Cade Cunningham was busy last season for the Detroit Pistons.
He carried a big burden on both ends, being the catalyst of the offense but often tasked with defending one of the other team’s best players.
Cade had the highest usage rate among rookies and was often left in difficult positions to make plays, which led to a lot of unnecessary turnovers.
I’d also say that Cade wasn’t able to rack up many “easy” assists on run outs, lobs and kick outs, mostly because the Pistons didn’t run much, didn’t have anyone that could catch a lob and didn’t have nearly enough shooting around Cade Cunningham.
Hopefully that is about to change, as the Detroit Pistons have made four key additions that should make Cade’s life a little easier next season.
Detroit Pistons: Offseason additions should benefit Cade Cunningham
The Pistons may not be done dealing, but they have already had a busy offseason that has seen four key additions to the roster.
The Pistons were able to grab both Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren in the 2022 NBA Draft, which was pretty incredible considering both were high atop their Big Board and they didn’t know if either of them would be available.
Ivey is the more likely of the two to contribute right away, but Duren already showed some flashes in Summer League of the player he is going to be, which is an athletic rim runner who sets quality screens and blocks shots.
The Pistons also added two veterans in a salary dump from the New York Knicks, but these guys can actually play.
Both Nerlens Noel and Alec Burks will give the Detroit Pistons solid veterans who know their roles, guys that have the perfect skillsets to help Cade Cunningham blow up in year two.
But who is going to help Cade the most?
Detroit Pistons: How the veteran additions will help Cade Cunningham
Both the veterans from the Knicks are more or less on expiring deals, but they could be the types of players the Detroit Pistons want to keep around, as they could be a big help to Cade Cunningham.
Nerlens Noel
Noel is going to give Cunningham a better lob threat than he had all of last season. Noel doesn’t spread the floor or do much on offense other than dunk, but he will give Cade an outlet in the middle when things get dicey.
Noel sets hard screens that should benefit the entire Pistons’ offense, but his biggest benefit to Cade will be on the defensive end.
Noel will provide a backstop on defense when the guards get beat on the perimeter. The Pistons lacked rim protection last season and Noel has consistently been one of the best shot blockers in the NBA over his career.
He may only play 20-25 minutes per night, but he will block 1.5 shots in that time and provide some insurance to the guards on defense when they get beaten. You can take more risks on the perimeter when you know there is a guy there defending the rim, so expect Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey to be aggressive on the perimeter when Noel is in the game.
Alec Burks
As a guy who hit over 40 percent of his 3-point shots over the last two seasons, Burks is immediately going to be Detroit’s best long-range shooter, which will help Cade Cunningham right away.
Let’s face it, the Pistons didn’t have much of a 3-point threat last season, as Cory Joseph and Isaiah Livers (who played 19 games) were their best shooters from long range.
Burks will give Cade another weapon to kick out to when he draws in defenses, and having a guy out there who can shoot at a high clip will make teams think twice before they double Cunningham on his dribble penetration.
Cade loves to draw defenses into his mid-range game before either using a hesitation move to get all of the way to rim or to set up open teammates. So many times last season Cade kicked out to those teammates only to have them brick the 3-point shot.
A lot more of those are going to turn into assists this season, so expect Cade to have more room to operate and a few more assists per game next season thanks to the addition of Alec Burks.
Burks is going to play a big role on the Pistons next season and could surprise some people. I think he’ll be the veteran who most helps Cade Cunningham get to the next level.
Detroit Pistons: How the rookies will help Cade Cunningham
The Pistons got a huge boost of athleticism when they added Ivey and Duren who were two of the most athletic players in the draft. The Pistons are going to be a lot faster and play much more above the rim than they did last season, which should help Cade Cunningham thrive.
Jalen Duren
It’s hard to say if Duren will play right away next season. He definitely looked ahead of schedule on the offensive end, as he was moving well, setting quality screens and getting in position for lobs.
But he needs some polish on the defensive end and on the boards, where he will have to rely more on technique and hustle rather than just being the biggest player on the floor.
Duren probably won’t be a starter right away, and may not even be in the rotation to start the season, but he is going to help Cade before his rookie year is complete.
Like Noel, Duren’s shot blocking will provide some backup for the guards on defense, but I think his biggest impact on Cade Cunningham will be in transition and in the pick-and-roll.
Duren runs the floor well for someone his size and his going to make himself available for lobs that will get Cade some easy assists.
Same in the pick-and-roll, where teams are going to have to choose their poison and either go over the screen to stop Cade’s shooting or go under it to try and stop Duren rolling to the hoop, where he is a real threat.
Cunningham didn’t really have that last season, as Isaiah Stewart is not a good roll man and doesn’t have the size to go up and get the ball like Duren does.
Duren’s presence alone will get Cade Cunningham more open shots and some easy assists on lobs when teams try to sell out to stop Cade’s shooting.
Jaden Ivey
Of these four players, I think Ivey is going to help Cade the most. He will take some of the pressure off Cade to be the sole playmaker on offense, as Ivey is going to play plenty on the ball and has an electric first step that defenses are going to react to.
Ivey is going to get the attention of defenses, which should lead to more wide-open shots for Cade, something he didn’t get a lot of last season when he pretty much had to create for himself and often had two or three guys on him.
Ivey is going to make it tough to double team Cade Cunningham, and is going to get him a lot of open shots.
Like Duren, Ivey is also going to fly around in transition, giving Cade an outlet for passes off rebounds, something he loves to do. Cade can now crash the boards while Ivey takes off, giving Cade a few more easy assists on run outs.
Ivey’s gravity and speed are going to attract defenses away from Cade and the two should be able to play off each other’s strengths and make each other better.
Ivey will also benefit Cade on defense, as he is an underrated defender who can take on the quicker of the two guards so that Cunningham isn’t always stuck defending the other teams’ point guard.
This could be the next great Pistons’ backcourt and Cade is going to benefit greatly from the addition of Jaden Ivey.