6 Pistons trade and free agent targets with ties to Cade Cunningham
![Dec 10, 2021; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) drives against Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) in the second quarter at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports Dec 10, 2021; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) drives against Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) in the second quarter at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4534,h_2550,x_0,y_10/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/67/01hzpm3wpkvnmgy77fd8.jpg)
The Detroit Pistons biggest mistake since drafting Cade Cunningham is not doing enough to put a quality team around him.
They’ve drafted ill-fitting players, surrounded him with guys who can’t shoot, haven’t added any impact free agents and have mostly traded for busts or veterans who were way past their prime.
This is a mistake they can’t repeat, so you can bet that this summer will be about getting the right guys around Cade.
That could include trades or free-agent acquisitions of players to whom he has some type of relationship. Don’t get it wrong, Cade is not LeBron James, he’s not at the point in his career to make demands.
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But it wouldn’t hurt to keep him happy, so here are some trade and free-agent targets who have some kind of relationship with Cade Cunningham, even if it is tenuous.
6 Pistons trade and free agent targets with ties to Cade Cunningham
Kira Lewis Jr. (restricted free agent)
If Troy Weaver were still in charge, Kira Lewis Jr. might be at the top of his offseason list, as an undersized tweener guard who can’t shoot and is a bust from the 2020 Draft.
Lewis Jr’s career has been plagued with injury thus far, as he hasn’t played more than 28 games in a season since showing promise as a rookie.
He’s lightning quick and can defend some, but he’s not a long-range shooter and he’s 6-foot-1. Trajan Langdon drafted him, so he is familiar with his work, and so is Cade Cunningham, as the two were teammates on the USA U19 team back in 2019.
That said, he’s very unlikely to come to Detroit or even be in the league next season.
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl ($2.1 million team option)
Another teammate from that U19 Team USA squad, JRE also has ties to Trajan Langdon from his brief time in New Orleans.
He’s a junkyard dog type player who doesn’t do any one thing well, a scrappy glue guy type who doesn’t put up big numbers.
If the Pistons have a deep bench spot open, he’s a possibility on a minimum deal, but it’s more likely Detroit goes with someone else, despite his ties to Cunningham and Langdon.
Now onto some possible trade targets with ties to Cade Cunningham.