Pump the brakes Pistons’ fans: It’s no time to panic

Bradley Beal #3 of the Washington Wizards shoots as Cade Cunningham #2 and Jaden Ivey #23 of the Detroit Pistons defend (Photo by Jess Rapfogel/Getty Images)
Bradley Beal #3 of the Washington Wizards shoots as Cade Cunningham #2 and Jaden Ivey #23 of the Detroit Pistons defend (Photo by Jess Rapfogel/Getty Images)
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Detroit Pistons, Pistons draft, Jaden Ivey
NBA commissioner Adam Silver (L) and Jaden Ivey pose for photos after Ivey was drafted with the 5th overall pick by the Detroit Pistons during the 2022 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 23, 2022 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

Detroit Pistons: Cade Cunningham is the foundation

Let us not forget, we just had the #1 overall pick; and we had it at a damned good time. LeBron James or Victor Wembanyama good? No. But remember that James, whose career is winding down, while absolutely glorious, still left 15 championships on the table so far. Even He, arguably the greatest to ever play the game, has only won 4 championships in 19 attempts. Hall-of-Fame, storybook stuff and yet it still left plenty of celebrating for the rest of the league. Wembanyama, is going to be a problem, and he’s not going to carry us to another championship of our own, but he’s not about to have a Bill Russell-like death grip on the Larry O’Brien trophy, either.

While a new chapter in Pistons history is just beginning, there is one closing in the Book of the NBA. Superstars like James, Steph Curry, Kawhi Leonard, and Kevin Durant are about to relinquish their own chokeholds on the league, no longer serving as gate-keepers, while a new generation emerges. The likes of Jayson Tatum, Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are set to take over, and while I’ll no doubt be called a homer by some, everything I’ve seen from our own #1 pick – Cade Cunningham, leads me to believe that he will soon belong in that echelon of excellence, and hopefully someday – greatness.

Cunningham’s season-ending surgery was disheartening, but not particularly devastating. Good came of it. We do have a pretty good asset in that #5 pick, whether we use it or trade it, and Jaden Ivey got to stretch himself more as a rookie without having to defer as much as he otherwise would have.