Cade Cunningham turned in yet another double-double with 25 points and 10 assists to lead the Pistons over the Hawks for their 11th straight victory. After missing 3 games with injury, Cade had a victorious debut and reminded the league of his status as Detroit's franchise star. Although other players are rapidly emerging to claim their own roles in the Pistons rebuild, Cade showed that he's still the centerpiece, especially in close games.
Cade had a dominant all-around game
In this game, Cade took an interesting approach. He was conservative looking for his own shot in the first half but was very active setting up his teammates. He went into halftime with a statline of 10 points on 3-of-6 shooting from the field and 8 assists. Throughout that first half, he consistently found open shooters for great 3-point looks and it paid off for the Pistons,
Then, Cade brought his typical scoring aggression and clutch gene in the fourth quarter when it was time to put the game out of reach. He scored 9 points in the final frame to lift the Pistons to another clutch victory. Although it was great for him to rest a few games without hurting the Pistons' win-loss record, his pure talent scoring the ball in tough situations cannot be replicated on the team. When the going gets tough, the Pistons turn to Cade Cunningham.
His two clutch shots in the last minute and a half of gameplay are representative of his ascension into true superstardom. The Pistons don't need to draw up a play for him to get a basket when they need it most; they can just get him an iso and watch him go to work. Cade is also figuring out how to preserve his energy for the fourth quarter better this season, and it will have major ramifications in the playoffs.
The Pistons are lucky to have a building block like Cade supporting the team. Not only is he a well-rounded offensive player who's rapidly erasing his few weaknesses, but he also gives defensive effort that's rare nowadays for a star of his caliber. In this return game, he had 2 steals and was active as a low-man help defender. With his size and instincts, Cade offers a lot of defensive value especially for a point guard.
Cade knows that the Pistons will only go as far as he can take them. The team's newfound depth is a great story and can lead to some feel-good regular season wins, but the burden will be on Cade in the playoffs and biggest moments. In his return game against the red-hot Hawks, he proved that he's ready for it and had another dominant performance.