-NBA consideration this season.