The Detroit Pistons won 20 games this season, a masterclass in tanking that landed them the number one pick in the NBA Draft, which they will almost certainly use to take Cade Cunningham.
Cunningham is a unique talent, a 6-foot-8 point guard who can pretty much do everything, including score from all three levels and defend all over the court.
But will adding him to a 20-win team make them a playoff contender? Cunningham himself seems to think so.
In a recent appearance on The Old Man and the Three podcast with J.J. Redick, Cunningham was confident in his ability to take a team to the playoffs in his rookie season, saying:
"“One of the main things is making the playoffs rookie year, I want to be in that race for sure.”"
I love his confidence and the fact that he has made winning an immediate goal, but is it possible? Let’s take a look at the reasons Cade Cunningham will (or won’t) meet his goal of taking the Detroit Pistons to the playoffs.
Detroit Pistons: Cade Cunningham will be a superstar and make the playoffs in year one
If you were to make a player in a laboratory that was perfect for the modern NBA game, that player might be Cade Cunningham.
In a league currently dominated by perimeter scoring, Cunningham has the right mix of size, shooting and playmaking to be an immediate superstar in the NBA.
Cunningham dragged a mediocre Oklahoma State team to the NCAA tournament without much help and will now be surrounded by NBA players who can better take advantage of his skill set and put him in a better position to succeed.
Rookie point guards struggle, just ask Killian Hayes
The argument against this is that young guards always struggle in their first season in the NBA and the Detroit Pistons are going to essentially have a back court of two rookies.
Killian Hayes showed flashes last season, but turned the ball over way too much and struggled with shot selection, two things that could plague Cunningham as he adjusts to playing in the NBA.
Cunningham is also accustomed to doing everything himself and will have to get used to trusting teammates more than he did in college, which could take some time.
I think the backcourt combination will be a good one, perhaps one of the best young backcourts in the NBA, but it will take time, which will cost the Detroit Pistons a legitimate chance at the playoffs next season.