We’ve seen Cade Cunningham catch on fire this season. His performance on the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday was different, though.
Cunningham matched his career-high with 34 points, and scored 29 in the second half and 17 in the fourth quarter.
The Detroit Pistons, without Jerami Grant for the second game in a row due to a left calf strain, couldn’t keep pace with the playoff-bound Nets, losing on the road, 130-123.
But the night will be remembered by fans as one of the best performances of Cunningham’s young career.
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The No. 1 pick in last summer’s draft was efficient, knocking down 13 of his 24 shots and dishing six assists. Isaiah Stewart had a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, Saddiq Bey scored 15 points and Killian Hayes added 13 points, four steals and made his first six shots of the game.
Despite Cunningham’s heroics, the Nets ultimately had more firepower. The Pistons led by as many as 12 in the first half, but a 28-12 Nets run allowed them to take an 84-76 lead midway through the third. Brooklyn was led by a red-hot Kevin Durant, who finished with 41 points on 14-for-23 shooting and 11 rebounds.
The Pistons rallied back, and a reverse layup by Cunningham tied the game at 108 with 5:10 to play in the fourth quarter. But Brooklyn closed the game with a 22-15 run to clinch the victory.
Cade Cunningham injures back, then heats up
After playing the entire first quarter, it appeared Cunningham might’ve been done for the game. He suffered a hard fall toward the end of the period, and the Pistons later announced that he was questionable to return with to a tailbone contusion. Cunningham played on, however, checking back in with 47 seconds left before halftime and starting the third quarter.
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After a somewhat slow start — Cunningham scored five points on 2-for-6 shooting in the opening period with five assists — he found his groove. He went shot-for-shot with Brooklyn and did his best to keep the Pistons in a game that ultimately slipped away from them.
We’ve seen it time and time again this season — Cunningham has the clutch gene. His fourth quarter was arguably his best quarter of basketball this season, as he scored his 17 points on just nine shots, knocking down six, over the final 5 minutes, 9 seconds of the game.
He reached the 30-point threshold with a deep 3-pointer with about a minute to play, and added a pair of free throws within the final minute to tie his career-high. Cunningham scored all but 12 of Detroit’s points in the fourth quarter. It was an exclamation point to what’s been a strong finish to a potential Rookie of the Year season. Entering the game, Cunningham averaged 21.3 points, 6.7 assists and 6.5 rebounds in 15 games since the All-Star break.
Isaiah Stewart continues embracing 3-ball
On Sunday, Stewart knocked down two of his three 3-point attempts. It was the first time this season he knocked down multiple triples in a game, and only the second time this season he took three in a game.
He matched that output on Tuesday, knocking down two 3-pointers in the first six minutes of the game and finishing the game 2-for-3 from behind-the-arc. Stewart’s 3-point attempts are down from last season, but he’s starting to launch more of them as the season winds down. It was his second-straight game starting alongside Marvin Bagley III, and he’s doing his part to make the partnership work.
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa. The Free Press has started a new digital subscription model. Here’s how you can gain access to our most exclusive Pistons content. Read more on the Detroit Pistons and sign up for our Pistons newsletter.