Detroit Pistons: Cade Cunningham will be better than these 3 All-Stars

Detroit Pistons: Cade Cunningham is a better all-around player than Brandon Ingram

In college, Ingram barely edged out Cade in most statistical categories, and his Duke team had four other future NBA players on it. Ingram has taken massive leaps since joining the NBA, but playing for the woeful post-Kobe Lakers and then jumping to the Lonzo and Zion Pelicans will do that for someone’s career.

Brandon Ingram is a very good player. He made an All-Star game for a reason. But on a good team, he’d be nothing more than a role player.

He’s a very talented scorer, no one will deny him that. His wingspan is 7’3” and he stands at 6’8”. He could be a force, but he weighs 190 pounds. As a forward, you have to have a secondary skill. Butler and Kawhi Leonard play defense, LeBron passes, Giannis grabs rebounds. Cade (if you count him as a forward) kind of does it all.

Brandon Ingram does nothing other than score. He is not an elite defender despite his massive wingspan. He averages 3.5 assists and only 5 rebounds throughout his career. He is turnover-prone and should avoid putting the ball on the floor.

This is why I think he’s a role player. He can get buckets from all over the court, but that’s pretty much it. Cade is also a very gifted scorer who should also be able to put up 20 a night, but he plays solid defense, rebounds well, and when he actually has help should set his teammates up for easy points.

The Pelicans were a better team than Detroit last year. If Ingram and Cade switched places, the Pistons would be bad again. If Cade got to play with an elite passer in Lonzo Ball and perhaps the soon-to-be best player in the league with Zion, then the Pelicans would immediately be title contenders. Think about that. Cade could easily replace Ingram and propel the Pelicans to one of the top seeds n a loaded Western Conference. Could Ingram do that to the Pistons? Nope.

Right now, at this moment, Paul George and Jimmy Butler are better basketball players than Cade. I can’t make the same cade for Brandon Ingram.

Paul George demanded out of Indiana and Oklahoma City. Jimmy Butler called it quits in Minnesota and Philadelphia. Brandon Ingram also jumped around, although that was through trade. All three are very good players, although Cade will be better. He has also given no reason for Detroit fans to think he’ll demand out as soon as possible–in fact, it seems like the opposite is true.

That’s where his real value lies. He can be a great player, but he is also the undisputed foundational piece for the Detroit Pistons and will be for a very long time. Not only is he better than George, Butler, and Ingram, he’s more valuable to the city.