Cade Cunningham made the leap to star last season when he made third team All-NBA and led the Detroit Pistons to the playoffs, but he’s now launching to superstar, both on and off the court.
The Pistons are off to an incredible start, and Cade has already logged huge games with numbers that will have him back on the All-NBA team and in the MVP discussions.
He’s averaging 27.5 points, 10 assists, 5.4 rebounds and 1.4 steals, getting it done on both ends. The wild thing is that he’d probably tell you he hasn’t even played all that well yet, as he is off to a slow start shooting the ball.
The only number Cunningham cares about is one, which is the place the Pistons are currently inhabiting in the Eastern Conference, even though he’s had to miss games with a hip injury.
Cunningham has emerged as a superstar on the court and is in the argument for best guard in the East, but he’s also getting some honors off the court that cement his superstar status.
Cade Cunningham signs monster shoe deal with Nike
According to Shams Charania of ESPN, Cade Cunningham has signed a new six-year deal with Nike and will get his own signature shoe, which will be released sometime next season:
Detroit Pistons superstar Cade Cunningham has reached a new six-year endorsement agreement to re-sign with Nike – and will receive his own signature shoe with the brand, his representatives at Excel Sports Management told ESPN. His signature shoe is expected to debut in 2026-27. pic.twitter.com/de148Y9sVk
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 17, 2025
This is a big deal, as Nike doesn’t just hand out signature shoes. In fact, Cade is just the 6th active player to have his own shoe with Nike, and he’ll be joining some names you might have heard of in LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Devin Booker and Ja Morant.
Nike is clearly trying to cover the entire range of ages here, as they have older Hall-of-Famers like LeBron and KD, established stars in Booker and Giannis and the next generation in Cunningham.
There has been endless talk about who the next face of the NBA is, a topic I couldn’t really care less about, as it’s not something I consider when I’m watching basketball games, but Nike is betting that guy is going to be Cade and why not?
Now that he has his own shoe and is leading a team that people are finally paying attention to, it’s time for Cunningham to get that hip right and get back in the rotation, as the good vibes the Pistons are riding will fade quickly if they can’t get healthy.
With the Eastern Conference wide open this season, we could see Cunningham on a much bigger stage, which is exactly what Nike is banking on.