Cade Cunningham has been great scoring the ball at all three levels in the playoffs, but found himself forced to rely on his 3-point shot for efficient offense in Game 6 against the Cavaliers. Cade seemed to lack his usual burst finishing at the rim, which could be concerning for a Pistons team that has heavily relied on him to carry their offense. Fortunately, Detroit was able to get the win and force a Game 7 thanks to Cade's teammates stepping up and his own proficiency as an outside shooter.
Cade had a very surprising scoring profile in Game 6
Overall, Cunningham shot just 7-of-19 from the field in Game 6, but was able to salvage his efficiency by hitting 5 of his 10 attempts from three-point range. He also had a larger impact on the team's offense with his effective playmaking, which helped struggling teammate Jalen Duren break out of a historic funk. But Cunningham's struggles to finish at the rim or consistently get separation in the midrange could sneakily raise some red flags heading into Game 7.
Of course, Cade has been a prolific scorer in this year's playoffs even though that's not his usual game. His playmaking has taken a hit as opposing defenses have keyed in on his teammates, but Cade has kept the Pistons offense afloat by making tough shots. However, it's hard to win deep into the playoffs without consistently being able to generate easier looks too.
Cade does a good job of creating easy looks for teammates with his passing, whether it's hitting shooters on kickouts or slipping passes to rollers attacking the rim. But he wasn't able to create or hit many easy shots for himself on Friday night. Having to primarily rely on making tough threes for the vast majority of your points (15 of his 21 points came on threes) is typically not a winning playoff recipe unless you're Stephen Curry.
The Pistons need more reliable offense from Cade
There's always going to be a degree of luck involved with relying on outside shooting and the Pistons can't afford to go that route with their current roster. Instead, they will need Cade and his teammates to finish well at the rim.
There may be some changes needed to get Cade's finishing numbers back up, such as having others handle the ball to decrease his workload or more player movement to occupy defensive attention. But another game where Cade finishes 2-of-9 inside the arc, including 1-of-5 at the rim, is just asking for trouble on the Pistons' part.
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