The Detroit Pistons had plenty of question marks coming into the season but none bigger than their young backcourt of Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey.
Both players had shown star potential at times, but there were always questions of fit, as both guys liked to play on the ball, neither defended well or shot the 3-ball at a high rate.
Trade rumors swirled around Jaden Ivey all offseason, and it turns out that the biggest move for Trajan Langdon may have been the one he didn’t make.
Whatever questions we had about fit between Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey are being answered early on in the 2024-25 season.
Cade Cunnigham and Jaden Ivey: Ending the narrative
The fit between these two has been the dominant narrative around the team for the last three seasons.
Could Ivey defend well enough? Could he be efficient off the ball? Could he make 3-point shots? Should he come off the bench?
Ivey has answered those in mostly resounding fashion so far this season, averaging 19.6 points per game on 46 percent from the floor and 39 percent from 3-point range on 5.1 attempts per game, all career highs.
His defense is still a work in progress, but the effort has been there. Ivey has been much more active, is occasionally picking up guards full court, which has been effective, flashing into passing lanes and getting more steals.
He’s averaging a steal per game, highest of his career, and though his perimeter defense has been bad at times, there are signs of improvement and when a guy is giving you 20 efficient points per night, you can live with that.
Cade Cunningham has also been more efficient, hitting 48 percent overall and 37.5 from long range on six attempts per game.
His defense has also been noticeably better, as he is getting nearly a block per game (highest of his career) and has also been more active on tougher assignments.
Cunningham played solid defense on LeBron James last night, held his ground and made the King take some tough shots. LeBron did have 20 points, but it took him 16 shots to get them and most of them were contested.
Cunningham and Ivey have a 115 offensive rating as a duo with a 109 defensive rating for a +6 net, which is the 3rd-best of any duo behind Cade/Stew (+9) and Ivey/Harris (+6.2), which is a great sign, as in the past Cade and Ivey were both better when the other was off the court.
Both guards were clutch last night against the Lakers, another big lingering concern, as the Pistons have long had a problem closing out games. It was Cade with the clutch hook in the paint last night and Ivey sealing it with a 3-pointer, great signs for the young duo.
They haven’t been perfect, and there are certainly areas they can improve, but Cade and Ivey look like a sustainable backcourt when they have a good coach and more shooters around them.