Cade Cunningham is about to cost the Detroit Pistons a lot of money.
Cunningham gets a bump in salary if he makes the All-NBA team, something that looks even more likely after the NBA MVP results were released.
Cunningham put himself in good company, finishing a surprising 7th in the voting just behind LeBron James.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander took home the award, which was no surprise, with Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum and Donovan Mitchell completing the top five.
Cunningham tied in the voting with Anthony Edwards, who just led his team to the Western Conference Finals for the second straight season.
Seeing the two tied in the MVP voting sparks an interesting debate about which star you’d rather have for the long term.
Cade Cunningham vs. Anthony Edwards
You can’t go wrong with either of these players, as they are both huge talents who work hard and play with a competitive edge.
Edwards has clearly had the better career so far, with three All-Star appearances and one All-NBA (about to be two) selection in five seasons, while Cunningham just made his first All-Star team (and likely All-NBA) in his fourth.
Edwards has also enjoyed more team success, as he’s always had a better team around him. Minnesota didn’t waste time surrounding Edwards with good players, something the Pistons have only recently copped onto after a change of front office.
When you compare the numbers, they aren’t far apart, as Edwards enjoys a slight edge in scoring and 3-point shooting, but that’s about it.
Tell me which player you’d rather have:
Player A: 27.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists on 44/39/83 shooting splits
Player B: 26.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 9.1 assists on 47/35/84 shooting splits
Like I said, you can’t go wrong, but you can certainly make an argument that Cunningham (obviously player B) had the better individual season of the two. The point is more that Cade has put himself in the conversation with the league’s best players whether you prefer Edwards or not.
Cunningham proved this season that he can lead a team to the playoffs, but now he must take the next step and make a deep playoff run as Edwards has done in Minnesota.
If the Pistons continue to improve, Cunningham is going to get more individual attention and may climb this MVP ladder, possibly even overtaking Edwards in the voting as soon as next season.
But Cade is not there yet, and it will take sustained success for him to get there, something the Pistons hope started this season.