What is Cade Cunningham thinking as extension with Pistons approaches?
Cade Cunningham has one more season left on his current contract with the Detroit Pistons.
He is eligible to sign a max extension this summer and almost certainly will. I've had a lot of fans claim that "Cade won't sign!" or "Cade is going to demand out!" Want to bet?
No star player has ever declined to sign a max rookie extension, as it would be foolish. It would be leaving a lot of money on the table and players know they can just demand a trade later anyway, so why would they give up the extra money?
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Cunningham will sign his extension this summer, but he has to be looking at the landscape of his team and the NBA as a whole and wondering if he should be planning his exit strategy.
The Detroit Pistons' roster around Cade Cunningham
The Pistons have won just 52 games total in Cunningham's three seasons. I am sure he knew there would be an adjustment period, but I doubt he thought his team would be this bad four years into their rebuild.
In the last game, in which Cade Cunningham scored 32 points, the Pistons started Jalen Duren, Marcus Sasser, Tosan Evbuomwan and Chimezie Metu alongside him. I doubt any star player (including Cunningham) has played with a worse supporting cast over the last four years.
If I'm Cade, I'm looking at this roster and wondering when my GM is going to start filling it with NBA players who can help me win. If I'm Cade, I'm wondering why my team's big offseason addition was Joe Harris. If I'm Cade, I'm wondering how I am supposed to win with this team regardless of how well I play. If I'm Cade, I'm wondering if help is ever coming.
And I'm asking myself how long I can put up with complete front-office incompetence given where the other young teams in the league are headed.